Finding a New Place to Live

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When I found out my husband was cheating on me, there was actual relief. That might sound odd, but it was actually very liberating, I had not been happy in a very long time, and I was happy to have the excuse I needed to change the way my life was. The first thing I did was go online to look at apartments for rent in Lewisville TX. I wanted to have everything ready before I told him I was leaving, because I knew he would try to change my mind.

It took me a few hours to look over all the apartments that I could find in Lewisville, which is where I used to live before getting married. It had been 12 years though, and there were a lot more options since I had been living there. I wanted to see as many as possible, but I kept going back to the apartments at Toscana Valley Ridge. I just needed something small, but that didn’t mean that I wanted something uncomfortable. Continue reading →

I Love Living Near My Job and the Beach

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I had always wanted to live the beach life, but never had a chance until after I graduated from school and got a job in Tampa. I knew that I could not afford a million-dollar home on the beach, but at least I would be close enough to hit the beach on the weekends. I wanted to live in one of the downtown Tampa apartments that I had been looking at. I would be very close to work, but still close enough to the water to be happy.

I was not sure if I would love downtown life, but I really like it. It is nice to be able to walk home from work and be in my apartment in just 10 minutes or so. Continue reading →

Making the Work Area Safer

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I take my business very seriously. I know there are a lot of owners of companies that let others handle most things, but I like to get my hands dirty, so to speak. When there was an accident at one of our locations, I went there myself to find out what had happened. A worker escaped serious injury when one of the ladders to the roof came lose while he was on it. I wanted to make sure nothing like that ever happened again, so I did a search for a fixed access ladder. I also went and examined the other locations in person and saw that the potential for the same kind of accident was present at quite a few of them. Continue reading →

Started on the Bathroom Remodeling Plans

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shower doors in Essex county NJThe first thing is to figure out what we are going to do and how much money we are going to be willing to put in to this. It is not like you can not plow tons of cash in to this sort of project. In theory we would like to do as much of it as we can by ourselves, but some of it might not be that practical. For instance we found this place that has a good deal on some really nice tempered glass shower doors in Essex county NJ, but we are looking at this thing and we were asking the guy in the store if he knew how to install it. Continue reading →

Spinal Decompression for Herniated Disc and Back Pain

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Do you suffer from herniated disc back pain? Non-surgical spinal decompression is a non-invasive treatment option that may provide the relief you need. At the Back Pain and Herniated Disc Treatment Centers, we carefully diagnose the condition causing your back pain, and create a personalized treatment regimen based on your unique needs. Call today to request a consultation.

What is Spinal Decompression?
There are two forms of spinal decompression: surgical and non-surgical. Non-surgical spinal decompression is gaining popularity because it is a non-invasive procedure that often provides a marked improvement in back pain, with little or no recovery time required.

Non-surgical spinal decompression is much lower risk, and can be considered a more conservative treatment option, whereas surgical spinal decompression is used only after all other treatment options have failed to provide relief.

  • Non-surgical Spinal Decompression: Non-surgical spinal decompression stretches the spine to facilitate relief of pressure to affected nerves and body structures, thus reducing pain and supporting the body’s natural healing process. This is typically accomplished using a traction table or similar motorized device, and is a service offered by many chiropractors.
  • Surgical Spinal Decompression: Surgical spinal decompression is much more complex, and attempts to rectify back pain by physically removing part of the vertebral bone to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or other affected nerves, as in a laminectomy.  This procedure requires hospitalization and a lengthy recovery. Microdiscectomy is a less invasive version of this procedure, where a tiny incision is made and specialized surgical tools are used in combination with computer imaging to perform the surgery. Consequently, risks associated with surgical procedures are greatly reduced, and recovery time is significantly less.

What Back Pain Conditions Benefit Most from Spinal Decompression?
Back pain conditions that are caused by pressure to a nerve or the spinal cord benefit most from spinal decompression. Herniated lumbar discs, bulging discs, spinal stenosis, degenerative discs, facet syndrome, or sciatica are all examples.

Where Can I Find Spinal Decompression Therapy for Back Pain?
Non-surgical spinal decompression is offered by many chiropractors. Surgical spinal decompression requires a skilled orthopedic surgeon. At the Back Pain and Herniated Disc Treatment Centers, we offer a wide range of treatments or a Correct mattress for back pain from chiropractic methodologies to traditional medicine.

The TLC Kitchen Reviews

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The TLC Kitchen provides pre-packaged meals, but not in the traditional sense that you are used to. You can send off pre-packaged meals to those around you for a variety of occasions. With the TLC Kitchen coupons, you can save money on gift giving for the arrival of a newborn, to help a loved one get well or as sympathy food for someone dealing with a hardship in their life.

Many of the meals are packaged as a complete meal so the recipient doesn’t have to provide anything else to get dinner on the table. The meals usually feed 4 to 6 people, include an entrée, two side dishes, bread as well as a delicious dessert.

The TLC Kitchen helps you to maintain the timeless tradition of bringing food over to a family when they don’t have the time to do it themselves. Whether it’s because of a newborn entering the house, they’re sick or they have lost a loved one, you can continue this tradition – even if you don’t live locally. The food is shipped out all over the country and is delivered in 1 to 3 days depending on where the recipients are located.
You don’t have to send flowers or chocolates. You can choose something more personal that they can heat and enjoy. For the same price as what you would pay for flowers, you can use The TLC Kitchen coupons to send delicious food to their table instead. It will be much more appreciated and the instructions on the food tell them all they have to do in order to enjoy everything that you have sent.
 
There’s no need for you to do any of the cooking to get the food over there. Whether you live next door or clear across the country, you have the capability of sending food. More importantly, it will be good food, ensuring you’re not only warming their stomachs but warming their hearts at the same time.
 
The meals will arrive frozen, ensuring the family you are sending to has the ability to place the food in their own freezer and cook it when they are ready. This way, if they are inundated with food, they can savor yours when they have time – not right away. This is a more thoughtful way to send food because they choose when they want to enjoy it.
 
There will then be heating instructions that they can follow. You can even send a personalized message with the food you choose with The TLC Kitchen coupon codes. This ensures you are able to send a complete package to friends or loved ones and they know who to say thank you to when they receive it.
 
Pre-packaged meals are getting more and more popular. They aren’t just for people who want to lose weight anymore. The TLC Kitchen is all about good food that has been created from a USDA approved kitchen. The comfort foods that you can choose from are delicious and made with quality ingredients. That’s their promise to you.

Traditions Meal Solutions Review

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Advertised on their home page as “dining at its finest,” Traditions Meal Solutions offers consumers the benefit of affordable and nutritious meals that bring excitement to the dinner table. Their menu is targeted at the needs of seniors, offering frozen and shelf-stable prepared meals.

Their meals are advertised as nutritional, providing a minimum of 625 calories, and no more than 1,350 mg of sodium.

Traditions Meal Solutions Meal Plans
 
Traditions offers four meal plansthat include ten meals in each package. Consumers may choose between:
 
  • Southern Delights
  • Comfort Classics
  • Hearty Cravings
  • Mix It Up
Each meal plan costs $69.95, or $6.99 per meal. Through their “Private Pay” program, any consumer can purchase these meal plans for themselves or an aging family member.
Unlike most meal delivery services, Traditions Meal Solutions includes dry milk, bread slices, fruit juice, and margarine to add to the daily meal plan.
 
However, unlike most meal delivery services, someone has to be home to sign for the delivery, which can be a little inconvenient. Customer service is exceptional though, as they send you many emails or even call you to confirm the time of your shipping delivery so you are available to sign for the shipment.
At this time there are no Traditions Meal Solutions Coupons available, however, their meals are very inexpensive compared to other meal delivery services. As soon as any Traditions Meal Solutions Coupon Codes become available, we will be happy to share them with you.
 
Other prepared meal delivery services that offer coupons include Home Bistro and DineWise.
Chicken Parmesan
 
The chicken patty was the definition of manufactured or processed. There was not enough sauce to cover the patty, and there was no cheese to warrant calling this meal parmesan. See the white gravy substance on the plate?  Those are mashed potatoes so runny you would have to eat them with a spoon. The vegetables are frozen speed-rack.
Meatloaf
 
It may technically be meat, but this meatloaf tasted more like a microwave beef sandwich you could buy at a gas station, then a slice of homemade meatloaf. Again, this meal was not any better than a $1 frozen meal you could buy at the market on sale.  I did not think this meal was not worth anything near what I paid for it.
Country Fried Steak
 
I would not agree this meal is worth anything near twhat I paid for it, but the Chicken Fried Steak, (really a Chicken Chopped Steak) did have a decent flavor for a meal of this low quality. The mixed vegetables are right out of a frozen bag, and once again, my instant mashed potatoes never reheated into anything close to a solid. 
Lasagna
 
This was another low quality meal, but it might be worth $2. The sauce is runny and flavorless, and the lasagna noodles had a chalky taste to them. There was some real ground beef sprinkled on top, but no parmesan cheese. The serving size is small, and the Brussels Spouts could have been trimmed. Maybe I am marking on a curve, but a fair meal I would not recommend.
I am a family caregiver for my Mother and my Grandmother, so I think of myself as an expert on senior and elderly meal services. The only suggestion I would have for Traditions Meal Solutions is to provide customers the ability to choose the meals they want instead of having to pick a meal plan. The challenge I have with my elderly Grandmother is getting to eat enough calories a day, and starting with a meal she doesn’t’ care for, makes getting her to eat a full meal all the more challenging.
Ham and Bean Dinner
 
