10 Best Meal Delivery Services in New Orleans 2023: Full List

The Big Easy is one of the best food cities in the world. From po'boys and jambalaya to beignets and chicory coffee, there’s a delicious dish for everyone to enjoy. But eating out can get expensive, and finding time to cook amidst your busy New Orleans social life can be a challenge. Which is where I come in.

I review meal delivery services for a living. I’ve pored over ingredient lists, compared and contrasted prices, consulted colleagues, and sampled services in the comfort of my own home. I know this industry like Fats Domino knows “Blueberry Hill.” And I’m here to help you find the meal delivery service that’s right for you.

While I gave Home Chef our top spot thanks to its broad menu and customization features, every meal delivery service on this list has something to offer. Whether you’re a homemaker with a hungry family, a vegan looking for plant-based menus, or a Tulane student looking for healthy prepared meals, there’s a meal plan here that’s perfect for you.

The Best Meal Delivery Services in New Orleans Reviewed

1. Home Chef – Best Meal Delivery Service in New Orleans in 2023

Key Features

• Customize It feature lets you swap or double up on proteins

• 30 meals and 18 extras to choose from each week

• Dietary options include vegetarian and carb- and calorie-conscious

• Current deal: 75% Off Your 1st Box + 60% Off Your 2nd and 3rd Boxes!

My favorite thing about Home Chef is its Customize It feature. Nearly every dish can be customized with different proteins, such as adding an extra portion or substituting chicken for steak, pork chops, or even salmon. Home Chef also lets you select meals to suit how much time you want to spend cooking.

Culinary Collection meals like the Truffle Mushroom Chicken pictured above let you flex your skills in the kitchen. For nights when you’d rather be at Preservation Hall, Home Chef offers quick and easy dinners too.

After a home trial, my colleague declared Home Chef “one of the most versatile meal delivery services out there.”. 15-Minute Meal Kits function just as advertised, minimizing your time in the kitchen. Oven-Ready Meal Kits take convenience a step further, allowing you to simply toss all the ingredients in the included pan and stick it in the oven.

2. Blue Apron – Best Jazzy Meals and Diverse Dishes in New Orleans

Key Features

• Optional wine subscription

• 19+ dishes on the menu each week

• Dietary options include vegetarian, WW-approved, and diabetes-friendly

• Current deal: Enjoy $130 off across your first 6 orders

Blue Apron is one of the best-known meal delivery services in the United States thanks largely to its diverse collection of dishes inspired by cuisines from around the world. The company offers familiar, New Orleans-inspired dishes like Cajun Chicken and Rice alongside more adventurous meals like the vegetarian, One-Pan Udon Noodle Stir Fry pictured above.

Our dedicated Blue Apron reviewer said that Blue Apron “certainly lives up to the hype.”.

Besides an ever-expanding selection of delicious meal kits to make at home, a personalized wine delivery service helps set Blue Apron apart from the crowd. For an average of just $10/bottle, you can enjoy six personalized wines every month to pair with your home-prepared Blue Apron dishes.

Blue Apron is also a popular meal delivery service for those looking for a weight-loss plan, thanks to its WW- (formerly Weight Watchers) approved recipes.

3. HelloFresh – Best for Easy Dinners in the Big Easy

Key Features

• Exciting, crowd-pleasing meals

• 35+ recipes and 50+ market items each week

• Dietary options include vegetarian, pescatarian, and low-calorie

• Current deal: Get 25 free meals + free shipping + 3 surprise gifts

HelloFresh is the world’s most popular meal delivery service, and for good reason. With over 35 recipes to choose from each week, you’ll definitely be able to find something for every member of your household, including the kids!

As one of the largest meal delivery services around, you can rest assured that HelloFresh is great value, with recipes to suit every palate, including vegetarian, family-friendly, and calorie smart. HelloFresh offers generous portion sizes, so you’ll have plenty for seconds.

Our reviewer tried HelloFresh at home and stated “I enjoyed all the dishes I tried.”. There’s plenty of room for Louisiana-inspired classics like the Cajun Blackened Tilapia (pictured above) as well as HelloFresh’s famous Firecracker Meatballs.

4. Marley Spoon – Best for Aspiring Kitchen Wizards

Key Features

• Easy-to-follow recipes and high-quality ingredients

• 45+ dishes per week  

• Dietary options include vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and more

• Current deal: Get $190 off Your First 4 Boxes!

Marley Spoon gives you a choice of over 45 different dishes each week, so you’ll never want for variety. You’ll always find vegan and vegetarian recipes, plus options that are dairy-free, gluten-free, kid-friendly, and more.

