Hello Fresh praise/vent

Cantisque

I came to the MSE forum today for another question but thought I'd share my thoughts on Hello Fresh which I recently cancelled after 2 years. I see a lot of their ads on social media and a lot of negativity toward them in comments, probably due to their aggressive advertising tactics.

I started with a free box offer and as someone who's never really cooked properly before, I was actually super impressed with the results, every meal I'd picked came out great so I stayed on longer. I got much better at meal prep, could do the fast chopping motions and all that fancy stuff, tried stuff I never thought I'd like but did.

So if nothing else, I'd recommend trying it if you're looking to practice cooking but aren't sure where to start and find online recipes too complicated, or they use ingredients you have to buy a large amount of when you'd only be using a teaspoon once. And yeah, subjectively, I thought the recipes were pretty tasty.

It wasn't smooth sailing the whole way, though. Around about a year in, I was constantly finding ingredients missing in my delivery and while they did refund (in the form of credit), it was still annoying since one of the main benefits of paying for their service is to not have to go shopping. You can refund me £3 for the missing sauce sachet, but that still means I have to go out and buy it and I could have just done the whole shop at that point!

I'd say overall, there were issues with between 5-10% of all my orders with most of the issues being around that period. I also had issues with the courier at one point where I was unable to walk for a few weeks and specifically requested the delivery be brought upstairs to my flat door (as they usually had done) and instead it got left in the car park for 3 weeks in a row!

Eventually I ended my subscription because I felt like I didn't need them as my training wheels any more. I'd also noticed, comparing their current recipes to the exact same ones from two years ago, they'd reduced the amount of ingredients included, so I was essentially paying more for less. Mostly they'd stopped providing things like chillies, onions and other veg garnishes. You can make them yourself for cheaper if you're willing to do your own measurements. Some of their more exotic sauces and spices can be hard to find, like ketjap manis, zhoug and chermoula, they can be found in Asian speciality stores and Amazon but often quite expensive unless you buy a large amount.

But yeah I thought it was pretty good, I had no issues with the quality of the ingredients or managing my account or anything, just thought I'd give them some praise since they seem to get mostly visceral hate from their ads (that one on Twitter lately showing that huge sub sandwich? I have never ONCE seen anything like that on the menu, I'd definitely call that misleading)

Emmia

We alternate between Hello Fresh and Gousto.

Gousto meals are more varied and complex to make (more skill development), but they don't offer a delivery slot (which Hello Fresh does, for a fee) so you can be a bit trapped in waiting for the box.

Hello Fresh meals are a little bit more samey, there's a lot of minced meat + rice/pasta/noodles in the options. 

Both are great though for expanding the menu of what you eat for dinner.

Cantisque

Emmia said:

We alternate between Hello Fresh and Gousto.

Gousto meals are more varied and complex to make (more skill development), but they don't offer a delivery slot (which Hello Fresh does, for a fee) so you can be a bit trapped in waiting for the box.

Hello Fresh meals are a little bit more samey, there's a lot of minced meat + rice/pasta/noodles in the options. 

Both are great though for expanding the menu of what you eat for dinner.

I'll have to give their 60% off first box deal a try and see if I can handle their more complex recipes now. At the very least, it'll be a cheap dinner for a week! 👍

Lavendyr

I've used Gousto on and off for about 4 years, and tend to start up when I a) feel the need to get out of a food rut and b) get a discount offer. Not tried Hello Fresh but have to say I've rarely had issues with Gousto. Occasionally they've recently substituted an ingredient, e.g. chicken breast instead of chicken thigh, but it hasn't been a big issue and I've never had a totally missing ingredient. Once or twice a few years ago I had something damaged, but it was generally not a big issue. I also like the range of options from "prepped in 5" which is largely one-pot, to more detailed recipes.

I think they can be worthwhile to get back into the habit of cooking from scratch and especially to offer inspiration for new meals, but I only go back in when there's a decent offer. 

jon81uk

Emmia said:

We alternate between Hello Fresh and Gousto.

Gousto meals are more varied and complex to make (more skill development), but they don't offer a delivery slot (which Hello Fresh does, for a fee) so you can be a bit trapped in waiting for the box.

Hello Fresh meals are a little bit more samey, there's a lot of minced meat + rice/pasta/noodles in the options. 

Both are great though for expanding the menu of what you eat for dinner.

Yep I mainly use Gousto as the meals feel more interesting and varied. HelloFresh to me was often a bit more bland, or simple. 

Cantisque

Yeah I see what you mean, I didn't count or anything but definitely seems like a wider selection on Gousto. I've got the trial box coming on Friday 👍

Savvy_Sue

My experience of HF and Abel & Cole recipe boxes was that they take a LOT longer to prep than they say.

But I could usually stretch them to get at least one extra meal.

My problem is that I really don't like chilli, curry, ginger or anything else so hot it takes the roof of your mouth off. Sadly leaves very little variety. I want to taste the food, not the seasonings!

Emmia

Savvy_Sue said:

My experience of HF and Abel & Cole recipe boxes was that they take a LOT longer to prep than they say.

But I could usually stretch them to get at least one extra meal.

My problem is that I really don't like chilli, curry, ginger or anything else so hot it takes the roof of your mouth off. Sadly leaves very little variety. I want to taste the food, not the seasonings!

We tend to reduce the chilli etc., to our taste preferences, not just plonking it all in because the recipe says so.

Cantisque

Savvy_Sue said:

My experience of HF and Abel & Cole recipe boxes was that they take a LOT longer to prep than they say.

But I could usually stretch them to get at least one extra meal.

My problem is that I really don't like chilli, curry, ginger or anything else so hot it takes the roof of your mouth off. Sadly leaves very little variety. I want to taste the food, not the seasonings!

Yeah I think their over-optimistic prep times are based on two people who are good at cooking and very familiar with the recipe.

DietIrnBru

For scenarios where you are trying recipes for the first time - then Gousto is pretty good - less waste versus buying full bottles of sauces and spices that you may use a fraction of if you dont like a recipe. Moving forward if you find something you like and can freeze in bulk - then buying the stuff in from your supermarket it is cheaper..

The biggest turn off for me for Gusto - the only provider i've tried - the waiting for delivery all day - all well and good for those with more than one person at home - for me, a wasted day - so i didnt order again.

jon81uk

Savvy_Sue said:

My experience of HF and Abel & Cole recipe boxes was that they take a LOT longer to prep than they say.

But I could usually stretch them to get at least one extra meal.

My problem is that I really don't like chilli, curry, ginger or anything else so hot it takes the roof of your mouth off. Sadly leaves very little variety. I want to taste the food, not the seasonings!

In many recipes the seasonings is what you are meant to taste, without them there wouldn't be any flavour. Yes for some people too much chilli can overpower, but the right combination of ginger and garlic with spices like cumin and coriander will create flavour not heat. Without them you've just got some chicken breast in tomato puree!