There’s a lot about Thistle, a plant-based meal delivery service, that makes it a foolproof choice for those who want to put in less effort and money but still enjoy tasty, nutritious meals from one week to the next. Their meals, first of all, are super-duper fresh and also contain no gluten, dairy, or any other processed additives.

These meals include a vast range of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, and healthy and plant-based fat alternatives, plus flavorful herbs and spices too! And the service goes beyond just meals; there’s a whole variety of cold-pressed juices and snacks to pick from as well.

Meal plans for subscription are flexible and customizable, and overall, the Thistle menu makes room for dietary preferences/restrictions and common, major allergens.

Even sustainable packaging is something you need not worry about with Thistle. So, let’s get to know more to make a well-informed decision!

The company incepted back in 2014, intending to provide a safe and abundant supply of food that combines real and whole foods to improve human health and dwindle the environmental footprints.

Ashwin Cheryian and Shiri Avnery founded Thistle to provide healthy and tasty meals covering vegan and omnivore recipes.

The menu is thoughtfully designed by accomplished Nutritionists and crafted by the company’s distinguished Chefs. A menu that specifically caters to what your body and taste buds need. 

A portion of healthy food should not imply strict restrictions on your food intake, setting unrealistic goals for your body. Rather, it is about feeling energetic throughout the day and improving your overall health and mood. Thus, all the Thistle foods are made in such a way that it keeps you energetic and focused throughout the day. 

Thistle does not want you to over complicate your healthy diet by hoarding new groceries every day and preparing a meal with just the right measurement of nutrition while aiming for the perfect taste. If you feel overwhelmed by the shopping and the unnecessary diet advice out there, Thistle is here to save you from all this fuss. The company has curated their menu to cater the personal macronutrient needs of the majority of people and provides your body with vitamins and minerals found in whole, organic foods that are free from sweeteners and preservatives.

The food here is absolutely plant-forward, gluten- and dairy-free, and infused with whole nutritional value to provide you with the best and healthy lifestyle. Moreover, Thistle meals have an average of 5 to 8 unique fruits and veggies, plants, or meat options, which diversifies your nutrient sources.

Thistle has in its cart a mixed bag of all vegetarian, vegan, and rich in protein foods, emphasizing a clean daily diet rather than just a single meal. With Thistle, you get the chance to modify your whole eating plan – starting from breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack.

The weekly menu is structured in such a way that you get to revise and upgrade all your meals every day with new and interesting recipes that, without Thistle, you probably would not be able to eat on your own.

Thistle meals are varied in the sense that you can eat some of their meals cold, while others need to be microwaved for 2–3 minutes (depending on the protein).

Every meal is labeled with the proper storage and heating instructions. The instructions are simple and beginner-friendly.

It’s like having a personal chef offering you a diverse diet that takes your nutrition to the next level. This gives you the opportunity to try authentic recipes like Burmese Khow Suey, Moroccan Autumn Tagine, Citrus Kale Salad, Coconut & Spirulina Super Smoothie, and Tiramisu Mousse Cup on a daily basis.

The extensive menu features meal recipes that are ready to eat, without processed ingredients, and free of gluten, dairy, and refined sugars. Having said that, is it all plant-based?

While focusing on a plant-based diet is one of Thistle’s special qualities, you still have the option to make a meal nonvegetarian if you’re a meat eater. So, the same recipe is done up in any one of two ways – Plant-Based or Meat.

Here’s a quick example from their current week’s menu:

The Green Grain Taco Salad recipe offers Adobo pinto beans as a plant-based protein alternative, while the meat version of the same recipe with all the same ingredients has cumin pulled pork.

And it’s not just the lunches and salads that have this option. Dinners like the Umami Mushroom & Lemon Miso Bowl have sesame baked tofu, which is their plant-based protein, and for meat, it comes with sesame ground turkey.

Just like that, Thistle’s menu is divided into their location-specific West Coast Menu and East Coast Menu. On top of that, they have menus for the present week, next week, juices, and sides.