I couldn’t get my Mother or Grandmother to eat this meal, and I would not have selected it had it not been bundled in a package. The ham and beans came out very watery, like maybe this was supposed to be a soup. I thought the bits of ham were okay and not near as salty as I expected. There are not many beans, as you can see in the picture, and the mixed vegetables were flooded in water. The diced sweet potatoes were actually very good, but I am not giving you much feedback from whom the meals were intended.
Chicken Pattie Meal
 
The print for heating these meals is beyond tiny. It is very hard to see if it says 6 minutes or 8 minutes. After 6 minutes everything was hot, but the chicken patty didn’t reheat as well as the vegetables. The edges were hard and crusty and exceeded what my Grandmother could chew. She did eat the center of the patty and most of the mixed vegetables. My mother ate the lima beans because my Grandmother doesn’t care for them. In all honesty, I have purchased chicken patties like this in a roll of 20 at Costco, but this meal was okay.
Beef Pattie
 
Both my Mother and Grandmother had higher opinions of this meal than I did, but to see a smile on their faces made it well worth using just their feedback. They both loved the beef pattie and the black-eyed peas. My Grandmother loved the spinach, but you can see the amount of water that make it to the plate during reheating. 
Cheese Omelet Meal
 
This meal went over great with my Mother and Grandmother. I have had prepared meal delivery breakfast meals before, and I think this one was good compared to others I have tried, but Mom and Gram insisted on giving this meal four stars. Asparagus for breakfast seemed a little odd to me, but they liked the idea. I guess you can’t get a better review than one coming from the people these meals are intended for. The meal reheated well at 6 minutes.
Chicken Dumplings
 
The official name of this meal is Diced Dark and White Chicken Meat with Dumpling Pasta and Gravy, which may be as close to Chicken and Dumplings as this meal gets. Its unappetizing name is equally matched by its appearance and taste.  The mixed vegetables are standard fare you can find in the frozen food section of your market, as are the diced peaches which taste much better cold than they do heated in a microwave for eight minutes. The labels are very hard to read, and you have to be home to sign for the delivery.
 
Chili Mac
 
This meal looks a lot better than it tastes. In fact, there is no taste. I might have given this meal a silver medal for its looks, but sampled one spoonful of each of these meal components and tossed in the garbage. The sauce is watery, which is a trend I am seeing with this meals. The macaroni is mushy and there is not even a hint of chili flavor. The label says diced carrots with sauce. There was sauce on the carrots? And it also says there was sauce on the green beans. Maybe their intent was good, but this was poor execution.
BBQ Beef Brisket
 
I can honestly say I don’t believe I have had a good beef brisket from a meal delivery service, but this one was outstanding. The shredded brisket wasn’t all dried out, the BBQ sauce didn’t taste jarred, and it had a nice little spicy zing to it. I wish the portion size was larger, but for a meal under $7, and considering the cost of brisket these days, I think this meal is quite a value. There is enough to pile on a fresh hard roll and have a really good BBQ Beef sandwich.
 
The mixed vegetables probably came out of a 55 gallon drum, but those little fried potatoes were darn good, too. There was a nice little crust on the bottom side of them, and a hint of onion powder. That little attention to detail made me change my vote from a silver medal to a gold medal. Too bad you can’t order more of just this meal, because I would order it again. 

Send A Meal Reviews

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Send A Meal is a food company that specializes in family sized servings. Not everything on the menu is prepared, so be sure to check the heating instructions before you buy.  Entrees, sides, and vegetables are sold in three to four servings per item.

There are no single meals available.   This meal service is an online company that strives in providing fully prepared gourmet meals nationwide so there is always time for a meal.

This company offers many different service plans from 2 day delivery plans to weekly plans in which you get to choose a new meal everyday for a full week.  Each prepared dish feeds four or more people; however, each is able to be frozen for up to six months.  If you are looking for an individual meal, simply divide it up evenly and place the rest in the occasions such as birthday or anniversaries, Send a Meal offers the choice of gift certificates and gourmet food gifts that can be received through the mail same day if ordered before a specific time or through email and then printed out.  Free shipping also applies to all special occasion orders.  Located on the gift certificate is a list of meals to choose from and how to redeem them.  Once selected, your order will be shipped via standard ground shipping.  Additional charges apply if the food product is expected sooner.

Though theyl guarantee deliveries nationwide, certain restrictions do apply.  However, home deliveries are guaranteed to arrive when specified.  Shipping is refunded if the meal arrives late if there is a failure of the carrier to make the delivery.

Send A Meal Reviews

Why Allow Special Instructions If You Don’t Use Them?
 
I Use this service to send a thanksgiving meal to my daughter that is college, Now before I made the order I called the company and verified with them to see if they could deliver to a campus if I give them the building and room number in which they told me YES. So I place the order as well as put in special instruction to call her when they get close so she can meet them, that way it’s easier on both parties. Well that’s when it all went down hill,
 
My daughter call me checking up on the order in which I told her it was delivered and didn’t she get a phone call. She tell me no one call her and it’s not at the front office, therefore I made a phone call to SendAMeal informing them of the situation. They said it was delivered and signed for; that’s when I inform them they was suppose to call her per SPCIAL INSTRUCTION ON THERE WEB SITE !!, while not only did my daughter not get a phone call but they delivered it but to the other side of the campus. Now my daughter had to find a security guard to let her in the office her delivery was sent to because this was THANKSGIVING BREAK and 90% of campus staff was gone, lucky she was able to get her food and enjoy her thanksgiving but the hassle she had to go through to get it was unacceptable. What’s even worst was SendAMeal send me a email saying Item was delivered and their not responsible for the driver calling the customer ahead of time.
 
Now my question is what is the point of having special instruction if you don’t use them and second if you know your third party delivery system will not perform the task at hand, why didn’t SendAMeal have one of there people call the recipient and let them know it’s on it way? That would have made me a father not seeing there kid for thanksgiving feel a whole lot better. Therefore I will never use this company again.
A Complete Disappointment
 
I used Send a Meal to place an order for a good friend who was homebound due to a medical condition.  In filling out the order, the postal system generated an error in the mailing address. As a result, the food never got to the proper address. But what was most frustrating was that there was absolutely no attempt make to contact me even though I had put down my own phone number as the person to contact to obtain the delivery.
 
IN trying to resolve the situation, all customer service did was send me an email saying they are not liable for the order and that they have already charged my credit card and could rectify it for me by charging me another full price (over $200)
 
So I am out over $200 and have no product received or even any communication received about any issues.
 
This was a complete disappointment to me.
Save Your Money
 
I ordered an Anniversary meal for my brother and sister in law, but they sent me the info on how to redeem the voucher, they have no way of contacting a live person to straighten it out, so I have to say, please save your money and go elsewhere!
Won’t Hesitate Coming Back
 
I used them for my parents in IL in 2010 and 2011 and had only positive experiences.  5 meals both times.  It arrived when it was supposed to and my parents loved it.  I was shocked reading the other reviews. I tried a new (organic) place this year and if it doesn’t go well I won’t hesitate coming back to this meal service.
No Phone Number
 
I ordered a meal for my 93 year old mother so she would have something to eat on Mother’s Day. It was scheduled to arrive on May 11, 2012. It actually arrived on May 15, 2012. There is no phone contact at all. Next time I will order directly from the actual vendor Omaha Steaks and save about 50% on the meal ($19.99 vs. $39.95).
Warning: Send A Meal Doesn’t Have Any of its Own Food
I placed a recent order with them for some gourmet prepared meals and was shocked to find my entire order came from Omaha Steaks. I went back to the website and found this tiny mention of it:
 
“The main concept behind Send a Meal is to bring the best prepared foods in various gourmet styles from vendors online into one location. We supply high quality meals from companies such and Omaha Steaks, Lobster Gram and many more.”
 
I would image its cheaper to buy Omaha Steaks products from Omaha Steaks instead of going through them. It seems strange to me that a food website doesn’t have any of its own food.
 
I paid $45.97 for lasagna, string beans, and a tiramisu cake which was on special, orginally priced at $62.95. At Omaha Steaks, the same package would have cost me $34.97. You can save 20% just by going to Omaha Steaks.
The Food Was Okay
For the price of the meals, I was a little taken aback by the what you get compared what is shown on the website. The food was okay, but I would have liked to try a few individual meals instead of having to buy in bulk. Maybe I would have gotten a better selection.
 
The food didn’t warm up as well and as equally as I am accustomed to with someone else. I didn’t know they were leaving the box at my door, so it ended up staying outside all night. 
I Will Look For Other Vendors
I have placed two orders with them. One was successful, the second was hugely disappointing.  Due to some snafu, an order I placed on 2/22 requesting a 2nd day delivery ended up being recorded by them with an anticipated delivery date of 3/16.
 
When I notified them, they did not acknowledge there could have been an error or attempt to reassure me about their monitoring web orders and service.  Why on earth would a customer choose to pay extra for 2nd day ground delivery for an order placed nearly 3 weeks in the future?  Based on this past experience, I will look for other comparable vendors for this type of service.  
I Will Not Use Them Again
I ordered this for a family member so he would have something to eat when he arrived home from the Hospital. Scheduled to arrive on the 8th, it is now the 11th. They still have not received it. Will not use again. There is no phone contact at all.

