Blue Apron: Quality Food, Wine and Values
They offer delicious, chef-designed meal-kits with the option for personalized menus
Blue Apron, founded in 2012, now sends out over 4 million meals every month to customers in the US. They have three weekly meal plans, Signature, Wellness, and Vegetarian, and their Blue Apron Wine service pairs bottles with the Blue Apron meals. They also partner with farmers to provide high-quality, non-GMO ingredients with no added hormones or antibiotics.
What’s on the Menu?
Blue Apron has three plans: Signature, Wellness, and Vegetarian. Signature includes the most incredible variety of meat, fish, Beyond Meat™, WW™ Recommended meals and diabetes-friendly recipes. The Wellness plan has nutritionist-approved recipes, carb and calorie-conscious meals, and WW™ recommendations. The Vegetarian plan is meat-free and features seasonal produce.
The easy-to-navigate menu page allows you to see the options available for your plan. The Signature menu for two has the most options, around 20 recipes weekly, because it includes all meal types. Wellness and Vegetarian plans each have about 5 recipes weekly, and Signature for four people has approximately 10.
Microwave-ready meals are also available each week for non-vegetarian meal plans.
Blue Apron’s Wine Service makes it unique in the field. While a separate subscription, the wines are selected to pair with Blue Apron meals, and the wines come with tasting notes, pairing tips, and the story behind the wine.
Meal kit ingredients are both pictured and listed, but you are not told upfront what you will need to provide from your kitchen. The recipe is broken into steps with pictures to visually summarize the instructions. Instructions that come with the recipe include specific instructions like “Peel the carrots and thinly slice on an angle” and “Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels”, cautionary notes for safety like “Carefully rinse the rice (sifting through for any small stones or impurities)” and “Add… 1 cup of water (carefully, as the liquid may splatter)”, and detailed descriptions like “Cook, stirring frequently, 1 to 2 minutes, or until the bok choy stems are softened and the leaves are wilted.”
Plans, Prices & Delivery
The Signature plan is available for 2 or 4 people with up to four recipes each week for a maximum of 16 meals. Wellness and Vegetarian plans are designed for 2 people and you can get either 2 or 3 recipes each week for a maximum of 6 meals.
Blue Apron delivers 7 days a week to locations across the continental United States. Shipping costs $9.99, regardless of the number of meals purchased.
Discounts are available for military & veterans, students, teachers, seniors (+55), medical staff, and first responders. There are also deals for new customers.
If you’re interested in Blue Apron Wine, bottles are $10 each and a subscription is $69.99 per month with shipping.
It’s also possible to buy individual meal kits, wine bottles, and kitchen utensils at the Blue Apron Market without a subscription.
If you want to skip a delivery you can do so from 5 weeks before up until the order is processed (3-5 days before the delivery date). To cancel a subscription you first need to contact the “Customer Experience Team” at [email protected] to receive instructions on the process.
Customer Service
Numerous customer service contact options are readily available on the home page. You can go to the Help Center & FAQ page, get Covid-19 Updates, email at [email protected] or call at (646) 891-4349. Frequently Asked Questions cover topics such as Recipe Selection, Account Info and Billing, and Ingredient Standards.
To Sum it Up
Blue Apron provides high-quality ingredients for reasonable prices and encourages a positive, lifelong relationship with food and cooking. Partnerships with farmers and organizations like WW™ and BeyondMeat™ show a commitment to sustainable practices. Blue Apron works with farmers to ensure animals are not fed antibiotics or hormones, the seafood is approved by Seafood Watch, and all ingredients are non-GMO. There is also a level of conscientiousness for people and the community – from the hero discounts for groups like first responders and teachers to the free farmer’s markets they hold for their employees – that makes Blue Apron an appealing service overall.