After trying Marley Spoon at home, our reviewer said “The step-by-step methods made it easy to create Martha Stewart-level dishes in my own kitchen.” In addition to a wide range of dishes, Marley Spoon also offers many extras, including desserts.

You might expect to pay extra for Martha Stewart-approved meals, but with meals starting at $2.99 per serving, Marley Spoon is very reasonably priced. Marley Spoon’s menu includes sophisticated meals like the Pan-Seared Ranch Steak pictured above, as well as kid-friendly favorites like Chicken Parmesan.

5. Freshly – Best for Healthy Fresh Prepared Meals

Key Features

• Certified gluten-free dishes

• 40+ prepared meals on the menu

• Dietary options include plant-based, dairy-free, low-calorie, and more

• Current deal: Get $175 off your first 7 boxes!

Freshly is a prepared meal delivery service with the mission of providing meals that are high in protein and nutrients but low in sugar and processed ingredients. My colleague’s Freshly review goes into more depth about this culinary mission.

All of Freshly’s dishes are individually portioned, ready for you to heat and eat in mere minutes. This makes it the perfect choice for people with active lifestyles who need clean, high-protein dishes but don’t always have the time to cook for themselves.

Get in touch with New Orleans’s French culinary roots with delectable dishes like the Dijon Pork Chop (seen above), which is loaded with 27 g of protein. And, like all of Freshly’s offerings, it’s gluten-free.

6. Green Chef – Organic Meal Kits for Healthy Lifestyles

Key Features

• Conveniently prepped ingredients and marinades

• 30 recipes each week

• Dietary options include keto, paleo, plant-based, and more

• Current deal: Get $250 Off + Free Shipping

Green Chef’s prepared ingredients – including chopped organic veggies and ready-to-use sauces and seasonings  – make cooking healthy, sophisticated meals easy. Meal prep ranges from 20-40 minutes (there are a small number of 10-minute lunches) but most Green Chef meals take 30 minutes or less.

Our expert reviewer, who tried Green Chef at home, declared it had “one of the best Keto + Paleo menus in the game”. Green Chef’s plant-forward menu is great for both vegetarians and vegans. But whatever plan you choose, you can order from the entire Green Chef menu.

Cajun crab cakes are one of my favorite dishes, but you owe it to yourself to try Green Chef’s totally vegan Artichoke “Crab” Cakes, pictured above. Served with quinoa, roasted red peppers, sautéed zucchini, and walnuts, this dish is a fresh-tasting and nutrient-packed take on the classic seafood staple.

7. EveryPlate – Ultra-Affordable Meal Kits for the Budget-Conscious

Key Features

• From $1.49 per serving

• 20+ meals per week, plus extras like desserts and salads

• Dietary options include the Veggie plan

• Current deal: $1.39/meal On Your 1st Box

If you’re on a tight budget (and who isn’t nowadays?), Everyplate offers crowd-pleasing comfort food that’s great for families. And at $1.49/serving, EveryPlate lets you eat better while saving money on your weekly meals.

EveryPlate gives you a choice of over 20 meals each week, as well as a selection of desserts and seasonal protein packs. Meals tend to be hearty, traditional, and simple. If you follow a specialized diet such as paleo or gluten-free you might struggle to find meals to suit your needs but if you follow a balanced, non-restrictive diet you’re sure to be impressed.

In addition to its regular Meat & Veggie menu, EveryPlate offers the plant-forward Veggie plan, kid-friendly Family-Friendly plan, and Quick & Easy plan with recipes that take 30 minutes or less to prepare.

In our detailed EveryPlate review, our reviewer noted “overall, it’s exceedingly easy to love EveryPlate.”. And EveryPlate’s Premium dishes like Sweet Chili Salmon shown are a great bargain at just a few dollars more per serving.

8. Purple Carrot – Plant-Based Versions of All Your Favorite Dishes

Key Features

• Meal kits and prepared meals available

• 16 entrees each week, plus breakfast and lunch picks

• Dietary options include high-protein, gluten-free, soy-free, and more

• Current deal: Get $30 Off with code carrot30

New Orleans is becoming a great spot for vegetarian and vegan foodies alike. However, staying on a completely plant-based diet can be rough, if you don’t know where to shop. Fortunately, Purple Carrot makes it easy for you to enjoy delicious plant-based breakfasts, lunches, and dinners.

Purple Carrot’s menu of around sixteen vegetarian/vegan dishes and a selection of breakfast and lunch entrees is modest next to many meal delivery services. But the quality is uniformly excellent. Our reviewer tried Purple Carrot at home and declared it “guaranteed to please even the fussiest of omnivores.”

