Last Updated on January 24, 2021 by Fiona Maclean
Wine and dine in style at home with our tried and tested meal kit deliveries.
Meal kits and home deliveries have been around for years. We’ve tried and tested a number of the major organisations including Hello-Fresh who brought us a delicious chicken with wild mushroom and truffle recipe and The Mindful Chef where we learnt how to make a delicious Lemongrass Trout with coconut lime rice and we love the concept. All your ingredients for one, two or even four recipes arrive at your door – all you have to do is cook. As one of my friends pointed out, it’s a great way to broaden your own repertoire and learn how to make some new dishes. And, for a small household, it can be very cost-effective as you cut out food-waste of items like herbs and specialist sauces. However, the temporary restaurant closures that have resulted from the current pandemic have taken home-delivery services to a completely new level making for the perfect date night at home. Offerings from Michelin Star restaurants through to street food sellers come in two forms. There are heat and serve deliveries where everything you need is neatly boxed up so that you only need to reheat and plate the dishes. And, there are meal-kits where you’ll end up doing anything from making your own babka through to learning how to cook lobster tagliatelle.
Which you choose for your date night depends partly on your taste, on your own culinary skill – and on whether you want to be hands-on in the kitchen or simply plate up and eat some restaurant-quality dishes in the comfort of your own home. Don’t forget to make an occasion of it though, dress to impress and set the table with candles, fresh flowers and your best china. And, open a good bottle of wine or make a special cocktail or three. For those with kids, you could even bribe them to provide table service – or to keep out of the way for the evening!
We’ve been trying some of the best on the market – and we’ve listed a few that we’ve yet to review but which are coming soon, because with the year’s biggest date night coming up soon on February 14th, we’re sure you’ll all want to be ready for Valentine’s Day!
Restaurant deliveries and more for the perfect home dining experience. Adam Handling's cook at home meal kits offer a range of different meal options - you can pick dishes a la carte or opt for one of the set menus just as you might do in a restaurant. Their Valentine's special is a premium product including a bottle of champagne, caviar, lobster tagliatelle and whole salt roast duck. Our reviewer loved the food she tried and found that she had plenty for a second meal - but did say that some of the dishes might be challenging for a novice cook. Definitely one for the foodies though. Home by Nico is the 'at home' version of the popular accessible fine dining restaurant group '6 by Nico'. Offering a nationwide service with a monthly changing four-course menu, our reviewer really enjoyed the fresh and delicious restaurant-quality dishes. Everything was easy to cook and plate and we thought Home by Nico offered great value at just £60 for two including a bottle of wine! Find out more from our tried and tested review of Home by Nico When we asked our reviewer to try Shuk, she jumped at the chance to make her own bake at home Babka. OK maybe not a typical date night option - but, we think it would make a lovely dessert. Besides the Babka, you can order from a range of poshed up filled pitas to make at home (the meat comes from every foodie's favourite Borough Market butcher, The Ginger Pig). Our reviewer thought the portion sizes were generous and everything was a great success. Nationwide delivery will bring a taste of Tel Aviv via Borough Market to your door. We are pretty excited about our Pescatarian Hamper from Aquavit which arrives next week. Our menu includes salmon gravlax, a langoustine bao bun, Houghton spring trout and smoked cod papillotte with rakor, sea herbs. They have a veggie and a meat hamper too for nationwide delivery with prices starting at £60 for 2 people. While it's not specifically Valentine's Day offer, we think it sounds spot on. You can order paired wines for delivery too for the perfect date night evening - and we'll update here once we have reviewed. Meanwhile, if you want to order for yourself, click the link We love Chotto Matte in Soho, so when we discovered they were launching a nationwide At Home service we were intrigued. The Chotto Signature Restaurant Box is £80 for two but will offer you seven dishes of premium quality ingredients like wagyu beef and black cod, served with Chotto Matte's delicious pan-Asian spices and sauces. While there's some cooking involved, it's relatively straightforward and shouldn't be beyond the skills of the average home cook A huge step above your average "curry house", Clay's Hyderabadi Kitchen cooks up delicious, authentic and nuanced Indian dishes. The menu is predominantly from Hyderabad and the wider Southern Indian region, reflecting the owners Sharat and Nandana's memories of their childhoods in Andhra and South India. Amongst excellent renditions of familiar bhunas and tikka masalas are dishes less commonly found on UK menus, such as Bhooni Kaleji (Chicken Livers), Anda Masala, Dhaba-style (a Dhaba-style egg curry), Baghare Baigan (Whole Baby Aubergines in a nutty sesame sauce), and genuine Hyderabadi biryanis. Their freshly made food arrives well packaged and properly chilled in vacuum-packed bags, and it's just as good popped in the freezer to enjoy later, as it is eaten straight away. Order a few meals worth–you'll thank yourself later! Antona at Home brings the distinguished quality of Andreas Antona’s cuisine into your home. In