Hey, Meal Prep People: HG Sply Co. Now Delivers Its Bowls, Which Are Amazing

We've all dabbled in prepped meal delivery for a variety of reasons: Time, energy, a hatred of shopping, tired of the same thing or maybe you need to lay off the McDoubles at McDonald's (do you, though?).

HG Sply Co. is a local restaurant popular for, among other things, healthy and hearty bowls. Search the word "bowls" on the restaurant's Yelp page and you'll get 171 results. That's a lot of bowl mentions, you guys.

The restaurant is owned by the hospitality group UNCO, which operates seven other area spots including the always-lovely Leela's, HERO in Victory Park, the tiny bar Tina's and CGB Coffee in the Continental Gin Building. Now UNCO has added packaged goods to its CV.

HG Sply Co. Packaged Goods now offers these popular bowls in meal-prep form, ready to ship. The minimum order is eight bowls and, with shipping, it all rings in around $100. Not bad at all considering that's one night out for two.

UNCO co-founder Elias Pope says the inspiration for the ready-to-eat meal service is "eating with intent" and uncomplicated meals that are affordable and flavorful.

"The meals do not skimp on flavor for the sake of 'healthy,'" Pope says. "Simple, wholesome ingredients seasoned correctly is all you need to enjoy the food that helps you get the most out of life."
We received a box of these meals to see for ourselves. They're packed tightly in an insulated box with plenty of ice to keep the meals cold (even if the box sits out all day because no one at home can be bothered to do anything).

There are eight main bowls to pick from: chicken thighs, grilled salmon, ground bison and chicken breast, each served with rice or quinoa and a vegetable. There are also vegetarian options, and each meal is, by design, low-carb, low-calorie and high-protein.

Pop the bowl in the microwave for two minutes, and voila, dinner is served. These can also be heated in a skillet if you're anti-microwave. We're not ones to offer official advice on heating methods, but allowing the meal to thaw and then pouring it into a skillet with a lid at a low heat worked spectacularly. (This method, however, doesn't pan out well for photos, which is why we used theirs — but the meals actually look like what's in the photos. It's not like Whataburger.)

Each bowl we tried was perfectly seasoned and prepared. The texture, flavor and spices are all spot on. Honey garlic Brussels sprouts have that so-important caramelized char.  The "roasted broccoli" is actually roasted; the smoky grilled flavors come through nicely. If you're partial to, say, Tony Cachere's, there's always the option to zhuzh up your meal; but out of the box, none have needed any doctoring. 

The meals arrive cold, but not frozen, and are good for up to seven days in the fridge, or six months in the freezer. The order minimum is eight to keep shipping costs down, and the bowls range from $9 to $13.50. Standard shipping for a box of eight meals is $9.99.