Schwans Reviews

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Schwans delivery service offers cooked and uncooked meals and meal components. They use their own delivery trucks to maintain their customer base.

They do offer some prepared meals, and that is what we are most interested in. They are a hard to find on their website, so read read the heating instructions!

They recently launched a Top Chef line of prepared meals, based on the popular TV show. We’d love to hear from anyone who has tried those.  We had to use the “search” feature to find them on their website.  If you have tried their Home Service, we invite you to share your experience by submitting 

The company also has the Live Smart program, which denotes products that are healthier for customers.  One can also choose a heart health plan or a diabetes friendly plan to help them find products that are suitable for their health focused lifestyles.
 
Their website is categorized so that one can search for the food of their choice, including fruits and vegetables, meats, seafood, entrees, pizza, pasta, sides, appetizers, snacks, ice cream, beverages, desserts, and more.  Customers can also choose the Super Saver or Specials option to help them find good deals on their favorite foods.  Families with kids can check out the Kids Favorites menu to find food for meticulous eaters. 

Schwans Coupons and Coupon Codes

Schwans Food Company previously hadn’t offered regular online couponsand coupon codes. Instead they had a rewards program that gives you points based on your order, which save you an additional 5% on your future orders. There is a coupon page on their website at this time, though, which features current coupons, future coupons, and coupon code “FC” which allows customers to save 10% on one order. Learn more about Schwans coupons, and Schwans Coupon Codes.

Two biggest pluses are convenience and healthy eating. Love replacing meals out with steak and salmon at home. Same goes for Asian meals. We also buy alot of fish that cooks quickly for lunches. The most versatile item sold is the diced chicken. We try to live SMART.

Had a very nice first experience with all aspects of Schwans.  Ordered beef tips which were a little salty but I just added unsalted rice and the taste was really good. Frozen vegetables are like Birds Eye at the grocery store (just larger-sized pieces). The driver was very nice and suggested some Easter desserts. Guess you do have to be careful with your orders but I am “fed up” (no pun intended) with the poor quality products in grocery stores –especially meat!!! I plan to continue my business with this company. So far-so good.

I recieved a slab of Schwan’s Baby Back Ribs as a birthday gift. My aunt is a regular Schwan customer and she knew I am a fan of baby back ribs.
They were the most awful ribs I have ever had. I don’t know what cut of meat these were but they sure weren’t like any baby backs I have ever had in a restaurant or prepared myself. They were grissly with all this cartlige running through them. They were tough and chewy. Certainly not the “fall-off-the-bone” experience I expected for the outragous cost.
So this was my first experience buying from them, but not my first experience eating their products. I have several family members that order from them and I remember how good their ice cream was. I placed a large order ($250+). (I have three boys that eat a lot.) The website is easy to navigate and I appreciate that they list the nutrition information.
My spouse and I work several hours each week and appreciate the “help” from some of precooked meals as well as their other products. I had one issue with a delivery date that was resolved with a phone call. I had set delivery for 1/7 between 11-1. I received an email 2 days before stating the delivery would be on 1/9 from 9m-7pm. I called customer service and explained the issue. The rep was very nice and fixed the issue. The delivery came as originally scheduled. The driver was very nice and made recommendations on a few other things I was eyeing in the catalog. I appreciate his honesty.
 
For those complaining about portions, that is the recommended portion size. You can balance it out with a vegetable or salad or bread. For those complaining about fat and sodium content…what are you comparing this to? Have you looked at other frozen meals or products? I don’t think it’s any worse than any other product, but the taste is much better.
 
The frozen veggies taste much better. For example, I made a dish with the mixed veggies and have always hated frozen green beans in them because they taste tough. These tasted fresh. I was pleasantly pleased. The tater tots crisp better in the oven than other products. The frozen wheat bread dough is wonderful as fresh baked bread and doesn’t last more than a day in my house.
 
The beer battered cod is really good…better than the stuff at the store.  There is going to be unhappy people in any spectrum. Am I paying more than if I was at the grocery store? Probably. But it tastes better. Plus, if i were to go out to eat with my family, how much would it cost me? Without alcohol, its at least $50 a meal (unless we go to fast food, which is rare). I can cook a much healthier meal that tastes equally good for less than half. To each their own.
Have you ever checked the ingredients. Talk about toxic and using the least expensive ingredients and charging the most for an inferior product.
 
I live in Maine one of the more overweight states, with a large population of seniors. MANY of the products contain aluminum which as been proven to cause Alzheimer’s, not to mention high sodium and carb counts.
 
In my opinion, if you care about your health stay away from their products no matter how convenient their door to door service may be or how tasty an occassional product might be.
 
In all fairness when I did complain to the company my money was refunded. When I commented that I would need to see a list of ingredients BEFORE I purchased anything, they said that was not possible.
I was very disappointed with my food order. I found quite a different between the pictures shown on their website and the actual meals I received. I also found almost all of the plastic seal was broken on the trays. One one meal in particular, the contents of the sauce looked like it leaked into the box before it was frozen.
Live Smart Beef Portablla Dinner for Two
I literally found nine cubes of beef no larger than a 1/2 inch. In the picture, you can see they occupy the lower left corner of the tray. The beef was exceptional, but four cubes for me, and five cubes for my husband hardly made a meal. In fact, my husband had no problems eating the whole thing.
 
The vegetables were standard frozen mixed vegetables, you can buy at any supermarket, with a few pieces of broccoli. The gravy had a hint of portabella mushroom flavor, with a few tiny slices of mushrooms.  This meal is part of the healthy live smart menu. If your husband eats the whole meal, like mine did, then he will have consumed 1,100 mg of sodium and 18 grams of fat. 
Be Careful to Read the Sizes and Quantities
I starting using them after getting free steaks, that were definitely not worth the money they wanted but good for free, and decided to keep them cause my husband’s family used to use them and he has certain things he likes.
 
The two different drivers we have had were ok, liked the first one better but no problems with the new guy.  Although they do like to push an order when you don’t want anything.  But lately have been only buying things that we definitely like or are on sale.  They have been doing a decent job of offering a good range of discounts to get people to try different kinds of foods they offer.  And now have a rewards program were you earn points for each dollar placed in an order online, which actually is pretty decent cause works out to 5% rewards.  But do be careful to read the sizes and quantities cause they tend to be very pricey especially with the meat.
 
Overall most foods I have tried were good and their ice cream if phenomenal, but be wary if you feel guilty easily because if you don’t order you may get a guilt trip.
 
Oh yeah and they charge a delivery fee each time they deliver that was just raise from $1 to $1.75, so if you don’t want to pay them $3.50 a month to come out don’t bother.
Disgusting and Embarrasing
This was my first and last time ordering from their Home Delivery Service. I picked up a few prepared meals and was not impressed with any of them. But it is their chili that upset me so much I was motivated to write to write in. Not only is it disgusting, I am embarrased for them that they would put their name on this and call it a meal.
Live Smart Chili
You just have to go to their website and see the picture they show for this Schwans Chili, and compare it to what you actually get. It is an insult. This chili is as bad as the cheapest canned chilli you find in a supermarket or at any Wawa to put on your hot dog.
 
Thank God it was horrible, because the portion size was about a 1/4 inch high from the bottom of the tray. You really wouldn’t want to eat more than what they give you. There is no meat, there are hardly any beans, and thier isn’t enough spice to light a match.
The Food is Very High in Fat and Sodium
I’ve been ordering home delivery from this company for 1 1/2 years now due to surgery… the food I found to be convenient and most of it really good (of course, everyone has different tastes), and delivery was always on time…Fair WARNING though…  The food is very high in fat and sodium…They have very few low fat content items…After eating their food for 1 1/2 years, I gained 40 lbs…I’m 72 years old and have NEVER been overweight…I have now stopped delivery from them and just joined Jenny Craig at home service for weight loss…Even more important, I just found out from my physician that I have High Cholesterol…Have NEVER had a health problem in my life until now…
 
Summary:  If you don’t want to  gain weight and get a high cholesterol, (both high and low) then stay away from them!
Just Watch for Small Quantities
We love them.  We have a very large family, and often the convince of their food is required to get dinner on the table. They are more expensive than going to the local grocery store, but much cheaper and as convenient as dining out.  The meals are easy to prepare with clear directions.  Some of the items have a small quantity in the package so read the descriptions WELL.
Can Be a Good Value
We are new the prepared supper deliveries and have tried a few different companies that do this kind of thing. If you are thinking about getting any meals from this company, it would be a good idea to spend some extra time reading consumer reviews on their website. We have had some unpleasent meals, but we have also had some good ones too. Their meals can be a good value if you are careful about what you buy.
Chicken Enchilada Dinner
This meal tastes pretty good and it comes as a serving for one. It is also a Live Smart meal. The Spanish rice can be a little bland, but nothing a little salt can’t fix. The enchilada is good too, and the sauce is delicious. The portion size is large compared to many of their other meals. It certainly makes an excellent lunch to take to the office.
 
Chicken and Broccoli Express Bowl
This is one of my favorite meals from them, and I highly recommend it. It is a simple dish of diced chicken, white rice, and broccoli, but the sauce is very good and there is plenty to mix it with the rice. You get two when you order it.
Can’t Get Our Delivery
We have placed many orders with this company, always being told by there customer services reps that “yes”, there are several trucks that deliver in our area and there will be no problem with us getting our order, so we place our order “again”, hoping this time they will deliver. we wait ……. and wait …… and wait some more.
 
