Written by Craig Landale in Food & Drink on the 2nd April 2020

Going to the supermarket is like playing a real-life game of Pac-Man; desperately trying to stay away from people whilst also searching for both quiet isles and food on the shopping list. We’re being told to use home delivery for our food shopping, but that is certainly easier said than done. Tesco’s next delivery availability is weeks away and at time of writing the Ocado website says ‘We have no new delivery slots today. We must prioritise certain deliveries, including customers identified as vulnerable, and so have few slots for general release for the next 24 hours.’ It’s true that food delivery is particularly suited to a customer base wary of grocery runs, and it helps reduce reliance on overburdened, overpopulated supermarkets. It’s just a shame they don't have the infrastructure to cope with the increased demand. However, there are a few clever alternative ways you can get a hold of some of your favourite food and drink home comforts whilst in self-isolation, and that is through home delivery subscriptions. Below I’ve listed a few of the best ones around to get you started.

Allplants 

During these unprecedented times, allplants are working around the clock to keep cooking, and help those who need food. That has always been part of their mission, and it’s never been more important than it is now. The allplants founder recently chatted to The Independent about how they’re working to fight the coronavirus the best way they know how – with delicious, nutritious food; “The 60-strong allplants team are all working from home and communicating via Google Hangouts apart from chefs, who are regularly monitoring their temperatures and doing extra hand sanitising in the kitchen. The rest of the team is working on new ideas to adapt to the situation for customers, including a discount for companies who want to order frozen meals to be delivered to their staff, so that teams working online can have lunch together over video messaging services.” The world would be better off if we ate more plants. Eating 100% plant-based meals should be tasty, easy and convenient. That’s why allplants was born – to help you enjoy plant-based eating on your schedule. Their chef-made dishes contain the tastiest, most exciting plant-based ingredients they can find. Instantly freezing their meals ensures nutrition and taste is locked in. 

Get £10 Off | allplants.com

Love Yourself 

The sight of bare shelves in your local supermarkets is something we are all becoming familiar with, and we want to avoid these busy shops and overcrowded public transport at all costs. So while your continuing to find your feet with #WFH life and new ways to get some exercise into your day, it can be a challenge to think of nutritional balanced meals daily. Take the weight off your shoulder and allow your meals to come right to your door with Love Yourself. Dedicated to the health, happiness and well-being of their customers, all the hard work is done for you. No cooking is required - simply place in the microwave to heat up following the instructions provided - then you're free to reap the rewards of these delicious yet nutritious meals. 

Get 15% Off | loveyourself.co.uk  

The Cheese Geek 

When you sign up to The Cheese Geek, each month, your subscription will include 4-5 of the finest cheeses totalling approx. 600g, which is enough for around 4-8 people. The selection will always be perfectly balanced including some world-famous greats alongside equally exciting, lesser known alternatives. As usual, each cheese is handpicked, in season, and at the best stage of its life. Each delivery also includes tasting notes, pairing tips and a scorecard, so you can rate each cheese and keep track of your favourites. Great cheese deserves great wrapping and The Cheese Geek are like origami ninjas, cutting and wrapping each piece of cheese individually then carefully playing Tetris as they slot your selection into a beautiful box (which are magically insulated and eco friendly too). 

thecheesegeek.com

Magic Spoon 

The Magic Spoon co-founders, Greg and Gabi, were shocked by the true scope of the health problem with cereal. The average person eats 100 bowls of cereal a year, and kids are one of the largest consumers. Yet almost every version in the aisle is stuck in that old paradigm of grains, GMOs, and sugar. They experimented for over a year to create a cereal inspired by the flavours and nostalgia of Saturday-morning-cartoon cereal, but upgraded for a 21st-century consumer. A guilt-free treat that tastes like you remember and you can eat at any time of day. That’s what Magic Spoon is all about. Remember the carefree days of childhood, when you didn't feel guilty about eating mountains of cereal with questionable nutrition? Well, now you can have your cereal and eat it too. They've re-engineered that same great taste with grown-up ingredients for a game-changing cereal 2.0. They use a natural blend of monk fruit, stevia, and allulose. Allulose is a rare sugar found in things like figs and maple syrup. It tastes just like regular sugar, but has zero glycemic impact and almost zero calories. 