Their juices and side dishes are varied and all plant-based, emphasizing portion control and an organic diet. Some of my favorites in juices are the following:

• The Watermelon Berry Cold-Pressed Juice with Organic watermelon, strawberry, lime, and chia seeds
• The Probiotic shot with Organic cabbage, lemon, orange, ginger, apple, and a probiotic blend

And in side dishes:

• The Thai Carrot Squash Soup with lemongrass, ginger, and lime
• The Southwestern Black Bean Salad with a spring mix lettuce blend, chickpeas, and grape tomatoes

Menu customization is limited, I’ll admit, considering that Thistle chooses your meals for each day of the week, excluding Sundays, and the meals are cooked and delivered straight to your door. If there are any ingredients you’d like to opt out of in a desired recipe, that won’t be possible.

However, you are given the chance to select ingredients to avoid before subscribing to their meal plans. The ingredients are common food allergens like shellfish, fish, coconut, peanuts, soy, pork, and tree nuts.

Concerning food allergies, Thistle is 100% gluten-free and dairy-free, making it a safe and healthy choice for people with celiac and other gluten- or dairy-related allergies or disorders.

Thistle’s main focus is on increasing the consumption of nonprocessed ingredients like gluten, dairy, refined sugars, preserved ingredients, etc. This also means no GMOs, artificial sweeteners, artificial preservatives, fillers, MSG, and other common food additives.

It’s a clean and nutritious choice for both plant eaters and meat eaters as you have the option to choose your choice of protein for every meal, excluding breakfast and snacks.

Not all, but most of the ingredients used by Thistle are organic. Under the Ingredients section for each meal, the organic ingredients are highlighted.

The various dietary categories that Thistle encompasses are high protein, calorie-conscious, low carb, gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian, vegan, and organic diets. Every day, you have something both nutritious and diet-centric prepared for you.

What’s not ideal about Thistle, diet-wise, is the lack of freedom to choose a specific diet plan. A good example of that would be BistroMD, which features a special keto program, a diabetic-friendly program, a heart-healthy program, and more.

Thistle doesn’t have that, so it can be limiting for someone on a specialized diet to follow in the footsteps of Thistle’s daily routine.

Read more: Purple Carrot Review

Thistle’s meals, at first glance, support a healthy and balanced lifestyle. So, when it comes to losing and managing weight, their meals may be able to support your health goals.

The typical range of calories is different for different meals of the day. For example:

• Breakfast: 250–350 calories per dish
• Lunch: Less than 500 calories per dish
• Dinner: 400–650 calories per dish
• Snack: 300–550 calories per snack

Bear in mind that these values refer to the plant-based dishes. If you’re planning on maintaining a weight loss diet with meat in mind, the calories per serving of the lunches and dinner would increase by 50–100 calories per dish.

However, in some cases, the caloric value may decrease by 50 or so calories with a meat alternative. For example, the Moroccan Autumn Tagine’s plant-based version has 610 calories, while the meat version has 580 calories.

Another important consideration for following a weight loss diet is proteins. A high-protein consumption, between 0.75 grams and 1.0 grams per pound of body weight, is considered ideal for weight loss.

When you evaluate and compare meals that are high in proteins, there must be at least 20g of protein in each meal.

By these standards, Thistle’s meals offer 20g of proteins per serving in plant-based dishes and more than 25g–30g of proteins per serving in meat dishes.

Thistle is a valuable companion for when you are on a plant-based diet. Thistle offers veggie-heavy dishes that are anything but boring. So, going meat-free just for the heck of it won’t feel like such a challenge.

Thistle’s diet is rich in hearty ingredients like pinto beans, chickpeas, tofu, squash, green lentils, black beans, and more. The fiber content of their plant-based meals is high, with more than 10g of fiber in a single meal.

Some of my favorite dishes from their plant-based menu are the following:

• Green Pesto Bowl with chickpea pasta, roasted squash, pea protein crumbles, and grape tomatoes
• Citrus Kale Salad with tangy oranges paired with pickled onions, lettuce, kale, lemon zest, and quinoa
• Creamy Cajun Salad with white beans, fire-roasted tomatoes, red bell peppers, and Mexican oregano

All their vegan and vegetarian meals contain organic ingredients, and the ones that aren’t are clearly listed. As a rule, all their meals are dairy-free, gluten-free, and egg-free.