A few weeks later we were at CBS building supply here in our small town in Coushatta, when up drives a Schwans truck to make a delivery to someone there, so I take the opportunity to ask why they have never delivered any of our orders, he then tells me its because it takes too much time to deliver to our home, he said our order is put on the truck, it rides around for a few days and then it’s sent back.
 
That’s really funny because we see their truck pass our road several time a week! and if its close enough to see the truck pass, then it should be close enough for the driver to deliver our orders!  The driver is deciding to not to deliver to us!
Poor Reviews on their Own Website
Attitude is everything in the service business.  I just had a delivery guy stop by, and told him I didn’t need anything.  He launched into a lecture as to how I was supposed to be there when he came if I wanted to be a customer. I guess regardless if I worked or not in the middle of the day!  He talked to me like it was a privilege for me to even have him stop by.
 
He started raving about something else, and I had to shut the door. After reading several RECENT reviews of poor quality and taste of the food (on their own website!), I am no longer interested in anything they have. Had his attitude been a bit better, I might have purchased SOMETHING just to help him stay employed.  
Small Portion Sizes and Packaging Problems
I thought most of the prepared meals I tried from them were good. I had some other difficulties. First, I found their website difficult to navigate and find everything that was prepared. Second, almost all of the sealed trays I received in my order were either broken or torn. I was concerned about the safety of that, but went ahead and had them anyway.
Baked Ziti
This tray of Baked Ziti is supposed to serve two people, and in all honesty it could if it were a side dish. But it is not such a small portion as many of their other meals. The ziti itself is very good, and I would recommend it. There is a lot of cheese through and through, and the sauce is good. It could be one of the best ziti’s I have ever had from a meal delivery company.
 
Creamy Shrimp Scampi with Linguini
This meal is can be awkward to reheat. The pasta comes in one bag and the sauce comes in a tray. Then you have to find a bowl or a plate and mix the two. I didn’t think the meal needed any vegetables in it. The linguini was good, but not al dente, and the shrimp sauce was good, but could of used some more flavor. 
I Find The Food Delicious
I read many not so good things about this company, I find the food delicious.  If you are expecting a 4 star gourmet, well then your in for a disappointing experience. But when it comes to frozen prepared meals or snacks, and oh my gosh ice cream I am a happy camper.
 
My delivery guy is wonderful and I have never had a bad customer service experience in the 3+ years I have been ordering. The best thing is this company is that they are smart enough to put the heating directions not only on the box the product comes in but also the package of the product so you can get rid of the box if need be.

Personal Chef To Go Reviews

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Personal Chef To Go is a company that provides freshly prepared meals for shipping. The meals are made with fresh, natural ingredients and can be shipped anywhere in the United States.

These meals are convenient whether for singles, couples, or families and have specific menus that change by the week.
 
Once the meal plan is decided upon, meals can be ordered online.
 
They are shipped very shortly after preparation so the food is always fresh when arriving at the destination.The food is never frozen, but kept a safe, cold temperature in triple insulated containers.Each week, new menus are designed with healthy eating a priority. This food is free of Trans fats, made with whole grains, no preservatives or additives and nutritional information is always included.
There are three menu plans, “Busy Singles,” “Couples on the Go,” and “Family Favorites.” Busy Singles consist of eight single serving meals for the week, including five dinner entrees and three entree salads. The Couples on the Go plan includes ten dinner entrees consisting of two servings of five meals. Family Favorites includes four complete meals complete with main courses and side dishes.
 
These meals always are shipped ready to heat and eat, but can also be frozen (except for the salads). They are in recyclable containers and have use by and freeze by dates on the labels and can be heated either in the microwave or oven.
 
Some of the menu items include grilled balsamic Dijon chicken salad with balsamic dressing, pesto shrimp, garlic chili beef Thai style, and chicken Marengo with fresh green beans. For those wanting to make healthy eating a priority but have little time to do so, this company may be worth a look into for more information.
 
Be the next person to send us your Personal Chef to Go Reviews!  If you have tried this chef prepared meal delivery service, please share your experience with thousands of other visitors. Sharing your personal experiences and insight can help others to make better value and quality buying choices. 

Personal Chef To Go Coupons and Coupon Codes

Personal Chef To Go is offering a Free $25 Gift Card with every $100 you purchase.
 
Instead of Personal Chef To Go Coupons, you can choose between a E-card or a Mailed Gift Card for more details and to place your order now!
 
No Personal Chef Coupon Code is required for this discount. Details are explained on the home page of their website.
 
If any Personal Chef To Go Coupons become available in the future, we will be sure to post them right here.
Personal Chef To Go Reviews
Tasted Like I HAD Hired a Personal Chef
I don’t like to cook and need to lose weight.  I have tried a couple of weight programs but failed, as I don’t like to cook (Weight Watchers) and could not stand the processed foods (Medifast).  I priced out hiring a personal chef in my area, but the cost and variety of food each week were limited, as the chef would only be cooking for me. So I tried a few meal delivery services to compare the food before I committed to one (DineWise, Magic Kitchen, Personal Chef to Go).
 
Dinewise and Magic Kitchen meals tasted equal to or worse than airplane meals.  But ‘Personal Chef to Go’ tasted like I HAD hired a personal chef. The meals were delicious, filling, visually appealing, and w/in my desired calorie count. Also, each week’s menu fulfilled the craving for a variety of proteins and vegetables.  I am so glad I found ‘Personal Chef to Go’!! Note, I have not had any issues with delivery thus far, as noted in another review.
No Contracts and So Far So Easy
I’ve been on the program for 3 weeks and love the food not to mention the convenience.  Just ordered my 2nd month to be delivered next week. I’m losing inches and pounds.  My coworkers can already see the loss so that’s really encouraging.  It’s definitely worth trying at least a month.  No contracts and so far so easy.
Problems Right Out of the Box
Before I get to my meal reviews, I have to say I was very unimpressed with shipping, packaging, and being able to read nutritional labels. I had problems with Personal Chef To Go right out of the box.
 
  • First, the film on two of my meals broke causing some severe leaking inside the shipping box. I had reservations about even eating the food.
 
  • Second, my husband is a diabetic and I have to count the amount of carbs he eats every meal. Their nutritional label says each meal serves two to three people. How does someone convert that into what a portion size is?  Is it two servings, or is it three servings?
 
  • Third, when you peel back a corner of the film to reheat the meal and microwave it, the label comes out of the microwave all black and impossible to read. This too made it difficult to properly portion a meal for my diabetic husband because now I couldn’t read anything. I had to peel off the label in advance and wrap it with saran wrap so I could still see the nutritional label. What a pain.
 
  • Fourth, I did not see anywhere on the website where I was able to customize a meal on the menu. If there is a meal on the menu you don’t like, tough. You have to buy it anyway.
Personal Chef To Go Chicken and Pasta Dinner
I would have given this prepared meal no chef hats had it not been for the salad. I would guess there one small chicken breast cut up and tossed over a lot of pasta, and I mean a lot. There was hardly any sauce to cover the pasta too. It is easy to see in the close up picture. The salad was exceptionally crisp and fresh, except there wasn’t much in the way of anything other than lettuce. The salad dressing, which wasn’t labeled, was some kind of vinaigrette that was bland at best. The broccoli came out good, but you can see in the picture how many florets you get per person.
Cajun Jambalaya and Spanish Rice
This was another meal that was borderline no chef hats, which is shame because I was really looking forward to the notion of having prepared meals delivered by a personal chef. Cafeteria to Go might be more accurate. This would have been a meal I would have substituted given the opportunity. The Spanish Rice (and that is a huge stretch calling it that) was painfully overcooked and dried out, the dinner roll was as hard as a rock, and there was hardly any sauce to moisten the meal. My husband liked it more than I did, and felt credit was deserved to perfectly reheated shrimp, sausage, and vegetables. But this was one of the meals that opened during shipping, so I don’t know if there the recipe has no sauce, or the sauce all leaked out into the shipping box.
Healthy Baked Pesto Chicken
This was a much better meal. The chicken didn’t seem to have much of a pesto sauce, or any pesto flavor, but it was good. Two pieces of chicken breasts, even though they are small, is a bonus.
 
The rice is the same overcooked, and dried out rice I had before, and the carrots were cooked perfectly. The roll was as hard as a rock. I would have liked to see a green vegetable instead of two carb sides, and again, the nutritional labels leave a lot to be desired trying to portion this out for my diabetic husband.
Texas BBQ Pork Chops
This was a good meal also. This is a center cut pork chop that was about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch thick. Bonus points for that. It was perfectly grilled, and when heated in the microwave comes out like you had cooked it on your outside grill.
 
The roasted mushrooms were right on, too. There were plenty of them as well! The red peppers added a nice crunchy texture. Again, the rolls were hard as a rock and didn’t get eaten. I would have liked to see a green vegetable too. The only reason I didn’t give this meal a gold medal was the BBQ sauce. I am pretty sure no one in Texas would ever sign their name to it. It was gross, and I had scrape it off my plate. 
Pretty Good
I was looking to start the new year with a healthy jump start so I decided to get some of these meal plans. I really wasn’t expecting much, but I thought the meals were pretty good. The salads actually turned out to be my favorite part of the meals and I can eat burger after burger all day long. I would like to see larger meal sizes, but that is about it.
Appetizer Sized Portions
I also thought the size of the meals were pretty small for the money. They looked bigger when I saw them on TV. I periodically buy from another company and I thought their frozen meals were better than these fresh meals. But I did think they tasted good. If you can eat appetizer sized portions for dinner, than you should like this program.
The Portion Sizes Could be Larger
I have a 13 year old daughter and myself. We were giving this as a gift when my husband passed away. We have continued placing orders since we found the staff, food and convenience wonderful.
 