addition to the seasonal menus, Antona at Home has a fabulous Valentine’s Day menu which is designed to bring the luxury of a table for two in a Michelin star restaurant to your table. The Valentine’s Day Menus offer five courses with options for vegetarians. The non-vegetarian menu is priced at £180 for two people, with options to upgrade the Great Taste Award-winning smoked salmon starter with the luxury of Imperial caviar and to add Wiltshire truffle to the Beef Wellington main course. Suggested wine pairings for each course are available. The vegetarian menu is priced at £120 for two and kicks off with a starter of pickled beetroot, sheep’s curd, toasted seeds and grains with balsamic and rocket and then a main of yellow lentil dhal with curried cauliflower smoked almonds and coriander. Both menus include homemade milk buns and Ampersand butter. There is also a cheese course with artisanal cheeses and homemade oatcakes. Seasonal Antona at Home set menus priced at £45 per person will also be available. Antona at Home’s Valentine’s Menu must be pre-ordered before noon on Tuesday 9th February for delivery on Friday 12th and Saturday 13th February. Delivery is nationwide. Lu ban has a restaurant in Liverpool as well as Lu Ban kitchen offering Cook at Home, Heat at Home and Banquet boxes fit for every celebration delivered nationwide. There’s something rather exciting about having a big box full of amazing looking food delivered to your door, especially in lockdown it really does bring a bit of cheer. Our reviewer was impressed that everything arrived very well packaged, with dishes frozen to keep the freshness in. Each dish came with a card with heating instructions, ready to heat and enjoy. Our reviewer loved the quality of the food and the great selection of If you are looking for Indian food beyond the takeaway to spice up your date night, we recommend Mandira's kitchen. Their 'home-style' Indian dishes are delivered deep chilled so you can either cook them without freezing or put them in the freezer for later. To complement the extensive range of dishes, there are spice kits and sides that you can use to make your own dips and more. And, there's a range of truly delicious homemade chutneys too. All offered with nationwide delivery If you live in North London, you could be enjoying the 'at home' service from Maghreb, offering North African flavours and dishes from the Levant. They have eight DIY food box options with dishes like Shawarma and Chraymeh fish cake in 'Big' (serves four+) or Small (for 2) to make at home starting at £28. Our reviewer loved the menus and found the dishes very successful If you are more into a lazy weekend brunch date than dinner, Caravan might be just what you are looking for. With Nationwide delivery of some of their best loved brunch dishes, you could breakfast in style. With prepared sauces, bread, coffee and fresh juice, you just need to add eggs and put the dishes together for a real feast. £36 will buy you baked eggs, while at £39 you'll get kimchi pancakes and a whole lot more. We love the cuisine of the Levant, but all too often find we need extra spices, sauces and ingredients that just are not easy to pick up. Ceru, one of of our favourite London hangouts, now offers a great 'at-home' service so that you can enjoy a Levantine feast that takes around half an hour to prepare. There are lamb, chicken, beef and vegan menus with prices starting at £40 for two. Our reviewer loved the food - and was charmed by the delivery presentation in a special silken scarf wrapper. We trialled the Drake and Morgan Brunch and Cocktails just before Christmas so our review has a decidedly seasonal feel. But, if you fancy a classic brunch and cocktail menu at home yourself, there's a similar menu still on offer - four different options for two people, with a couple of cocktails each - priced at £40 for classic options like Avo on sourdough toast and Eggs Benedict. They also have a range of cocktail boxes if you are looking for liquid sustenance. While Noble House isn't a restaurant, their prepared foods offer a great range and they are delivered Nationwide and are frozen so you can pop them straight in your freezer and enjoy them when it suits you. Check out our review and stock up for those special date nights Love Pasta? Live in London Oxford or Brighton? Nonna Tonda brings you a weekly subscription-based fresh pasta service with a range of innovative and delicious sauces to complement the pasta. The dishes are quite special enough for a date night - while being quick and easy to put together.Best Date Night Meal Kit Deliveries and More
Adam Handling brings fine dining back HAME
Home By Nico - Review
Shuk; London - Home Delivery Service
Aquavit London - Feast on a Michelin Food Hamper
Chotto At Home
Clay’s Hyderabadi Kitchen | Rich, Nuanced and Delicious Indian Food Across The UK
Antona At Home - Michelin Star Food from the Midlands!
Lu Ban Kitchen - Lu Ban Kitchen
dishes, all rich in flavour which made for a lovely family celebration meal and commented that you can even choose to upgrade your order and add Champagne, gin or cocktails. Lu Ban provides the perfect way to bring in the Chinese New Year with the hope of spring and better times to come. Or to cuddle up for a perfect date night Chinese style. Review coming soon, but meanwhile, click through to order
Proper Indian Food - Mandira's Kitchen Makes it Easy
Spicy meal kits from Maghreb
Caravan Brunch at Home Box
Ceru brings Levantine cooking home
Drake and Morgan Brunch at Home - a Merry Weekender
Noble House Prepared, upmarket food delivered to your doorstep
Nonna Tonda – a taste of Italy
What a great idea for Valentine’s Day. So many to choose from! It’s making me hungry.