Home cooking vs eating out vs meal plans, which is most cost effective in UAE?
Users weigh the financial viability of on-demand food delivery services
How often have you returned home after a tiring, long day at work and decided to just order in food? Or subscribed to those meal delivery plans where the food comes packaged and ready to eat or prepped with all ingredients ready to be cooked?
Young working couples and single working professionals are increasingly eschewing cooking at home and opting to order food through delivery apps or subscribing to meal service plans to avoid the hassle of grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning. However, opinion is divided whether these options are economically viable and healthy in the long term when compared to cooking at home.
Breaking down the costs:
Non-vegetarian meal
For an average two-person meal such as steamed fish, green curry and rice, it would cost Dh50 when prepared at home. We calculated based on average supermarket prices.
For similar dishes to be ordered from a regular restaurant, the cost would be around Dh110, including delivery charges. This is based on average pricing found on delivery apps.
A cloud kitchen (shared facility that undertake delivery-only orders) would be able to deliver the same meal at about Dh80. Based on our research.
On the other hand, a home meal delivery service may charge Dh 20 to Dh35 per head for a box comprising chicken, vegetarian dishes, salad, rice, breads and dessert. As they operate on a monthly price system. (Check out our report done on the food home delivery system in the UAE.)
Vegetarian meal
A vegetarian, on the other hand, can prepare a simple meal including a curry and rice/bread at home for as low as Dh15.
Ordering the same meal from a restaurant will cost you twice as much (Dh30) at the minimum.
A meal delivery service also charges between Dh30 and Dh35 for a box that includes salad, rice, bread, two curries and a dessert.
Health concerns
Besides the cost of the various culinary options, people often tend to overlook the health aspect involved. When considering one’s health, it is always better to prepare wholesome meals at home. When meals are prepped at home, you are not only more aware of the quantities you are consuming but also about the oil and other ingredients you may be using.
Gulf News spoke to a certified nutritionist, Priyanka Chopra, to gauge the health benefits of ordering food and meal plans services.
“It is important to understand that ordering food is nothing but convenience. However, one doesn’t necessarily know what nutrients one is getting or simply consuming empty calories without any nutrient value or perhaps with high amounts of sodium or sugar, which damage the digestive system, particularly the intestinal lining.
“While meal plans offer convenience, they can be way too expensive and often may not be the palate you want to consume. This makes it less appealing over time and never a viable option than a simple, holistic meal prepared at home, catering to one’s unique body needs.”
For the time-strapped
Ewa Golan subscribed to a meal plan service for a few months and enjoyed the ease of having food delivered daily and not worrying about what she had to eat for a week.
“I think meal plans are great if your goal is to lose weight or if you just don’t have time to cook. But from a cost perspective, the meal plans are pretty expensive. It also felt restrictive, like I couldn’t just eat what I felt like at a given moment. Going out for lunches or dinners was a no-no because I had to eat what was already prepped. But there were times the food went to waste when I chose to eat out and didn’t eat what was in the box, and that’s what I felt bad about,” she told Gulf News.
I think meal plans are great if your goal is to lose weight or if you just don’t have time to cook. But .... It also felt restrictive, like I couldn’t just eat what I felt like at a given moment. Going out for lunches or dinners was a no-no because I had to eat what was already prepped. But there were times the food went to waste when I chose to eat out and didn’t eat what was in the box, and that’s what I felt bad about.
Having grown up on homemade food, Golan now tries to cook at home in the limited time she has.
“I also use food delivery apps but I try to balance it out and not order too often as it all adds up. Financially, it’s much smarter to cook at home than to rely on food deliveries all the time,” she added.
According to KPMG, one of the world’s largest accounting firms, the UAE’s food and beverage market is worth more than $13.2 (Dh 48.48) billion. There is a growing demand for food delivery. Consumers are ordering more food from mobile apps than ever. According to a recent KPMG study in the region, 60 per cent of smartphone users have a food-related app on their devices and 50 per cent of this use it to order online.