Just try one of Purple Carrot’s delicious breakfasts and tell me it isn’t tasty! Surely, it’ll rank as one of the tastiest plant-based meals you’ve ever had. The savory Madras Curry Sweet Potatoes pictured above is a great option for a vegan dinner. Try it, and find out!

9. Factor – Best Prepared Keto Meals in New Orleans

Key Features

• High-quality ingredients in every dish

• 34 prepared meals each week

• Dietary options include keto, low-calorie, plant-based, and more

• Current deal: Up to $276 Off!

Dieting can be tough in New Orleans. Factor can make it a whole lot easier with keto-friendly choices like the Louisiana Shrimp with Smoked Gouda Cauliflower Grits pictured above.

Five minutes in the microwave and you can enjoy a meal made with non-GMO, antibiotic- and hormone-free, responsibly sourced ingredients. Our expert reviewer found Factor meals to be “of high quality and really tasty”.

Factor offers a wide selection of keto, low-carb, vegetarian, vegan, and dairy-free meals. Factor subscribers also get a free 20-minute consultation with an in-house dietitian who can help you achieve your diet goals.

With prices starting at $6.19 per serving, Factor is one of our more expensive services. But fitness-conscious eaters and serious keto dieters will love Factor’s delicious prepared meals, as well as add-ons like protein packs, smoothies, soups, and wellness shots.

10. Grubhub – Local Restaurant Delicacies Delivered to Your Door

Key Features

• Meals available from hundreds of New Orleans restaurants

• Food is delivered hot and ready to eat

• Option to sign up to Grubhub+ for exclusive perks and discounts

For those nights when you just can’t be bothered to cook a meal, or for when you have a restaurant craving that must be fulfilled, Grubhub comes to the rescue. And if you order regularly, Grubhub+ gives you unlimited free delivery on orders over $12.

Enjoy Bourbon Street delicacies like Creole Crab Cakes from the Olde NOLA Cookery without having to set foot outside your home. Grubhub’s website and app make it easy to sort through the best-reviewed restaurants that deliver to your address.

Whether you’re hungry for a local classic or even a chicken sandwich from Popeye’s, Grubhub has your back.

Quick Comparison Table

Tips for Choosing the Best Meal Delivery Services in New Orleans

With so many different meal delivery services in New Orleans, finding the right one can be daunting. Here are some professional tips on finding the service that’s right for you.

• Know your culinary limits. Meal delivery services are a great way to discover new ingredients and master new cooking skills. But if you have limited kitchen equipment or talent, you may be happier with a service offering prepared meals.

• Be flexible with your budget. Price is important, but a service that costs $1 more per serving will cost you $6 a week extra on a six-serving plan so it’s important to crunch the numbers before you signup. The services on this list cover a range of budgets.

• Know your dietary preferences. Those on a keto, paleo, or vegan diet will find that meal delivery services with a dedicated menu give you more choices than more generalized services that may offer only one or two weekly entrees that suit you.

• Check menus for variety. Most services let you look at several weeks’ menus. If you find yourself struggling to select meals you like on any particular week, you’ll probably be happier with a service offering a wider variety of recipes.

Bottom Line: Are Meal Delivery Services in New Orleans Worth It?

Meal delivery services in New Orleans are absolutely worth it.

When you sign up for a service like our winner, Home Chef, you get weekly shipments of tasty and healthy meals. (While New Orleans food is definitely tasty, it’s not always so healthy… ). You save time shopping and planning for meals, and you can even learn some new cooking skills along the way.

Meal delivery services are especially useful if you’re on a specialized diet like keto or paleo. Sticking to a diet is tough, and living in a foodie mecca like New Orleans only makes it harder. Vegans will enjoy Purple Carrot’s plant-based menu, and keto dieters will find that Green Chef’s Keto+Paleo menu provides delicious meals that help them resist temptation.

FAQ

What’s the best meal delivery service in New Orleans?

Thanks to its wide-ranging menu and customization options, Home Chef wins our award for the best meal delivery service in New Orleans. While some of the other services on our list may be better for specialized diets, most New Orleans locals will love Home Chef. 

What is the best prepared meal delivery service in New Orleans?

Its healthy prepared meals that avoid added sugar and processed ingredients ensure that Freshly gets our nod for the Big Easy’s best prepared meals. Freshly meals arrive fresh, never frozen, and are ready to eat with just a few minutes in the microwave.

What’s the most affordable meal delivery service in New Orleans?

If you’re on a tight budget, EveryPlate is the most affordable meal delivery service on our list. With meals starting at $1.49 per serving, EveryPlate offers filling comfort food that is great for homemakers feeding hungry families.