A few weeks ago, the lovely people behind Cookoo, the prepared meal delivery service, asked me to give their service a try. As someone who doesn’t really cook much but appreciates a good meal, the service appealed to me so I said yes. After a few emails back and forth, we had agreed on a date and a meal: Onglet Steak with Arborio Rice & Mustard Vinaigrette Cabbage. Cookoo explained that my meal should arrive between 5 pm and 8 pm.
My Review
Delivery: I was pleasantly surprised by timely hand delivery at 5:18 pm.
Presentation: The challenge with most delivery/local light haulage for higher-end food delivery is keeping everything looking nice. The box contents were slightly in disarray but not bad really, all things considered. I LOVED the handwritten note card. That’s hard to scale but it was a lovely personal touch, as was the addition of the vegan cocoa balls, which I hadn’t ordered but they included for me to try.
Taste: OK, so mistakenly, I ate one of the vegan cocoa balls without checking the ingredients. I have a pollen allergy and the three things that set me off are raw hazelnuts, raw carrots and raw celery. (Trust me, I do not enjoy being allergic to these things. Particularly celery which I have since learned is often used as a margin-preserving filler in a lot of dishes.) I definitely experienced some “oral allergy syndrome” after eating one of the balls. There were no ingredients in the bag so I had to go online and see what was in them. Apparently, there were no hazelnuts so maybe I am also allergic to some other nut? Not sure. I wish they had included the ingredients but it’s my own fault for eating one of the balls without checking.
I LOVED the onglet and thought it was perfectly done. This is something I pretty much never make for myself, which is exactly why I ordered it and not chicken or salmon. The rice was great too — I love macadamia nuts and am not allergic to them at all! — but I did find I had to add some salt to the dish. I’m okay with that because I’d rather do my own seasoning than get something that is over-salted.
Overall, this was a great experience. I don’t know if delivering one 10 quid meal at a time is a scalable business, but as a busy professional, I certainly enjoyed it. I liked that they include the calorie count too! I could see myself ordering this a few times of the month when I am super busy so that I have something waiting for me when I got home that isn’t crap.
Discount for Readers
Special offer for Passportdelicious.com readers! Get 20% of your Cookoo order! Just enter PASSPORTDELICIOUS when you check out.
Giveaway
Cookoo is giving away a champagne picnic hamper made by two of their lovely cooks, Amy & Faye.The competition is open until June 10th. Enter here.
I received my meal and the vegan cocoa balls in return for sharing my opinion, which I have done honestly here.