The juices and sides are available at an additional cost, all of them boasting of unprocessed whole foods like fresh veggies and fruits, especially tempting for plant-based eating diets, featuring a variety of interesting combinations like orange with carrots, pineapple with kale and cucumbers, apple with beet and aloe vera, and my favorite, watermelon and strawberry with lime.

Plant-Based Umami Mushroom & Lemon Miso Bowl

Nutritional value:

• Calories: 410
• Fat:  23g
• Saturated Fat:  4.5g
• Sodium:  190 mg
• Total Carbs:  34g
• Added Sugar:  0g
• Total Sugar:  6g
• Protein:  26g

Green Pesto Bowl with Roasted Chicken

Nutritional value:

• Calories:  670
• Fat:  235g
• Saturated Fat:  5g
• Sodium:290 mg
• Total Carbs:  54g
• Added Sugar:  0g
• Total Sugar:  6g
• Protein:  44g

Tiramisu Mousse Cup

Nutritional value:

• Calories: 550
• Fat:  35g
• Saturated Fat:  11g
• Sodium:  140 mg
• Total Carbs:  48g
• Added Sugar:  14g
• Total Sugar:  19g
• Protein:  12g

Blue Wildflower Smoothie

Nutritional value:

• Calories: 240
• Fat:  13g
• Saturated Fat:  9g
• Sodium:40 mg
• Total Carbs:  432g
• Added Sugar:  0g
• Total Sugar:  19g
• Protein:  4g

Not limited to just meals, Thistle offers fresh juices, wellness shots, salads, and soups as add-ons. You can add as many of them as you like and you’ll be charged per item.

The preset way of ordering add-ons on Thistle is to pick bundles containing a few cold-pressed juices with wellness shots, for example, 6 cold-pressed juices with 3 wellness shots for $60 per week.

You can just as easily opt out of the add-ons and stick to ordering the main meals from their menu. Usually, orders with both main meals and add-ons charge no shipping fee due to the increase in meal quantity and order value. But this may vary depending on the delivery location.

The minimum order consists of 3 meals where the cost per serving is $14.50 and, on top of that, $4.95 for shipping.

Here’s the Thistle pricing breakdown based on how many meals you order per week:

• 3 meals – $14.50 per portion (+ $4.95 shipping fee)
• 4 meals – $14.25 per portion (+ $4.95 shipping fee)
• 5 or 6 meals – $14 per portion (+ $4.95 shipping fee)
• 7, 8, or 9 meals – $13.25 per portion (+ $4.95 shipping fee)
• 10, 11, or 12 meals – $12.50 per portion (+ $4.95 shipping fee)
• 13, 14, or 15 meals – $12 per portion (+ $4.95 shipping fee)
• 16–30 meals – $11 to $11.50 per portion (+ $4.95 shipping fee)

Please take note that Thistle’s costs depend on where you live, meaning on your zip code. Hence, prices may be different based on your location.

Prices might also be different based on the type of meals you choose (e.g., meat-based dishes cost an extra $2.25 per serving). The ones mentioned above apply when adding either lunch meals or dinner meals to your order and entering either an East Coast or West Coast zip code.

In case you want to order only breakfasts, then the cost per serving changes, which can be anywhere between $9.50 and $12.50.

Now that you know the price of each meal, let’s have a look at Thistle’s prefixed orders and their costs:

Thistle delivers locally to San Francisco Bay Area, North Bay, Sacramento, Davis, Los Angeles, San Diego + Orange County, and Las Vegas. They ship across California and parts of Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.

Onfleet and Wonolo are the companies that are making the process of meal delivery easy and convenient. Your meals are delivered on Monday and Thursday mornings and Wednesday and Sunday evenings. For local customers, the delivery date and time is customizable after checkout. 

When your fresh, ready-to-eat food is on its way to arrive at your doorstep, you will receive a message that your delivery is on the way. You can meet your driver at the door, or they can leave it on your doorstep for a contactless delivery. All bags are packed with ice packs, so your meals stay super fresh. Then, pick up your bag and savor the package of nutrition and taste.

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Thistle packaging’s top attribute is that every meal is packed individually and labeled the most intricately – the day and time each meal lasts until is provided (for instance, Tuesday breakfast, Monday lunch, etc.). This really helps when it comes to stacking your weekly meals by the calendar.