The sizes could be larger for two and we don’t eat that much. Other than that, I have enjoyed not having to cook large meals for just the two of us.

Mom’s Meals Reviews

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Mom’s Meals is a prepared meal delivery service that ships fresh, and never frozen, meals nationwide. They are also affiliated with PureFoods, a company best known for its Fresh Start weight loss program.

Moms Meals uses a special tray for packaging that allows you to keep meals in your refrigerator for up to 14 days without them going bad.
 
Mom’s Meals caters to people receiving benefits from Medicaid in thirty states. They also offer a private pay program.
 
You are required to purchase any combination of breakfast, lunch, and dinners, in quantities of 10, 14, or 21. These meal will be delivered by UPS.
Customers may elect to have Moms Meals delivered weekly through their ongoing service. The program is specifically designed for senior citizens, people in poor health, those with disabilities, and people who live in rural areas that may not have access to regular food supplies. Our Moms Meals Reviews have not been too good.
All of Moms Meals qualify as diabetic meals, but 60 carbs per meal may be high for some people with diabetes.
 
They also offer menus for Heart Friendly, defined as low sodium and low fat, Carb-Controlled, defined as 60g of carbs or less, Gluten-Free, and Vegetarian, which does include dairy and egg products.
When you select your meals you will only see line listings of the meals. There are no pictures or descriptions. Nutritional information is provided if you choose to read it.
The cost of these meals average between $5 and $8 per meal, plus shipping. As a result, there are no active Moms Meals coupons or Mom’s Meals coupon codes. With any order, you add a bread and a dessert to your meal order by adding $1 per meal.
 
Other meal delivery services that offer coupons include: Home Bistro and DineWise.
It Is Horrendous!
 
Do not ever use Mom’s Meals or send to anyone, especially for elderly or loved ones.  If you tasted it or tried it personally you would agree in a heart beat.  I have!  It is horrendous!  They should be somehow stopped from misrepresenting what they offer. We need to protect and warn readers about Mom’s Meals to steer them away from it.  It is thrown out money!
 
Mom’s Meals gives an outstanding presentation of their service and enticing menu with good pictures and descriptions to go along with it all.  They also are wonderful with their communication/contact at the outset of ordering, making the individual feel very positive of the program and excited.  And, the box that arrives is totally exciting to see, a big beautiful box, packed so nicely.  It is fun to unpack and it comes with written material inside.  Everything is spot on from their marketing, advertising, website, initial communication to new customers, and packaging….but that is where it ENDS!
 
Sadly, the meals do not stand up at all to what is promised.  Portions are small, but that would be ok if the food was at least edible.  I got seven entrees.  The first one I ate was so horrible I should have thrown it out instead of forcing myself to eat something so dreadful.  And, after eating it, I got a stomach ache from it.  It was the Beef, Noodles with sauce.  The noodles were like very thick card board and the primary component of the dish was too salty sauce.  The “beef” were little ground pieces of what seemed to be gristle and bone because it crunched or was unchewable forcing one to either spit it out or just try not to gag as you swallowed it. Definitely an unpleasant disgusting entree in every facet.
 
Giving the benefit of the doubt and because all the written material about Mom’s Meals is so enticing as are the pictures, I decided to try the other meals I purchased. All, but one side dish ended up going into the trashcan due to being unedible!  I wouldn’t even give it to my dog!  I know this sounds extreme, but believe me it is not.  At the end of this letter, I will detail out specifics on the meals I ordered and recieved as I tasted/attempted to eat every one.
 
I am a healthcare provider myself and so I am appauled that this company is getting away with this and mortified that so many families think they are taking care of their loved ones/their parents sending these meals to them and giving them piece of mind in doing so thinking that their parents are eating well, when in actuality that couldn’t be further from the truth. In truth, the parents would be better off not getting these meals because anything else would be more optimal.
 
The truth is that this company is exploiting people who want to care for their loved ones and this company is getting away with it. This angers me, especially because it is hurting the very people in need that the company  says that they are helping, the frail, elderly, disabled individuals who need meal assistance.
 
Families who purchase from this company for their loved ones think that they are taking care of and helping and insuring that their loved ones get a good meal which is so important.  And, because this company gives such a good front and presentation, the family has no clue that what is being sent is abominable. But the food is something no one would EVER let a loved one or parent eat because if they ate it themselves they would come too a quick conclusion that it would do more harm than good to them.  And, of course, no parent receiving this, out of love from their child, would ever dare complain or say anything to their child of how dreadful it is because it would hurt their child to know when their child went to such lengths of love to send meals to their parent/s.
 
This company, in my opinion, needs to be put to a hault as it is exploiting people and people’s attempts to care for their loved ones.  It is taking advantage of children’s love for their folks and attempts to help take care of them and taking advantage of the elderly’s vulnerable position and also of their love back to their child not wanting to disappoint or upset their child’s acts of love by letting them know.
 
Mom’s Meals provides such an incredible presentation that it is hard to believe what food that comes is from the same company that is the website and materials/communication/packaging. I learned of Mom’s meals from a family member wanting to help me, thinking also that it would be a good way for me to get good healthy meals in.  I was so excited anticipating good healthy meals as the company presents. I got a nice welcoming phone call from Mom’s Meals after I placed my order and an email from them. Then a big nice looking and inviting box arrived, styrofoam lid and packaged all so beautifully.  That’s where the goodness stopped.
 
I already shared about the beef, noodles, sauce.  The other entrees I received were:
 
Turkey Goulash and Blueberry Apple Crisp – the goulash genuinely tasted spoiled and the blueberry apple crisp was way too sweet, even for a person with a sweet tooth.
 
Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy, green beans with bacon and onions – the beans smelled extremely foul and tasted equally as foul (?if spoiled from bad bacon?) and the salisbury steak was salty.  There was one small shriveled up mushroom slice carefully placed in the center of the salisbury steak which I guess is how they qualify the gravy as “mushroom gravy”.
 
Banana Walnut Pancakes with Turkey Sausage – I never saw such a small sausage in my life.  It was tiny shriveled up dark 1 1/2 inch, if that, in size.  The pancakes also thin and small and the pancakes were completely inedible.  I took a bite and what was in my mouth was so foul, it had to be spit out.  I never tasted anything so dreadful.  MUCH better off to go to McDonald’s.  A healthier better breakfast!  Better proportion, better quality and better price and fresher!  What does that say about a meal when McDonald’s is the better option for breakfast entree.  Pancakes at McDonalds, much bigger and fluffier and even good.  Sausage also better and bigger.  And, you can get real eggs at McDonalds (with a yolk or more like an omelet or scramble…your pref and choosing).
 
Stuffed Green Pepper – The pepper was actually on the side and the meat presented like a meatloaf, which actually was a nice way to present it for the ease of eating.  However the rice in the meat was not cooked enough and so the meat had harder (very ala dente) rice throughout the meat making it very unpleasant because rice not cooked yet still in the meat.  Additionally, the meat was too salty.
 
Cheese Lasagna – of all the main entrees, this was tho only one that seemed to taste ok although still was a little on the salty side but not as extremely so as the other entrees were.  And, the noodles on this had such a strange/ consistency….sort of mushy/mealy type texture (not totally appealing or optimal).
 
Turkey Chili with Beans and Cornbread Pudding –  This meal does not heat up well.  The chili, arrives frozen and takes many times longer than the pudding to heat.  The chili is also primarily sauce and it is an unpleasant sauce at that ….both because of it’s taste and because of what they consider “meat” that they put in it.  The “meat” within it is like  1/2 tbsp of pureed meat that gives such a weird sauce texture that makes it definitely undesirable.  The corn pudding needs to be removed from the container as the chili continues to heat although they do not advise or tell you of this.  (The chili takes very long to heat up.)  However, the corn pudding was actually good!  One good item (side dish only) of all that I recieved.  I ate the corn pudding and so far, no ill effects to me.
 
I tasted at least one bite of everything so that I could provide valid actual true factual feedback about the food given by Mom’s Meals. It is definitely NOT a viable source of good food to send or give to anyone you love or care about.
Sure Glad it’s Not My Mom
 
Some of the meals aren’t bad, but some of them are very disappointing, for example the NEW Vegetable Primavera in Creamy (HUH) Alfredo Sauce; no Sauce so much as a tasteless watery concoction, and the so called vegetables, sparse and small, frozen I assume. The Cheeseburger-the cheese always ends up around the burger and you have to scrape what you can get to put it o the burger, which by the way tastes eerily like McDonald’s $.99 cheeseburger except there’s no pickle and the limited amount of cheese you can manage to scrape to make it a “Cheeseburger”.
 
When I ordered the Fruit Breakfast Pizza the first time, I loved it, it had a great texture and berries in a delicious sauce; the second time I got it, they’ve changed it to a waffle with a nauseating mixture of cream cheese and canned peaches on top…disgusting. I ate half of it and couldn’t stomach any more. Canned peaches seem to be used wherever possible instead of berries. The NEW Chicken Pepper Pasta has a nice quality pasta, but the sauce, tastes alright, but it’s very sparse.
And enough Oranges! Yogurt or a healthy muffin would be nice and a lot more imaginative with some of the meals instead of all those oranges! The powdered milk is a waste and a joke. I’ve had a similar service who managed to send small cartons of real low fat milk.
 