magicspoon.com

Daily Harvest 

Daily Harvest believe that good food can actually fix things, and they’re passionate about how they bring it to life. Start with exceptional ingredients. Combine them all into something phenomenal. Eat one more dose of fruits and veggies without even trying. It’s how they take care of food so food can take care of you. Daily Harvest create the perfect conditions. They start at the source and work directly with farms, getting to know the farmers personally, and harvesting the best crop at peak ripeness, then freezing everything right on the farm to lock in nourishment and taste at just the right time. Everything they make is built on organic fruits and vegetables and crafted into delicious food that is actually good for you. 

daily-harvest.com 

Grind 

Grind coffee pods are made from compostable bio-plastic, rather than plastic and metal. While still compatible with Nespresso machines, the pods will biodegrade and disappear completely when composted, and around fifty times faster should they end up in landfill. Founded in Shoreditch in 2011, Grind serves over two million cups of coffee each year across their 11 London locations, described by GQ as the “greatest group of espresso bars in the capital” and the Grind House Blend goes into their infamous Espresso Martinis, regularly name-checked in the press as the best in the world. Identified as a disruptor by Bloomberg following a series of groundbreaking rounds of crowdfunding - funding the expansion of their restaurants and construction of their roastery - the company launched its 'Grind at Home' range last year. Millions of cups of Grind at Home coffee have already been enjoyed by customers around the world. Although their coffee shops have had to close due to Covid-19, they're still roasting and shipping coffee every day as usual. 

grind.co.uk 

Pasta Evangelists 

In light of covid-19, Pasta Evangelists recognise it’s harder than usual to visit the elderly, family members, friends and colleagues we care for. Their new pasta care packages are delivered to your loved one's door and include 3 delicious and nutritious recipes, as well as easy-to-follow instructions to prepare each dish in under 10 minutes.  They’ve also teamed up with AgeUK to donate £5 per box sold in support of their amazing work at this challenging time. When ordering a Pasta Care Package for a loved one, simply add their delivery address when placing the order and they'll deliver the package to their door. The Care Package will be delivered to the recipient within 7 working days of purchase. 

Get 25% Off | pastaevangelists.com

Daily Dose 

With the reality of the coronavirus pandemic now setting in for people all over the UK, it’s never been more important than right now to make sure that you prioritise healthy lifestyle habits to help keep you in fine working order over the next few weeks and months. While fruit and vegetables can’t stop you from getting sick occasionally, they can make sure that your immune system is strong enough to handle illness well - so you may find your symptoms are less severe. If you follow an unhealthy diet and other habits like not getting enough exercise, your immune system is likely to be lower, which will make it harder for it to fight illness. A great way to top up your daily fruit and veg intake is to drink cold pressed organic juice. A 150ml serving of fresh unsweetened fruit juice is actually one of your five a day - so you’ll be hitting your health targets before you know it and discovering all sorts of deliciously flavoured drinks all at the same time. Carrot, apple and orange juice is a great way to start increasing the amount of fruit and veg in your diet and you’re sure to find it a brilliant breakfast drink. It’s packed full of nutrients and vitamins like A, B-6 and C, as well as potassium and folic acid, so keep some in your fridge at all times. Those of you especially concerned about the cold and flu might want to make sure their fridge is full of apple, ginger, lemon and thyme juice. Not only is this a delicious drink you’re sure to enjoy but it can also lower your blood sugar, act as an anti-inflammatory and cleanse your liver by flushing out any toxins.  

CAREPACK for 20% Off | dailydosejuice.co.uk

We feature Pasta Evangelists, Grind Coffee Pods, Daily Harvest, Magic Spoon, The Cheese Geek, and Allplants in this Top Self-Isolation Food & Drink Subscriptions Ideas blog post.