Now, let’s move on to packaging; it’s sustainable in every shape and form. For example, the food containers are perfectly sized, meaning not excessively or unnecessarily big and thus wasteful. Plus, these are recyclable containers, even the jars and thermal cooler bags are recyclable.

As for the ice packs and delivery bags, they can be reused. Another option is to hand them over back to Thistle, so your kitchen cabinets remain clutter-free.

Should you desire to make more natural produce and plants a part of your daily diet, Thistle is a very suitable option for that. Vegan or otherwise, you can always pick the omnivore plan as well. Either way, Thistle meals are free of gluten and dairy.

However, on Thistle, those with food allergies won’t be able to modify any plans (unless you’re located within their local delivery zones). That said, Thistle might not be the best meal delivery service for you if you have serious food allergies or if you want all of your food to always be organic, although they do use organic produce whenever possible.

But there are a few dietary restrictions. For example, you can exclude the following ingredients:

• Peanuts
• Tree nuts
• Soy
• Shellfish
• Fish
• Pork
• Coconut

Thistle strives to provide dairy-free and gluten-free meals, which is one of their most appealing qualities. The plant protein is also gluten-free (in place of carbohydrates). The whole Thistle menu is gluten-free, so you’ll find rice and quinoa for carbs. The carbohydrate content is packed with protein, and these are complex carbs like legumes (quinoa, lentils, etc.), chickpeas, and whole grains.

At the same time, it’s all dairy-free too. Instead, the meals contain nut-based cheeses and dressings, house-made coconut cream, and lots more such flavorful items.

What’s also remarkable about Thistle is that the company gets meat that’s without any hormones, steroids, antibiotics, preservatives, fillers, growth stimulants, GMOs, and artificial ingredients.

Another piece of great news, Thistle meals are fresh, not frozen. And if that means you should be consuming them within 2 days of delivery, then why not given the health benefits of eating fresh food rather than its frozen counterpart.

But this does not imply that you cannot freeze these fresh Thistle meals. You have the option to stack them in your freezer for long-term storage (up to 3 months).

All Thistle meals are precooked, taking no longer than a few minutes to heat and eat. However, there will be some recipes that you do not have to heat at all, like the salads, for example.

Every individual meal has a label on it with heating instructions. But what I found most advantageous is to heat the recipe in an oven after transferring the food into a baking dish. This works great, especially with meat recipes.

Preparing the meals the conventional way, that is, using a microwave, takes less than 5 minutes for the meal to get hot and ready to serve.

In an oven, the process is a bit longer, taking between 7 and 20 minutes for the meal to heat completely. But the results are totally worth the wait as the meal tastes as though it has just been cooked.

The last and lesser-known method of heating prepared meals like Thistle’s is using the stovetop. The usual time it takes to heat a meal on the stovetop is 5–7 minutes depending on the main source of protein. Meat-free recipes heat faster than meat.

Thistle’s specialty discounts are directed toward the following groups or communities:

• Education providers
• Healthcare workers
• Students
• First responders
• Military

Thistle’s ordering process is simple and quick, with a minimum order value of 3 days of meals which includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack.

To sign up, first, you need to enter your zip code and email address. But even before doing that, you can take a look at their location-based menus for the West Coast and East Coast.

On the next page, you can choose if you want only plant-based meals or only meat-based meals or a mix of both. Accordingly, the price chart would update itself at the left based on your selection.

On the next page you get to specify if you want to avoid any allergens. If you choose yes you will be presented with a list of common allergens like dairy, shellfish, gluten etc. that you can tap on to avoid from your meals.

In the final step, you will be presented with different meals based on your previous selection. You can select the day of delivery while placing an order. Usually, it takes about 5–7 days for the order to get approved, processed, and delivered. All the meals are delivered in a box and can be left at your doorstep in situations where you’re not at home.

Thistle offers single-serve meals at all times. But these same meals can be added to the subscription for as many family members as you like. The single-portion size works best for you and your loved ones when it comes to following a healthy, well-balanced diet.