All in all, very unimaginative, creative, and seemingly not much concern for pleasing the clients. They make “Mom’s Meals” sound so caring and folksy, but I’m pretty sure all they’re concerned with is cost. When I receive them, there’s always a problem lately; I’m always appalled and annoyed with “Mom’s”. SSure glad it’s not my Mom!
 
They’re much better than Meals On Wheels, but that isn’t really saying much…When I receive my box, the first few times UPS delivered and carried the box up to my third floor apartment, now they’re using Fed-Ex who just rings the buzzer and leaves the box in the unsecured common area entry hall, and as they never come at the same time, anyone can take it if I’m not here. The last few times they delivered, and both times it was after noon.
 
This morning I had an appointment in the morning and was home by 11:45. It is now 7:40, no meals. I waited until 6:30 and then decided I would call Mom’s, but it was too late. So tomorrow I’ll have to deal with this hassle all because Mom’s started using the infamously fast but not concerned about security Fed-Ex, a cheaper alternative. If they want to use Fed-Ex, a signiture should be required so they can’t just ring the bell, dunp the box, and take off as quickly as humanely possible. TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!!!!
Spaghetti and Marinara Sauce
 
When I first opened this package, I thought Mom’s accidentally forgot the Marinara Sauce. The small amount that came with this meal was hidden under the spaghetti. The spaghetti was okay. The sauce left much to be desired. There were some bits of meat called Sweet Italian Turkey Sausage on the label, but there wasn’t enough sauce to cover the pasta. What sauce did come with the meal was very watery. Maybe they meant Marina instead of Marinara.  The nutritional label said this meal had 16 grams of fat, and I can’t figure out where that came from.
 
The string beans looked liked typical frozen beans you can buy at any supermarket, less any of the flavor. I would not recommend, or want to reorder this meal again. Any jarred sauce over your own pasta would be considerably better, and a much better value.
Stuffed Pepper
 
One of the things I have always run home for are my mother’s stuffed peppers. It may be one of the best comfort foods of all time, so I was very excited to get a stuffed pepper meal from Mom’s Meals. I was disappointed.
 
The meat was stuffed with rice, but it had no flavor. The meatball wasn’t stuffed in a green pepper. Instead, some sliced pieces of pepper were mixed in with more of the rice that may have been leftover. For a company that promotes itself as a healthy meal solution, I would have liked to see a vegetable come with it. This meal had 16 grams of fat, 45 carbs, and 1 gram of trans-fat, which I was surprised to see on the nutritional label.
 
The side rice had no flavor, which seems to be a recurring theme. It didn’t have any texture either. I swear if I were blind-folded I would have had a hard time identifying what it was.
Meatloaf
 
The best part of Mom’s Meals Meatloaf was the standard Mixed Vegetables, and I think Mom gets these from the frozen section of the grocer too. The meat continues to be flavorless, and it seemed to me, the recipe for this meatloaf started with bread crumbs. The ketchup they put on the meatloaf was disgusting, and I am not being dramatic. The potatoes were mushy and flavorless as well. I tasted each component of this meal and threw the rest out.
Baked Ziti
 
So far, I gave all the Mom’s Meals I tried a bronze medal in respect to the low-price  point Mom’s is trying to maintain per meal. However, they are also proving to me that you do get what you pay for. The frozen store-bought vegetables were good, and once again, the best part of the meal. A sad statement in itself. The pasta was mushy and without texture, the sauce was awful, and I couldn’t taste any of the three cheeses that came with this meal.
 
The meatballs were out of this world, but I don’t mean that in a positive way. I have never seen anything like them. They had an unusual spongy texture. Very strange. The nutritional label said 19 grams of fat and 66 carbs for this “healthy meal.”
 
This is all of the Mom’ Meals I can taste for one day.
3 Bean Chili
 
This was much more like a tomato vegetable soup than a chili. In fact, the heating instructions say to stir the soup after one minute in the microwave. Yes, it had a hint of chili spice. The vegetables are good, but without any seasoning and a watery flavorless broth, this chili is one to pass on.
Beef Stew
 
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and I think that is what you will get from my photos. One of the things missing from this beef stew is the stew. It is more of a collection of vegetables with some beef. Two of my pieces of beef had too much grizzle on them. I am getting tired of writing flavorless and inferior. I ate just enough to write the review and threw the rest out.
Chicken and Noodles
 
Here is a Mom’s Meal I would be happy to recommend. The noodles are thick and have a very homemade texture. Nothing beats homemade pasta. The diced chicken is plentiful, flavorful, and tender. The portion size is nice, and the sauce is good. It could use some seasoning and a green vegetable, but this was a good meal you will want to add to your order.
Florentine Lasagna with Turkey Sausage
 
This was the best Mom’s Meal I have tried so far. I am a huge fan of lasagna, and I have to admit I was concerned about getting a watery one when I saw this was a Florentine Lasagna, which means spinach. This meal reheated perfectly and wasn’t too watery at all. The turkey sausage added a nice texture, and the sauce was good. The noodles were perfectly cooked too. This lasagna stands a lot higher than most others too. Great job Chef! 
Tuna Casserole
 
Tuna Casserole is not a meal you see on the menus of many prepared meal delivery companies. In my opinion, that’s a shame because it is certainly one of the all-time comfort foods. Mom’s Meals does a good job with theirs too. The tuna is good, the noodles are good, and the vegetables round out a very economical meal that only needs a hint of salt and pepper. Well done.
Pork and Marsala Sauce
 
The portion size of this meal really makes it a tough meal to recommend. You can see in the picture the amount of pork you get with your order. Basically 1.5 slices. Quality-wise, the pork is great. It is from the tenderloin, which is the most expensive part, but appetizers can have more meat than this meal. The white rice was a little gummy, and there wasn’t enough sauce to dip the rice into. A side green vegetable would have been nice.

Magic Kitchen Reviews

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Magic Kitchen prepared meals are normally offered in servings for two or four. Their menu of gourmet meals can support nutritional lifestyles such as diabetic meals, low sodium meals, and senior meals. Renial diet and dialysis friendly meals are also available. 

  • The company is located in California and offers a large selection of meal bundles.
 
  • Some individual prepared meals are available also.
 
  • Magic Kitchen ships frozen prepared meals nationwide.
 
  • Most of their meals can be reheated in a microwave, and some can be reheated in an oven. 

Magic Kitchen Reviews

Ziti with Meatballs: A Real Treat
 
Wow. This may be one of the best traditional pasta dishes I had from a meal delivery service. The ziti was perfectly cooked and reheated still al dente. The meatballs were small, but there were six of them, and they tasted pretty darn close to homemade to me. The big winner here was the sauce, which had a homemade texture only to be matched by perfect seasoning and flavor. The package says this meal serves two, which it can, but can be a real treat for a hungry person. And I saved More with my MagicKitchen Coupons.
Stuffed Pepper: I would Order this Meal Again
 
I enjoyed this meal very much. The stuffed pepper was large and filled with tasty meat and rice. Traditional recipes of this comfort food classic come with tomato sauce on it, which I think would have elevated this meal to near perfection. The rice side dish was good too. The rice was fluffy and full of flavor, which is difficult to do from the microwave. I think I would have preferred a vegetable side dish, instead of more rice, but I would order this meal again.
Chili and Rice: I Would Order this Again
 
I actually had this for lunch and found it to be quite enjoyable. There could have been more rice, as I had some trouble covering the bottom of my plate with it, but the chili was good. Add some of your own hot sauce if you want it spicy, the heat level is understandably mainstream.
 
There is a substantial amount of meat in the chili, and a sliced vegetable I could not make out. A carrot maybe. It was surprisingly filing too. I would order this prepared meal this again. 
Beef Short Ribs: I Expected More
 
I was very disappointed with my Braised Short Rib meal. I should have looked at the picture on their website closer, but I assumed I was getting beef short ribs on the bone. Instead, I received a few thin slices of dry meat under a gelatinous (you can see it in the picture) and flavorless gravy that didn’t melt when I reheated it.
 
The tiny serving of instant mashed potatoes didn’t do anything for me either. The beans were plentiful and okay, but I expected more.
Scalloped Potatoes: I Threw this in the Garbage
 
Imagine taking a peeled Idaho potato, slice it, and put it in your microwave. That is what these scalloped potatoes were like. There wasn’t any seasoning, and the creamy sauce one would expect from this traditional dish is reduced to a tiny blob of a substance (pictured in the center of the plate) similar to old wallpaper paste.
 
