If you’ve followed Retired and Trying for a while, you already know one thing about me—I don’t enjoy cooking.
Breakfast and lunch are easy enough, but dinner has often meant ordering DoorDash or grabbing fast food. I had looked into meal delivery services before, but there was always one problem. Most of the meals I found were only 400 to 500 calories, and for me, that just wasn’t enough to be satisfying.
Then I came across CookUnity.
Unlike meal kits that require cooking, or frozen dinners from the grocery store, CookUnity delivers fresh, chef-prepared meals that are ready to heat in about two minutes. Even better, many of the meals offered 800 calories or more, which sounded much more realistic for me.
So I decided to put it to the test.
My Review Process
Rather than reviewing just one meal, I ordered eight different meals and ate every one of them before sharing my opinion.
I judged each meal on three simple questions:
- Did it taste good?
- Was it filling?
- Is it worth the price for someone who’s retired?
I also paid for every meal myself. This was not a sponsored review, and CookUnity had no idea I was making a video.
How the Meals Compared
Over the course of the week, I tried everything from quesadillas and burgers to burritos, barbecue chicken, beef short ribs, fried chicken, shrimp quesadillas, and lasagna.
The biggest surprise?
I genuinely enjoyed every meal.
In fact, I didn’t rate a single meal lower than 9 out of 10.
Some were simply good.
Others were excellent.
The beef short ribs were probably my favorite, but overall I was impressed by both the variety and the quality.
These didn’t taste like frozen dinners.
They tasted much closer to restaurant meals that just happened to be ready in a couple of minutes.
Were They Filling?
This was one of my biggest concerns before ordering.
Many of the meals contained between 800 and 1,000 calories.
Visually, they didn’t always look like that much food, but after eating them I generally felt satisfied.
Were they huge meals that left me completely stuffed?
No.
Occasionally I grabbed a handful of almonds later in the evening if I wanted a little more to eat.
But overall, I thought the portion sizes were appropriate and much more satisfying than the frozen meals you’ll find at most grocery stores.
What About the Cost?
This is where I think perspective matters.
If you’re comparing CookUnity to cooking meals at home from scratch, home cooking is almost always going to cost less.
However, that’s not the comparison I was making.
For me, the real comparison was ordering DoorDash or picking up fast food.
In that comparison, CookUnity makes a lot more sense.
You’re getting chef-prepared food, much better ingredients, and restaurant-quality meals delivered to your door.
For someone who regularly orders takeout, I think CookUnity offers very good value.
Delivery Experience
Before signing up, I read plenty of complaints online about delivery.
Fortunately, that hasn’t been my experience.
Every delivery I’ve received has arrived without any problems.
The CookUnity app gives you a delivery window early in the day and updates your estimated arrival time as the driver gets closer. Once your delivery is only a few stops away, you can even watch the driver on a live map similar to DoorDash.
So far, delivery has been smooth and reliable.
Would I Recommend CookUnity?
Yes.
If you enjoy cooking or you’re feeding an entire family on a tight budget, I don’t think CookUnity replaces home cooking.
But if you’re retired, live alone, don’t enjoy cooking, or find yourself ordering takeout several times a week, I think it’s definitely worth considering.
The convenience is excellent.
The food quality exceeded my expectations.
Most importantly, after eating all eight meals…
I’m keeping my subscription.
That probably says more than any rating I could give.
Watch My Full Video Review
If you’d like to see every meal I tried, along with my honest reactions and ratings, watch my full YouTube review below.
I’d also love to hear from you.
Have you tried CookUnity? What was your favorite meal? Let me know in the comments.
