HONEST SAKARA MEAL PLAN REVIEW

I have been seeing beautiful, colorful Sakara meals all over my Instagram feed for months and even receiving snail mail promos through my mail slot! Sakara, a plant-based meal subscription service, asked if I wanted to try the meal service and I jumped at the opportunity. I was very skeptical and very curious about the ready-made meals so I wanted to see what it was all about and if it was worth the hype.

I also had a more personal reason. At the end of last year, I found out that I had some surprise later-in-life food allergies, and it completely changed my relationship with eating. I found myself overanalyzing everything I put on my plate, to the point where I was almost afraid to eat. It wasn’t good for my mental or physical health. Of course this is something that I’m working on and I’m relieved to know that this is a pretty common “side effect” of a food allergy diagnosis. While I do some deeper work on that, I still was looking for an option for taking the mental load of this off my plate, so to speak.

That’s where Sakara’s plant-based meals came in. I loved having prepared, healthy foods ready to go in my fridge, taking the guesswork out of what to eat. My food anxiety lessened, and more importantly, I felt nourished all day long. After getting a lot of questions about my experience, I thought it was time for a Sakara review!

 WHAT I ORDERED

I tried Sakara’s Signature Program three times, twice for three days of nutritious meals and then again for a five days a couple of weeks later. I also did the Level II: Detox, which is a five-day meal plan. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised. The meals arrived neatly packed, and everything looked fresh and vibrant. (If you’re curious about the difference in the two programs, here’s a comparison.) The signature meal program felt more my speed, for what it’s worth!

HOW DID IT TASTE?

I was honestly shocked by how much I loved the plant-based meal delivery service. I had some skepticism about whether Sakara’s meals would be filling enough, but I was never hungry. Every breakfast, lunch, and dinner was thoughtfully prepared and packed with flavor. I found myself craving the breakfasts, which I’d eat after school drop off so I could have a little peaceful moment to myself. The lunches, especially, were my favorites. The salads had the perfect balance of flavor, crunch, and color, and every single dressing was incredible. I wish Sakara had an option for just the salads or even sold dressings in Whole Foods or something; I would stock up!!

I also loved the variety of ingredients, which made healthy eating feel so exciting. There were so many flavors and textures I wouldn’t typically think to combine, but they worked beautifully with one another. While I don’t think a plant-based diet is for me, it was definitely inspiring and I looked forward to each meal.

(Also I’m dying to figure out how they make the superfood swirls because they tasted ridiculously good and I want to eat them every single day!)

ANY NEGATIVES?

Even though I loved most of the meals, there were two that didn’t quite hit the mark for me (one breakfast and one soup). I think it’s worth noting though that it wasn’t about the flavor, they actually tasted great, but more about the texture, which comes down to personal preference. The biggest downside in my opinion… I wish there was less plastic packaging. That said, I did appreciate how the separate packaging kept all the ingredients fresh and prevented anything from getting soggy.

HOW I FELT

One of the biggest changes I noticed was my energy levels. My body feels SO much better when I’m eating Sakara Life’s meals. I felt steady and nourished throughout the day, which was a major shift for me. Before Sakara, I had fallen into a bad habit of not eating enough during the day, then finding myself starving by the afternoon then snacking before before and overindulging afterward dinner. With Sakara, the portion size of each meal was perfect. I felt completely satisfied and nourished all day long and I could go into auto-pilot mode without the mental load of figuring out what to eat. I also noticed that I wasn’t experiencing the usual mid-afternoon slump, which was a welcome surprise.

Another unexpected benefit? I felt more mindful about eating. Since the meals were already prepared for me (as opposed to meal kits), I was able to slow down and truly enjoy each one instead of rushing through my meals. It was a nice reminder to be more intentional with my food choices and prioritize healthy meals.

WOULD I RECOMMEND IT?

Absolutely, but with some caveats. Sakara is a bit of an investment— part of it is the price you pay for such high-quality ingredients— so I don’t see it as something I’d do every week. Instead, I think the Sakara experience is perfect for certain occasions:

– If you have an incredibly busy schedule one week and want to eliminate the mental load of meal prepping and planning

– As a way to “reset” after an indulgent vacation (and avoid grocery shopping)

– When you just want to treat yourself to a week of self-care with nourishing meals

– If you’re feeling stuck in a food rut and want to be inspired by fresh ingredients and creative meals

I did have some questions about whether these would be good as a postpartum mom. Though of course a healthy meal service is always a win, I would say no. Personally I needed more calorie and fat rich foods to keep my milk supply up, so I wouldn’t have done something like this. It has been a nice option as I started weaning and wanted to get back to a more baseline normal degree of eating since I don’t need those extra calories for my supply (or the crazy cravings with breastfeeding!).

If you’ve been thinking about trying Sakara, I’d say go for it! It truly made eating feel easy, delicious, and stress-free– something I really needed after my food allergy diagnosis.