The 5 Most Appetizing Meal Delivery Apps
The 5 Most Appetizing Meal Delivery Apps

by Jen Jones Donatelli

Is the art of family dinner lost?

According to a report from the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University, only 58% of teens reported having dinner with their families at least five times a week. Though gathering nightly ’round the dinner table can certainly be a tall task due to crazy-busy schedules, it’s also an important one — the same report found that eating together makes kids much less likely to engage in risk-taking behaviors.

Lucky for us, a slew of new meal delivery apps are offering a modern solution aimed at honoring this time-tested tradition — and making it much easier to answer the age-old question: “What’s for dinner?

Munchery

Calling all card-carrying foodies — we’ve found what’s sure to be your new obsession. With a motto of “Reclaim Dinnertime,” Munchery is a chef-driven meal delivery service. Rather than order from local restaurants, the app allows you to choose healthy meals custom-created by in-house chefs (examples include amazing things like Vegan Artichoke & Kale Pot Pie).

All meals come in oven- and microwave-safe containers for easy reheating. Another reason we love this service so much? It was founded by two busy new parents who totally get it.

Caviar

Currently available in 17 cities, Caviar is a smart option for families looking to order out and eat well. This app differentiates itself by focusing on independent restaurants, rather than large chains and franchises. One of Caviar’s top selling points is that there is no minimum purchase price for delivery, and you can track your order in real-time via GPS.

For people living in San Francisco and New York, the app also provides a “Fastbite” option, which offers meals under $15 delivered in less than 15 minutes.

GrubHub

Though the explosion of meal delivery apps is exciting, many of them are only in a handful of major cities for now. That’s where GrubHub sets itself apart with service in more than 900 cities that includes 35,000+ restaurants. It’s also a godsend for Oak Park, IL.-based mom Heather Cohen, who uses it to order takeout for her family of four twice a week. They typically tend to order the same thing every time, so the app makes it easy to replicate past orders quickly. Plus, she appreciates that you can complete orders from anywhere — whether riding the train home from work or while out, for date night. “You can handle the tip via the app, which is particularly great when we have a sitter,” adds Cohen.

Foodler

Besides having an undeniably fun name, Foodler also has some really fun and nifty features — such as the ability to pay with Bitcoin and earn points for every takeout/delivery order placed. (Points can be redeemed toward rewards like gift cards, gear, and even cold hard cash.)

Currently serving almost 4,200 cities, Foodler makes it easy to satisfy any craving, from Thai to Brazilian to Mexican food. You can also rate restaurants and food items, as well as see how other customers rated them.

Eat24

Devoted Yelpers may be excited to learn that their favorite website has acquired food delivery service Eat24 (named one of Lifehacker’s “Five Best Web-Based Food Delivery Services”). What does that mean for users?

The app’s current base of 20,000 restaurants in 1,500 cities will start expanding to the one million-plus restaurants listed on Yelp. Translation: That’s a whole lotta food options! In the meantime, Eat24 app users can check out Yelp restaurant reviews while browsing through all the menus and listings.

Like Cohen, California mom of two Karen Pery also orders food for her family at least once a week via apps. “We eat dinner together every night, and having food ordered, and paid for in advance, means one less thing to think about between school, homework, after-school activities, and being able to enjoy our time together,” says Pery.

And that’s the point: No matter which one you choose, using meal delivery apps can certainly help take the pressure off of mealtime — and give you more opportunities to enjoy quality time with your family.

 

Jen Jones Donatelli is a Los Angeles-based journalist and author who specializes in all things lifestyle — including digital life. Her work has been published in/on Variety, MSN, Redbook, Livestrong, Every Day Connected and many more.

Article: Copyright © iHaveNet

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