EveryPlate or Dinnerly for picky eaters?
Choosing a meal kit for a picky eater is different from choosing one for someone who will try almost anything. A large menu matters, but so do familiar flavors, simple ingredients, mild seasonings, and the ability to choose meals that everyone at the table will actually eat.
EveryPlate and Dinnerly both focus on affordable, easy meals, but they take slightly different approaches. For most families with picky eaters, Dinnerly is the stronger choice because it offers a much larger weekly menu and clearly labels many meals as kid-friendly. EveryPlate can be a better fit if your picky eater prefers simple, familiar comfort foods and you want a smaller menu that is easier to scan.
EveryPlate vs. Dinnerly for Picky Eaters
Dinnerly has the edge for picky eaters because its current menu offers 100+ recipes each week, with filters for categories such as kid-friendly meals, protein, cuisine, cook time, and dietary preferences. Its menu includes familiar choices such as burgers, quesadillas, pasta, chicken, tacos, rice dishes, and meatballs.
EveryPlate offers a smaller rotating menu of about 35 recipes per week. Its categories include Family Faves, Meat & Veggie, Quick & Easy, Veggie, and Smart & Fit. That smaller selection can make meal planning less overwhelming, while still giving picky eaters access to familiar dishes.
| Factor | EveryPlate | Dinnerly |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly recipe choice | About 35 recipes | 100+ recipes |
| Picky-eater focus | Family Faves and familiar meals | Kid-friendly meals and family favorites |
| Menu size | Smaller and easier to scan | Much larger |
| Recipe filtering | Basic meal categories | More detailed filters |
| Best for | Simple, familiar meals | Families with different food preferences |
| Customization | Available on some meals, but limited | Easy recipe swaps before the weekly cutoff |
| Overall for picky eaters | Good | Better for most families |
The biggest difference is choice versus simplicity. Dinnerly gives you more chances to find something a picky eater will accept. EveryPlate gives you fewer choices, but that can actually be helpful when too many options make meal planning harder.
Why Dinnerly Works Well for Picky Eaters
Dinnerly appears to understand one of the biggest problems parents face: a meal can sound great to an adult but still get rejected by a child because one ingredient, sauce, texture, or spice feels unfamiliar.
Its current menu specifically promotes itself as suitable for picky eaters and includes many meals marked “Kid friendly.”
The larger menu gives you more chances to find a safe meal
Dinnerly says it offers more than 100 recipes each week. That matters when your household has several different preferences.
For example, one person may want chicken, another may only eat pasta, and another may prefer burgers or rice. A larger menu makes it easier to find meals that overlap with those preferences.
Current Dinnerly menus include options such as:
- Classic spaghetti and meatballs
- Chicken quesadillas
- Turkey burgers
- Cheesy baked pasta
- Chicken and broccoli stir-fry
- Pizza and flatbread meals
- Meatball dishes
- Mac and cheese-style meals
- Rice bowls
- Chicken enchiladas
These are not guaranteed to please every picky eater, but they give families more familiar starting points.
Dinnerly lets you filter for kid-friendly meals
The menu includes a Kid friendly filter, which can save time when you do not want to read every recipe description.
You can also filter by protein, meal type, cuisine, cook time, and other preferences.
That is useful for a parent who already knows, for example, that their child usually accepts chicken, pasta, potatoes, and cheese but avoids spicy food.
You can swap recipes
Dinnerly says its taste profile can suggest recipes, and customers can swap recipes in their account before the weekly cutoff.
That gives you an important safety net. You do not have to accept the meals originally suggested for your box.
Why EveryPlate Can Still Be a Good Choice
Dinnerly has the advantage in variety, but that does not make EveryPlate a poor choice for picky eaters.
EveryPlate’s current menu has about 35 rotating recipes per week and includes a Family Faves category. The company also says its weekly selection is designed to satisfy picky eaters.
The smaller menu can make choosing easier
A huge menu sounds helpful until you are standing there trying to decide what four people will eat.
EveryPlate’s smaller selection can reduce that problem. You can focus on a few familiar categories instead of sorting through more than 100 recipes.
This can work especially well when a picky eater has a fairly predictable list of accepted foods.
EveryPlate focuses on simple meals
A 2026 WIRED review found that EveryPlate’s meals tend to be simple, hearty, and less sophisticated than more expensive meal kits. The reviewer also noted that the service has a smaller menu and uses relatively simple seasoning and sauces.
For adventurous adults, that may feel limiting.
For a picky eater, it can be a benefit.
A meal based around chicken, rice, potatoes, pasta, or ground beef may be easier to accept than a recipe with several strong flavors or unfamiliar ingredients.
There is some customization, but do not expect unlimited swaps
EveryPlate allows some customization, including protein or side swaps on selected meals, but independent reviews note that the choices can be limited and may cost extra.
That makes EveryPlate less attractive if your picky eater needs major changes to nearly every recipe.
Dinnerly vs. EveryPlate: Which Has More Picky-Eater Meals?
Dinnerly wins for variety.
Its current menu has a much larger selection and many recipes carry a kid-friendly label. EveryPlate has fewer recipes but includes a Family Faves category aimed at familiar meals.
The difference matters most when your picky eater has a narrow list of foods they will accept.
Imagine a child who eats:
- Chicken
- Ground beef
- Pasta
- Rice
- Potatoes
- Cheese
- Bread
Dinnerly’s larger menu gives you more ways to combine those foods into different dinners.
EveryPlate may still have suitable meals, but you have fewer recipes to choose from each week.
Which Is Better for Very Picky Eaters?