As much as I love potatoes, I threw this in the garbage.
Macaroni and Cheese: A Must Order
 
There is something about a Macaroni and Cheese meal that works for people of every age, and Magic Kitchen did a great job in bringing this comfort food classic to the world of meal delivery. The sauce is thick, and the noodles are perfectly tender.  The sauce is made from cheddar cheese, and the flavor comes through loud and clear. It already tastes good as soon as you see the sauce bubbling in the tray when you take it out of the microwave.  A must order if you have, know, or occasionally baby sit any children. 
Linguini and Baby Clam Sauce:
 
Another very good prepared meal which I recommend to the seafood lover. The linguini is tender and not mushy at all, but the sauce is exceptional. Hats off to the chef for using imported baby clams instead of the industry-standard surf clams. The difference is all in the flavor, which extends to the sauce. I would have liked to see more of them, and perhaps a vegetable side dish, but at $8 a serving is it well worth adding to your order.
No Identification of the Contents
Thank you for my order received in good condition. My only comment is that some dinners, of the 10 I received, had opaque coverings with no identification of the contents, making a guessing game until cooked.
Food was Okay and Better than Cooking Myself
I tried a few different meals and dinners from Magic Kitchen. Overall I thought they were good. The mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese were very good. The shipping was flawless. I waited around for the delivery guy to come, but when I couldn’t wait longer I put a note on the door asking them to put the carton in the backyard. When I came home that’s where I found it.
I do find the website hard to find things but I am the first to admit I am new to the Internet. The stuffed pepper meal may have been my least favorite of my order. There is a lot of rice in the stuffed pepper and then you get a side of rice. This meal didn’t come with any vegetables except for the pepper. I would have liked to get some sauce for the stuffed pepper too.
The meatloaf came with servings for four so I thought I would have a lot or a while one that I would slice up. A serving is under 4.oz. and has a lot of fat. It was okay, and I thought it had a little bit of a “hot dog” taste to it. I don’t think it reheated too well in the microwave either. There was a lot of water in the tray. But their food was okay and better than cooking myself.
I’ve Been Ordering Regularly for a Year
Magic Kitchen is among the first of the heat-and-eat delivery services I’ve tried and I’ve been ordering regularly for a year. I selected Magic Kitchen first among others because they have many selections that are free of soy and vegetable oils; overall, Magic Kitchen keeps the list of ingredients short and natural.
We buy primarily gourmet pasta and meat dishes through delivery services as an alternative to restaurant convenience, so I can’t fairly extend my review to Magic Kitchen’s vegetable dishes, desserts, or meal plans.
 
We use a small convection oven and hot plate – not a microwave – so convenient packaging is important. Magic Kitchen uses sturdy oven-safe paper trays and “boil-in-bags” for most of their items. Shipping timing and quality has been perfect every time.
 
The prices are reasonable, and the more costly items are good quality and generously portioned. We’ve found that some products are a good foundation for other things (a pat of garlic butter, a can of tuna, and some fresh sage – mac and cheese) and some are perfect with just a bib (rosemary lamb shank). So overall, our cost per plate is steady and our nourishment and satisfaction high. I do highly recommend Magic Kitchen.
Meals for my Mother Who’s on a Renal Diet
I was searching for meals for my mother who’s on a renal diet and came across magickitchen.com. I was relieved to find the meals were within reason, she  enjoyed them, and the shipping worked out well. The 7% off is a nice appreciated  touch. Their website was easy to use (for those who are familiar with handling the internet). I definitely will be buying her more meals, since she cannot cook these days due to a number of reasons.
Good for the Price
I tried several dinners from Magic Kitchen with mixed reviews. The packaging said to not remove the film and cook for four to six minutes. I reheated three meals for my family in this manner, and all of the meals were overcooked. We had to get a pizza.  The next night I cooked them for only two minutes and they came out perfectly. One of the meals had a broken seal, but it didn’t matter.
Braised Beef Brisket
This is a meal I reheated for half of the suggested cooking time. It was an wonderful meal. The meat was real and tender. It is hard to see in the picture, but it came with five slices of beef. The rice was good, but the strings beans were farm-fresh crispy and fresh.
Braised Short Ribs
This is the second meal I cooked using half of the recommended amount of time.  This meal was very good. The slices of short ribs were thick, the mashed potatoes tasted like they were homemade, the gravy was delicious, and the string beans were perfect.
The other meals I had were all way overcooked.  I followed the directions exactly as they were on the label (4 minutes) and they were tougher to cut than beef jerky. I thought it was odd the stuffed pepper didn’t have any sauce or cheese on it. I am giving Magic Kitchen a fair review because I was only able to eat two of the meals I purchased, but the dinners I did have were very good. If you do buy these meals I suggest you try to reheat them at two minutes first.
We Loved the Meals
The food arrived right on time, and was frozen solid. The food looked good even in its frozen containers!  Nice presentation, they obviously take some care with it. We loved all the meals, and we’ll definitely order again. The meals will make a great gift, too! Try that Ricotta cheesecake, you’ll think you’ve died and gone to heaven.
Good for the Price
I agree with most of the other visitors that Magic Kitchen is good, but probably not as good as some others I have tried. I do admit they are more money, so the food I tried is good for the price. I prefer not warm up meals in the microwave because the food doesn’t come out as good as some other companies. I had some difficulty understanding the website, but they are good meals for the money. 
Above Average Meals
I have found the quality of the Magic Kitchen prepared meals to be above average. I consider them to be fairly priced. Not as good as going to a restaurant, but far superior to cooking myself
Enjoys the Meals
I enjoy Magic Kitchen meals. I have always found their meals to be good. Their customer service is excellent too.
Excellent at Getting my Problems Resolved
The people on the phone are great.  They are quick to take your order and very helpful to make suggestions on meals to choose, side dishes, etc.  We have found them to be very reasonable when it comes to price and fixing issues when they come up.  They are excellent at getting my problems resolved.  My favorite MagicKitchen.com dishes are the apple and sage stuffing, chicken Ana Luisa, and BBQ baby back ribs.
Customer Service Sets the Situation Right
We have enjoyed nearly all of the entrees we’ve ordered from the HomeStyle menu and they come with easy heating instructions. Once, some meal containers arrived broken. Customer service was amazing. They set the situation right immediately and gave us a gift coupon. We’re a busy professional couple and Magic Kitchen is a Godsend for us. Just ordered another 4 weeks of meals!

Impromptu Gourmet Reviews

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In December of 2010 Impromptu Gourmet suspended their website operations. We are happy to say they have returned, having been acquired by MacKenzie LTD, another well-known  gourmet food catalog company.

Historically, this company has a generally smaller menu, but focuses on high-quality gourmet meals that you are likely to have when you go out to a fine restaurant.
 
Impromptu Gourmet is well-known for selling gourmet food gifts all year long, and especially around the holidays.
Their Dinner for Two packages make popular food gifts and varies in price from $30 to $40 per person.
A package will include an appetizer, an entree, a side dish, and a dessert. Entrees include gourmet treasures such as:
 
  • Beef Wellington
  • Veal Osso Bucco
  • Lamb Shanks
  • Maryland Crab Cakes

They tend to cost more than the average prepared meal on other websites, but these are not items you are likely to find on other menus either.  Dinner comes with two meal components instead of the traditional three. They do offer a couple of choices of vegetables, but they count as a side dish. Perhaps the new owners will take this unique detail into consideration as they revive the brand.

Food Preparation
 
You have to read the fine print when it comes to reheating your meals. Impromptu Gourmet offers a menu of microwaveable, oven-ready, and stove-top gourmet meals. About half of the menu is microwave ready. The only way for you to know if a meal component is microwaveable is to read the cooking instruction for any meal, meal component, or meal plan you be in interested in purchasing.
 
Crab cakes, for example, have to be sauteed, as they should be. If you are looking for the convenience of microwave ready meals, especially if you are buying their food as a gift, you have to pay attention to cooking instructions. The soups on the menu may require boiling the frozen product on your stove-top.
A True Gourmet Menu
 
Many companies throw around the term “gourmet meal,” without consideration, and perhaps respect, to those who know what “gourmet” truly means. Even NutriSystem calls their $3 meals gourmet. By definition, a gourmet meal is something made from exceptional or exotic ingredients, and prepared with a high level of skill. These are types of meals you will find at Impromptu Gourmet.  Here are some examples:
  • Shrimp and Grits
  • Crab and Lobster Cakes
  • Crab Wellington
  • Lobster Risotto and a Lobster Pot Pie
  • Coquille St. Jacques
Certainly, any true gourmet foodie can find and create a delicious dinner menu for themselves or to send to a friend or family member. Of course, with higher-quality ingredients, the skill of food preparation, and the often over-looked task of packaging, to make sure your gourmet food arrives as it was created, is going to cost more than $3 per meal.  As it should.
Final Thoughts
 
What we don’t see on the website or in their catalog is a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Maybe the new owners will take this into consideration too. First time shoppers might steer away from the higher-than-average prices without a satisfaction guarantee.
 
They may be one the of few companies that offers a gift card with the opportunity to pick any amount over $25. A neat feature, but keep in mind the cost of these meals, plus the expense of shipping or your $25 gift card will become just a $25 
As far as Impromptu Gourmet Couponsand coupon codes are concerned, they offer catalog subscribers and customers signed up to their email service a free shipping coupon on orders over $75. Once you have placed your food order, and you are ready to checkout online, simply enter either of these discount coupon codes.
 
Catalog discount coupons are generally more difficult to change, so try this one first: IMP75.
The last email coupon we have is FS75. Please alert us if either of these Impromptu Gourmet coupon codes did not work for you, but first be sure you have meet the requirements of a $75 minimum order.
Impromptu Gourmet Reviews
They Will Not Honor Their Quality of Products
We purchased food products that arrived later than scheduled, it was frozen and we did keep it frozen, when we used it the food was unedible. They refused to even accept a return of their product indicating that we did not call immediately upon receipt of the product.
But The Food Was Excellent
I was very happy to see my mail and their catalog, with the news they had reopened their doors. Our first meal was the Chicken Marsala, Au Gratin Potatoes, and the Mushroom Medley. I have attached pictures of each picture what the meal looks like as a complete meal, with recommended portion sizes.
 