Home-cooked meals
This is a very young industry and still evolving. The lifestyle in the UAE is getting busier and there is a strong desire to eat home-cooked nutritious meals without compromising on quality or convenience. Some of our typical challenges are to find better and more sustainable solutions to maintain high standards of product quality and service as well as customer retention
Let’s Cook, a pre-planned meal delivery service, for instance charges between Dh29 per meal to Dh48 per meal, depending on the number of persons and number of recipes chosen in any given week.
“This is a very young industry and still evolving. The lifestyle in the UAE is getting busier and there is a strong desire to eat home-cooked nutritious meals without compromising on quality or convenience. Some of our typical challenges are to find better and more sustainable solutions to maintain high standards of product quality and service as well as customer retention,” said Abhijit Rajwade, Founder of Let’s Cook.
The fact that every little thing from the garlic cloves to the herbs come pre-weighed and packaged is a huge advantage for anyone strapped for time. If you tend to order takeaways on a weekly basis, meal prep services might come in as reasonable.
Meal prep services are perfect for time-strapped foodies who enjoy cooking and are keen to eat healthy but don’t have the time to shop for ingredients and think of recipes on a daily basis. It instills discipline into your eating habits and makes the process of cooking fun for those who may find it tiresome otherwise.
“The fact that every little thing from the garlic cloves to the herbs come pre-weighed and packaged is a huge advantage for anyone strapped for time. If you tend to order takeaways on a weekly basis, meal prep services might come in as reasonable,” said Manju M., who had signed up for the weekly meal plan from Let’s Cook. However, she admitted that the only drawback was no day off cooking. “You can’t just decide one day you want to eat out when you know all this stuff is in your refrigerator. I found that a bit challenging.”
Meal plan comes to the rescue
Another expat in Dubai, Preveena B. had subscribed to a nutritionist’s meal delivery service after struggling to prepare meals to suit her dietary restrictions necessitated by health issues. “I found the plan expensive financially as I was the only one in the family on the meal plan, and I was still purchasing groceries and cooking for them. I prefer meals cooked at home any day of the week. This is a healthier option. I occasionally eat out to try other cuisines. This works best for me,” she shared with Gulf News.
Khana Sutra is another meal delivery plan that exclusively targets residents in Dubai Silicon Oasis, International City and Academic City. It offers executive meals at monthly rates of Dh720 (vegetarian), Dh789 (chicken) and Dh878 (mutton), among other options.
I found the plan expensive financially as I was the only one in the family on the meal plan, and I was still purchasing groceries and cooking for them. I prefer meals cooked at home any day of the week. This is a healthier option. I occasionally eat out to try other cuisines. This works best for me.
“The reasons for the rising popularity of small catering firms in Dubai are financial independence, the thought of spending more time on recreation or constructive activities, convenience of ordering online, nuclear families, a variety of restaurants, cuisines, flavours and ingredients and their availability. It is a competitive market. Our biggest challenge is to get potential clients. Other challenges include perishability of products, delivery infrastructure cost ratio, personnel and rider’s costs,” explained Atul Dhawan, CEO, Khana Sutra.
So, what is better for people - cooking, ordering in or meal-plan delivery services?
Health and money are both safer if we eat at home. The difference in spend is significant – nearly 50 per cent saving. So for example you spend an average of Dh100 per day eating out or having food delivering in, you would end up spending an average of Dh3000+ (a conservative estimate). That can be cut to Dh1500 nearly if you cook at home. A massive saving, indeed.
But, what if you do not have the time and energy, then based on our research, meal-delivery plans seem to be a better option. This is of course subject to you finding the right supplier - could be either an individual or restaurants moving into the area. Either way it seems to cost even lesser than cooking at home! So, it is a bigger saving of Dh2000+ keeping in mind our earlier calculations. But, variety and cuisine options might be an issue.
Eating out or even delivering in while giving you choices of varied cuisines might not be the best for either your health or wallet.
In fact, UAE-based restaurants realising the growing demand for meal plans has now started investing in what are called 'cloud kitchens'. In fact, there are also individuals venturing into this segment - it brings in the standards of a professional kitchen, along with the cost effectiveness of a home delivery meal plan.