For a very picky eater, I would lean toward Dinnerly.
The reason is not that Dinnerly can guarantee that a child will like its food. No meal kit can do that. The advantage is the ability to search through a much larger collection of recipes and select meals with familiar ingredients.
Dinnerly’s current menu also includes an “Optional Spice” label on some recipes. That can help when your household wants flavor but one person prefers milder food.
Still, parents should look at the complete recipe before ordering. A meal labeled kid-friendly can still contain an ingredient your particular child refuses to eat.
Which Is Better for a Child Who Hates Sauces or Mixed Foods?
This is where neither service has a perfect answer.
Some picky eaters dislike foods being mixed together. They may prefer chicken, rice, and vegetables served separately rather than a casserole or sauce-heavy dish.
If that sounds familiar, check the recipe photo and ingredient list before choosing a meal.
Look for meals where the main foods can be served separately. A chicken-and-potatoes meal may be easier to adapt than a dish where every ingredient is cooked together.
You can also keep the meal simple at home. For example, if a recipe includes a sauce that your child dislikes, you may be able to serve their portion before adding the sauce. Only do this when the recipe can be prepared safely and according to its instructions.
Which Is Better for a Family With Different Preferences?
Dinnerly is the better choice when several people have different tastes.
A family might include:
- One child who wants plain chicken
- Another who likes tacos
- A parent who wants vegetarian food
- Another adult who wants higher-protein meals
A 100+ recipe menu gives you more room to find meals that fit different people. Dinnerly also provides filters for dietary preferences, protein, dish type, and other categories.
EveryPlate’s smaller menu can work better when everyone has similar tastes.
Which Is Easier for Parents?
Both services are designed to reduce meal planning and grocery shopping.
Dinnerly lets customers choose recipes and delivery days, and its current service allows recipe changes before the weekly cutoff.
EveryPlate also lets customers choose from its rotating weekly menu and manage upcoming deliveries.
The easier option depends on your planning style.
If you want more control, Dinnerly gives you more recipes to work with.
If you want fewer decisions, EveryPlate’s smaller menu may actually feel easier.
Two Realistic Picky-Eater Scenarios
Scenario 1: The child with five safe foods
Imagine a child who mainly accepts chicken, pasta, potatoes, cheese, and rice.
Dinnerly would probably be the better starting point because its larger menu gives you more opportunities to find recipes built around those foods. You can then skip meals with unfamiliar vegetables, strong sauces, or ingredients the child already refuses.
Scenario 2: The family that likes simple comfort food
Now imagine a household where everyone is happy with basic meals such as chicken and potatoes, burgers, pasta, rice bowls, and tacos.
EveryPlate may be a better value in terms of decision-making. You have a smaller menu, but the service focuses heavily on simple, familiar meals and includes a Family Faves category.
What to Check Before Ordering for a Picky Eater
Do not choose a meal kit based only on the company name. Check the actual weekly menu.
Before placing an order, look at:
- Accepted proteins: Does the menu have chicken, beef, or another protein your eater likes?
- Texture: Are there foods with textures your child normally rejects?
- Sauces: Can sauces be left off or served separately?
- Spice: Look for mild recipes if spicy food is a problem.
- Side dishes: Check whether the sides are likely to be eaten.
- Recipe size: Make sure the meal fits the number of people you are feeding.
- Ingredient list: Read it before selecting the meal.
- Backup meals: Pick at least one dinner that you already know is close to a “safe” food.
The last point is easy to overlook. If your child rejects three meals in the same week, a meal kit can create more food waste instead of less.
EveryPlate or Dinnerly: The Bottom Line
Dinnerly is the better overall pick for picky eaters because its larger menu gives families more opportunities to find familiar meals, and its menu clearly identifies many kid-friendly choices.
EveryPlate is a good alternative for families that prefer simple comfort food and do not need a huge selection. Its smaller menu can make meal planning easier, and its Family Faves category is useful for households looking for familiar dinners.
The best choice depends on how picky your eater is:
| If your household needs… | Better choice |
| The largest selection | Dinnerly |
| More kid-friendly choices | Dinnerly |
| More recipe filters | Dinnerly |
| Simple, familiar meals | EveryPlate |
| A smaller menu to scan | EveryPlate |
| Maximum flexibility for different tastes | Dinnerly |
| A straightforward comfort-food approach | EveryPlate |
One practical tip: do not judge either service from its advertised menu size alone. Open the current weekly menu and count how many meals your picky eater would realistically eat. That number is much more useful than the total number of recipes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Dinnerly better than EveryPlate for kids who are picky eaters?
Generally, yes. Dinnerly offers a much larger weekly menu and marks many recipes as kid-friendly, giving families more chances to find foods a picky eater accepts.
Does EveryPlate have meals for picky eaters?
Yes. EveryPlate offers a Family Faves category and a rotating menu of about 35 recipes each week. Its simpler meal style can work well for people who prefer familiar flavors and basic ingredients.
Can I customize Dinnerly or EveryPlate meals for a picky eater?
Dinnerly lets customers swap selected recipes before the weekly cutoff. EveryPlate offers some customization on selected dishes, but the available swaps can be limited and may cost extra, so neither service should be treated as fully customizable.
Final Takeaway
For most picky eaters, Dinnerly gets the nod because variety gives you more chances to find a meal that works. EveryPlate makes more sense when your household already likes simple, familiar dinners and prefers fewer choices.
Before signing up, check one full week’s menu and count the meals your picky eater would actually eat. If you can find several reliable options, that service is likely to be the better fit for your household.