Thistle meals will fit into the family plan flawlessly also because the meals are filling. Just the one serving itself is enough so you don’t end up feeling fatigued or like you’ve overeaten. The meal portions are geared toward being both satisfying and energizing.

Thistle presents itself as an ideal option for individuals who want to increase their plant and whole food intake. They also have the option to go vegan, but it’s not mandatory which means you do have the option to mix and match between meat and meat-free alternatives.

It also accommodates those with dietary constraints concerning dairy and gluten, as all Thistle meals, regardless of the main protein source, are gluten-free and dairy-free. So, if you’re prone to indigestion or have a celiac disease, Thistle is a viable and gut-friendly option for you.

For any dietary constraints concerning other common food allergens like soy, tree nuts, coconuts, peanuts, fish, shellfish, etc., Thistle does address them, but you only have the option to exclude them from your meals. However, the meals are cooked and packed in the same kitchen facility which would increase the chances of cross-contamination.

High-quality ingredients that are locally sourced and consistently free of refined sugars, fillers, and additives make Thistle a wholesome and well-balanced meal delivery service.

If you’re not in a rush to eat Thistle’s meals, that’s not a problem. The meals can last for days in the refrigerator or weeks in the freezer. The meals are both refrigerator- and freezer-friendly.

What you can’t, or rather shouldn’t, do is keep the meals outside. For a few hours after delivery is no problem, but for long-term storage, the fridge or freezer is ideal.

Thistle does offer some assistance here by mentioning the freshness date or day for each meal which should tell you when to consume the meal for maximum freshness and flavor.

However, it does come with a higher price tag compared to some comparable meal delivery services. Finally, Thistle offers limited selections for various dietary preferences, including paleo, keto, and low-carb diets.

Read more: Wild Alaskan Seafood Review

Green Chef

Where Thistle offers fully cooked meals, Green Chef offers meal kits. So, if you’re leaning a bit more toward cooking your own meals, but without any meal prep, then Green Chef is an excellent alternative to Thistle. It also has gluten-free meals, along with keto-friendly options and more. The same as Thistle, Green Chef meals are plant-based.

But all meals on the Green Chef menu are certified organic, whereas only some Thistle meals have just organic ingredients.

Sunbasket

Both are subscription-based, prepared meal delivery services with gluten-free meals. Sunbasket, on top of that, makes way for meal kits as well. And it’s great for certified organic produce!

But comparatively speaking, it’s Thistle that offers greater meal variety and options. For instance, the menu also features wellness shots, cold-pressed juices, and the like.

Nevertheless, many still opt for Sunbasket as it’s the more affordable choice than Thistle. Sunbasket’s lowest cost per serving is $4.28, while that of Thistle is $11–$11.50.

Sakara

How about this plant-based, organic meal delivery service for readymade meals? Sakara, in addition to its gluten-free and dairy-free meals, also has wellness and beauty products (this includes detox, probiotics, etc.).

On the one side, there’s Thistle with its extra meat-based meals, and on the other, there’s Sakara that’s 100% plant-powered. The former allows you to customize your meal plan to a certain extent whereas the latter has a set menu.

And if you thought Thistle was an expensive premade meal delivery service starting at $11–$11.50 per portion, then the costs of Sakara’s meal programs will seem even more exorbitant. A 3-day meal box delivered by Sakara comes with a price tag of around $240!

You can contact Thistle or go through their Help Center to get any assistance regarding common topics such as your subscription, deliveries, packaging, nutrition, and more.

There’s a phone number, (833) 837-5662; leave your message, and then wait for someone from their team to call you back. Or email them at hello@thistle.co. The response time in both scenarios is prompt, precise, and very helpful and friendly. But, unfortunately, no live chat feature.

Plant-based protein, gluten-free and dairy-free meals, locally sourced vegetables and fruits, and sometimes even organic ingredients. These are some of the most compelling reasons why you should be choosing Thistle as your meal delivery service for fully cooked, ready-to-eat meals. Adding meat is also an option by the way, but you have to pay extra for that.

Thistle is worth the additional cost because it’s a very healthy version of a premade meal delivery service. They ensure that you’re consuming well-balanced, nutritious, and delicious meals without having to do any prep work. Add to that the subscription flexibility if your delivery area is a local one, such as Los Angeles.