Not having to prepare food three times a day or spend hours batch cooking was a bonus, but adjusting to the Frive (formerly Lions Prep) small portions didn’t come easy.
If having most of your meals handmade by chefs and delivered to your door each week sounds appealing, then you’re in good company — it’s my idea of heaven. I’ve often been drawn to the idea of meal delivery services, but as a pescatarian (I eat fish, not meat) I’m often stuck with veggie options.
Frive, the meal plan service you may have seen adverts for all over your socials, caters to meat-free diets without forcing you to go full veggie (it includes fish and seafood in its menus), however its meals are dairy-free so if you’re veggie you’ll be forced to go vegan. I put it to the test for six weeks, and this is my review.
How does Lions Prep work?
You start by setting some preferences with a few simple questions: Do you have allergies? Do you want a balanced diet (high protein with a balanced ratio of fat and carbs) or a low-carb diet? And do you eat meat, meat and fish, just fish or are you vegan (sorry veggies)?
You can choose from two, three or four meals a day, with the option to include or exclude breakfast (who’d want to do that?) and add one or two snacks (adding ,3260 calories a pop, if you’re counting); and you then choose from three, five- or six-days’ worth of meals.
What are the meals like?
Breakfasts were surprisingly indulgent (but healthy, rest assured). Over six weeks, I had protein waffles or pancakes with fruit and dairy-free yoghurt or flavoured overnight oats (banoffee was a particular favourite). You could also choose from rice dishes for breakfast, but these were on the small side — I could have easily had two.
The larger, main dishes were also on the small side (I think most would agree), but they were delicious and likely the portion size we should be eating, especially those with physical fitness or weight-loss goals.
Among my favourites were coconut and lime tofu, red Thai prawns, creamy Tuscan salmon and sea bass covered in saffron and paprika — most dishes were served with rice and vegetables. The macros on most of my meals were over 30g of protein, 25-35g of carbs, and 15-25g of fat — for meat eaters, these are higher — adding up to just under 2,000 calories a day. You get presented with the breakdown when you pick your meals so you can choose according to your macro nutrition goals.
My conclusion about Lions Prep
Overall, I liked it a lot. I think if you commit to six days a week you’ll quickly get accustomed to the smaller portions and definitely see the benefits of such a healthy diet. If you went for fewer days, it’d probably be best to match the portion sizes and nutrition, so you don’t over-eat on the days off, otherwise I don’t really see what benefit it gives you other than making life easier if you know there’s certain days you’re too busy to cook.
I’d definitely recommend it to a friend, but I’d quickly warn them they’re looking at between £60 and over £100 for six days depending on protein, daily meal numbers and snack additions.