All in all, the end result is nothing short of perfection and deliciousness. The website is a little tricky to find what bakes and what microwaves. The reheating process does not make this a dinner of convenience. One should be aware of that before ordering.
 
The chicken marsala (which came in a box labeled Cuisine Solutions) take 3-4 minutes each to microwave. The potatoes and the mushrooms take 16 minutes each to microwave. By the time you finish the last tray, the first parts of the meal are cold and need to be warmed up again.
 
Our dinner for four took me almost an hour to reheat. The portion sizes were generous, although the potatoes will serve four better than they will serve six to eight as suggested. I especially liked the “pull apart” feature on the bag of chicken breast. It is much easier than cutting hot bags with a knife or scissors.
 
But the food was excellent. The chicken is a real breast and not one of those frozen manufactured breasts some other places sell. The sauce in everything is exceptionally rich and filling with butter, creams, and a host of of other flavors that truly make this meal a gourmet experience. This dinner for four costs $82.85, just over $20 per person, plus shipping.
Baby Back Ribs – Not Worth the Price
These were very disappointing and in my opinion, not worth the price. For ribs they were okay, but one would have a hard time saying they were any better than what you can buy in the supermarket for under $10. These were $28, and the notion of serving 3 people is a little unrealistic.
Macaroni and Cheese – Truly Gourmet
My family is a huge fan of Mac and Cheese, so ordering was a no-brainer for me. When I opened the package I was surprised to find freezer burn inside the packaging. My first thought was “We’re not off to a good start,” but the Mac and Cheese cooked up perfectly and the added frost wasn’t a factor in the quality of the dish.
 
The crispy crust was something that I didn’t expect from a microwave dish, but it was outstanding. They use four cheeses to make it: Gouda, Mozzarella, Parmesan, and Cheddar. It was creamy with perfect texture, and literally engulfed by everyone in the family.  The hint of bacon comes from tiny cubed bits, but the flavor makes it without being overpowering.
 
No American Cheese? That would have been nice, but at $5 per serving, it was not only well worth it, it was certainly gourmet, and the best we’ve ever tried from a meal delivery service. I couldn’t give it a gold medal because of the freezer burn.
Disappointed
Very disappointed in this company. I have been a loyal customer for years, along with my entire group of friends – this was our go to gift for new mothers – but when it was my turn and I received a $125 gift certificate, I got BURNED. Even though my gift certificate clearly states an expiration date that has not yet passed, they refuse to honor it. I don’t think I will be a customer any longer, sad to say.
Beef Provencal, Sauteed Spinach, Garlic Mashed Potatoes
I had about 40 minutes to get a dinner on the table before I had to drive my kids to their sporting and school events. This prepared meal was far from convenient to reheat. In fact, it took an hour in the oven. The kids ended up getting pizza.
 
The beef was okay, but to say there was 4-6 servings is totally unrealistic. That translates to 2-3 cubes per person. The potatoes were good, as was the spinach. The whole meal was very rich. I would have liked to have been able to check the expiration dates for other reasons, but there wasn’t any.  At a cost of over $70, and $17 per serving, pizza was the better choice for the evening.
No One Answered the Phone
It has now been a week since I ordered food, and I tried to contact the company today, but to my dismay, no one answered the phone….not even a recording or prompt menu. After three minutes of ringing, it went to (I assume) a voice mail box, with no greeting or explanation, just a couple of short beeps. If this is your idea of customer service, you can keep it!

HomeStyle Direct Review

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Located in Kimberly Idaho, HomeStyle Direct is a relatively new company in the prepared meals market. They offer four seasonal menus of meals with roughly 55 complete meal selections.

The majority of the menu consists of single serving meals, which may be used as lunch or dinner. Breakfast meals, desserts, fruit juice and meal replacement shakes round out the balance of their menu.
 
It is a relatively small menu compared to other companies in the same niche. All orders from the previous week are shipped on the following Monday. They make their own local deliveries and use UPS for national meal deliveries. 
Orders normally arrive within two or three days, depending on what part of the country you live in and what method of shipping you choose.
 
Shipping rates are not posted on their website, but a $60 food order to New York or Miami starts at $27 and can go up to as much as $78 depending on the shipping options you select. Shipping fees to Los Angeles are slightly less expensive.
 
HomeStyle prepared meals require you to defrost and thaw your meals before reheating. This too, is uncommon for the industry. Consumers interested in the convenience of having prepared meals delivered, generally like the simplicity of reheating meals in a microwave from a frozen state. Their heating instructions recommend a 24 hour thaw in your refrigerator before reheating. Customers also have the option if reheating HomeStyle Direct meals in their ovens.
 
The nutritional information of their meals is impressive, and is competitive with most of the weight loss meals offered by diet companies. The vast majority of their meals are under 500 calories, and only one is over 600 calories. These meals can easily fit into a healthy 2,000 calorie a day diet. The carbohydrate counts might be a tad on the high side, but within USDA recommendations, and only a few of their meals would qualify for a low sodium diet. Most of the meals were high in fiber, which is good, and can be unusual for the industry. 
Medicaid Meal Delivery
 
The company offers a Medicaid meal delivery service. To qualify for prepared meals medicai, residents must live in Idaho, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, Utah, or Wyoming. The prepared meals medicaid menu appears to offer the identical meals fond on their regular menu.  Creating prepared meals that qualify for medicaid will most likely have price and cost challenges not associated with traditional gourmet meals one might buy online. 
HomeStyle Direct Update
 
Being an employee of Homestyle Direct, I read with interest your review of our company and services.  I felt it necessary to submit facts that have changed, so your information can be correct.
 
We no longer require a $50 minimum order. Our website now offers online ordering,  the ability to view our shipping calendar, and to download meal plans or the Spanish menu. We offer meals to help adhere to such dietary restrictions as low-salt, low-carb, low-fat, gluten-free, renal diet and heart-healthy parameters. Our inventory is always fresh, a major difference with grocery-store choices.
 
Homestyle Direct has been a family-owned and operated business for over 15 years, shipping over 25,000 meals each week, to individuals all across the Continental U.S.
 
Thank you,
Stephanie Novacek
Homestyle Direct Pay Accounts
Homestyle Direct Reviews
Enjoying the Medicaid Meals
 
So far I am enjoying the medicaid prepared meals.  I would like fresh fruit, milk, juice to be available with the deliveries.
Prepared Meals for People on Low Budgets
Overall I found the meals I sampled on the menu to be okay, and a little behind the other vendors in this market. Having to allow time for the meals to defrost is an inconvenience, and shipping costs are more than most other services. The cost of the meals may make this company a good value for people with very low budgets.
Biscuit and Gravy Breakfast
One of my favorite things about traveling to the South is to load up on biscuits and gravy. This was a great experience.  The sauce is loaded with sausage chunks, the sauce is not watery like you might expect with a microwave meal, and there is a traditional “kick” of Southern spices. Perhaps a biscuit on the side would make this perfect, but I scarfed the whole thing down. 
The microwaved Tater Tots were soggy. I was surprised to find a ketchup and mustard package under the Tater Tots, which probably should have been removed before cooking. The burger was a bad a burger could be, with the exception I was able to pick it up. The bread didn’t reheat evenly top and bottom and side to side. Some parts of the bun were to hard I couldn’t bit it. Overall, a disappointing meal.
Stuffed Pepper Meal
This stuffed pepper is not really stuffed. The meat, which has traditional rice in it, sits on a bed of rice. The pepper wedge is located right next to it.  The rice had a crunchy, uncooked, texture to it. The meat and pepper is good, but there is very little sauce.  The side vegetables were nothing special and a little mushy.  Overall, an okay meal.
Beef Burgundy Meal
The meat in this meal seems very “processed,” and unlike the meat of the stuffed pepper. It reminds me a microwave meat sandwich you might find at a gas station.  Under the meat is a generous bed of pasta with a nice sauce. This was the best part of the meal, but the sauce seemed more like a pasta sauce than a beef burgundy sauce.  The vegetables were good and not soggy. They had a healthy “crunch” to them.  The quality of the beef made this meal disappointing.
Harvest Breakfast Meal
Wow! A very nice piece of skirt steak is the highlight of this meal. It microwaved well, wasn’t overcooked, and was quite tasty. The juice from the steak, however, leaked into the potatoes and the scrambled eggs underneath it.  The potatoes were slightly “crunchy” undercooked and had little seasoning. The scrambled eggs appeared to be powered, but the apples slices were great.  A tray with compartments would have greatly helped this meal, but the steak makes this meal a star.
Pork Loin Meal
The little piece of paper you see in the tray is the leftover of a pat of butter covering the beans. It melted during reheating. The directions did not say to remove the film and remove it.  There is one slice of pork tenderloin, which is a real slice of a true pork tenderloin. It came out perfect.  The rest of the meal didn’t fare so well. There was a lot of excess water in the bottom of the tray from the vegetables, which ruined the stuffing. Again, compartment trays would probably help.
Jumbo Cheese Ravioli
Basically, this is three ravioli with standard vegetables. The meal was okay, but there was nothing special about it that you couldn’t buy at the supermarket.  This meal seemed on the small scale for portion size.  Most of their meals do provide a substantial portion. Although the tray was hot, both components seemed undercooked. Okay meal.