...what if you do not have the time and energy, then based on our research, meal-delivery plans seem to be a better option. This is of course subject to you finding the right supplier - could be either an individual or restaurants moving into the area. Either way it seems to cost even lesser than cooking at home!
So, what is a cloud kitchen?
The idea of cooking or dining out is becoming less appealing to millennials who are constantly looking for ways to make their lives easier. Restaurant operators are having to adapt to cater to the new client requirements. High smartphone penetration has driven customer demand for food delivery at home while technology disruptions have resulted in more online ordering channels. Restaurants are recognising these dual trends. This has made ‘cloud kitchens’ popular in the UAE.
Cloud kitchens help cater to online orders received by a restaurant. Kitchens at the restaurant are therefore less busy and are able to service walk-in customers more efficiently. Also, having a cloud kitchen helps negate the need for a huge kitchen at the restaurant in a prime area, thereby offering considerable savings in real estate costs
A cloud kitchen is a delivery-only shared kitchen facility where multiple restaurant brands can operate from. The key difference between a cloud kitchen and normal kitchen is that the former has no dine-in facility and only delivers food on demand. Cloud kitchens are located in high volume delivery areas and cater to restaurants that are looking to expand their customer base with a minimal capital investment.
“Cloud kitchens help cater to online orders received by a restaurant. Kitchens at the restaurant are therefore less busy and are able to service walk-in customers more efficiently. Also, having a cloud kitchen helps negate the need for a huge kitchen at the restaurant in a prime area, thereby offering considerable savings in real estate costs,” said Murray Strang, head of Dubai office at Savills, a real estate consultancy.
Reduce operational costs
The cloud kitchen concept allows restaurants to reduce high operational costs by avoiding front staff costs. For instance, labour costs reduce as the roles of front-of-house managers, servers, hosts, etc., become obsolete. Restaurants can offer competitive pricing with a cloud kitchen because they are not burdened with such high operational costs.
In the past, customers were used to the idea that they would have to compromise on food freshness if they want their food delivered home. This doesn’t have to be the case anymore. Food that is fairly priced yet enjoyable is beneficial for customers. Finally, convenience and variety are two big advantages for them.
One such brand that opted to open a cloud kitchen rather than the traditional brick and mortar store is Mmmbox. The founder wanted to spend time and energy on food quality and delivery timings rather than infrastructure and service staff.
“In the past, customers were used to the idea that they would have to compromise on food freshness if they want their food delivered home. This doesn’t have to be the case anymore. Food that is fairly priced yet enjoyable is beneficial for customers. Finally, convenience and variety are two big advantages for them,” said Gaurav Sajnani, Partner and CEO at Mmmbox.
Benefits for restaurants
Outlining the benefits of cloud kitchens for restaurant partners, Mohammad Hamouri, Owner of Kitchen Nation, a culinary incubator based in Jumeirah Lakes Towers, said they provide a location to operate from at a reduced price, short-term contracts and more flexibility to the brand.
“Restaurants benefit by maximising a smaller space to increase net monthly profits. The end-user benefits from the variety of brands offered in a particular area. The restaurant can deliver the food quicker and does not need to charge as much to make ends meet,” Hamouri pointed out.
With a cloud kitchen in their vicinity, customers can find the menu of their favourite food concept listed on different delivery applications such as Deliveroo, Uber Eats, Zomato, Carriage or Talabat, order food directly from the apps and the food is delivered to their address of choice in a short span of time.
Restaurants benefit by maximising a smaller space to increase net monthly profits. The end-user benefits from the variety of brands offered in a particular area. The restaurant can deliver the food quicker and does not need to charge as much to make ends meet
How customers gain
“There are three key priorities that every customer has when they order food: Is the price right? Is the food delicious? Will it be delivered on time? The cloud kitchen industry is aware of these three key components and actively works to ensure that the customer’s needs are constantly met,” Zahra Abdalla, culinary entrepreneur and founder of Zahra’s Kitchen, told Gulf News.