Good morning everyone. MealPal is a new lunch program (available in select cities) where you pay a fixed price per meal (ranging from $6-$7, depending on your plan). You then reserve lunch at participating restaurants, walk in during your reservation time, tell them your name, and then walk out with your lunch. I’ve been meaning to write about MealPal for months, but have never gotten around to it until now. Luckily, MealPal has a great promotion running now.
I’ve been a MealPal member for several months and have tried a few different MealPal plans. The cheapest option is 20 meals in 30 days, with meals costing $5.99 + tax. Since that was too many meals for me, I switched to the 12 meals rollover plan for $6.99 + tax. Even though the price is $1 more, I have the flexibility to choose exactly when I want to use MealPal, and I always reserve meals that cost $6.99 or more (which is very easy to do in San Francisco).
So how does MealPal work? You log into MealPal every day, search for a restaurant or meal you want for lunch, reserve that meal, and then pick up the meal during your reservation window. The reservation windows come in 15 minute increments starting from 10am to 2:30pm. Honestly, you can show up anytime and pick up your meal. The reservation windows helps the restaurants manage the number of meals they need to make at specific times of the day, but they are all very flexible and accommodating if you pick up your meal much earlier or later than your reservation window.
Since I am on the MealPal rollover plan, I don’t use MealPal everyday. I pick and choose the days when I want to eat out. Here are my last 4 meals from MealPal.
Here are a few questions you might be wondering (from MealPal’s FAQ Page):
- Which cities does MealPal support? MealPal is currently available in Boston, Brooklyn, Chicago, London, Miami, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Sydney, Toronto, and Washington, D.C. More cities will be added over the next year.
- How much do MealPal lunches cost? The cost per meal depends on which MealPal plan you choose. There are currently 4 MealPal plans available: 20 meals per 30-day cycle ($5.99 per meal + tax and fees); 12 meals per 30-day cycle ($6.39 per meal + tax and fees); 6 meals per 30-day cycle ($6.99 per meal + tax and fees); and 12 meals rollover ($6.99 per meal + tax and fees).
- How much are taxes and fees per city? The rate for tax and fees vary by city, and usually matches the local tax rate. Rates are as follows: Boston 7%; Chicago 11.5%; Miami 7%; NYC 8.875%; Philadelphia 8%; San Francisco 9.5%; and Washington, D.C. 10%.
- Does MealPal work on the weekends and do they deliver? Unfortunately no.
- If you have other questions, check out the MealPal’s FAQ Page.
If you have any questions about MealPal, please leave a comment below. Have a great day everyone!
I use meal pal in DC and am happy with it. I was on six meals per month and had to plan ahead to use them since I have daily meetings at 11 am that run various times.
I had to cancel because I’m on leave for a bit and found the 12 meal plan with no time limit. That seems ideal!
Yes, the rollover plan is definitely very convenient with my life.
I signed up using the link but didn’t receive any Amazon cards. Any idea how long it takes?
The last time this MealPal referral promo was around, it said that it takes up to 45 days from the date you sign up to get your $50 Amazon eGift Card. Thank you for using my link.
Does it include a drink?
Unfortunately, no drink included. Just the meal.
Just happened to forget about it for months? But you suddenly “remembered’ as soon as there was an affiliate link?? And continually repost about this on Twitter???
MealPal is running a promotion now through 9/29 where you get a $50 Amazon eGC for signing up with my link and I get a $50 Amazon eGC for referring you. This promotion comes and goes, so if you are interested in signing up for MealPal, now is the time to do so. Of course, you can sign up whenever you want, but then you do not get the $50 Amazon eGC. It’s up to you. Thanks for reading and happy eating :)
Grant, any chance MealPal codes as a restaurant purchase? Or are they setup as “Internet Services”?
I think MealPal subscriptions code as 1x transactions, so no bonus points unfortunately :(
When do you get the Amazon gift card? I signed up using your link at the end of November. I haven’t received the gift card.
MealPal sends out the Amazon egift cards in batches, I’m not sure what their frequency is, but it’s usually after you finish your first month with the service.