Hands-On with Tovala: Smart Oven Meets Convenient Meal Delivery

The core of Tovala is its Smart Oven system. On its own, it’s a well-made countertop oven and includes typical features like steam, air fry, bake, broil, toast, and reheat. However, what I like most is how easy it is to scan a meal from Trader Joe’s, Costco or another grocery store, and Tovala oven finds the correct temperature and time to cook your food.

What really helps make the food taste amazing and moist is the Smart Oven Pro’s steaming technology. Air fryers tend to dry out food but the Smart Oven Pro keeps your food juicy and delicious.

Tovala Meal Delivery Service

I tested four meals this week and while Tovala offers dozens, it should provide a decent overview of what you can expect. There are several different healthy meal options each week, along with dietary restriction options (gluten-friendly, vegetarian, Mediterranean, calorie-smart, etc.) depending on your needs. Once you decide on which meals and how many you’d like per week through the app or website, Tovala ships everything with a large ice pack to keep everything fresh.

The meal delivery service is like a combination of Hello Fresh and Cook Unity meal services. Tovala delivers fresh ingredients but doesn’t require as much preparation as Hello Fresh (which is a common complaint). Because prep is minimal and only comes in single and two portion options, it’s more like Cook Unity and other single serving meal delivery services.

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Combining the Tovala Smart Oven and Meals

Once you’re ready to cook, scan the meal QR code on the app or directly on the oven. You will a home Wifi connection for it to work at all, but it took me less than three minutes to connect. For each meal, it took about one to three minutes of minor preparation before putting it in the oven to cook (add a sauce, put veggies in the container, etc.) Once that’s ready, place food in the oven via the included instructions and you’ll have a meal done in about 15-20 minutes depending on the meal.

Some of the things I liked the most are the oven build quality and design. Tovala sent me a Smart Oven Pro, which features a sleek modern design and is finished in a matte black. I had a fairly large air fryer before and honestly was a bit too big for our kitchen. Tovala’s Smart Oven is a great size for us. It comes with a few essential accessories like an air fry basket, baking sheet, oven mitt, oven rack and crumb trays

In terms of build quality, the oven feels pretty solid and durable. It is made of stainless steel and seems strong when you touch the exterior. I’m not sure how long it will hold up since it’s still nearly brand new, but from the reviews I’ve read online and seen on YouTube, the ovens hold up well after years of use.

Tovala Smart Oven Prop Ease of Use

The Smart Oven Pro is also very easy to set up and use. It includes a few setup guides and all of the pieces are easy to install. You can also find all the information online or via the app to help you set up. I found the user interface and digital controls straightforward, you should have no issues. There are a few different buttons on the front to adjust temperature, time and what type of cooking method you’d like. The oven also has a small scanner on the front they can scan barcodes and QR codes.

Performance of the Tovala Smart Oven Pro

I cooked four of Tovala’s smart meals over one week and they all came out flawless. I also tested the air fryer setting to cook chicken tenders, frozen taquitos and toast. They all worked as expected. Because it’s a smaller oven, I like that it preheated faster than my prior oven. Food also cooks faster due to its smaller size.

Whether you use the app or the controls on the front, Tovala’s Smart Oven Pro is extremely user-friendly. I had no issues changing cooking settings between meals. I really enjoyed using my phone to scan a barcode or QR code and the oven is automatically ready to start cooking!

Cleaning is also very easy and requires warm soapy water and a soft washcloth. However, the air fryer basket and other accessories are hand-wash only and are not dishwasher safe.

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Tovala Smart Oven Pro Specifications

Tovala Smart Oven Pricing

Tovala offers different options but the Smart Oven Pro they sent me is currently $349 or $49 with free shipping if you order meals six times. Which is better will depend on your needs and budget, but in order to take advantage of the discounted rate, you’ll need to order a minimum of 24 meals total over six weeks. Each week contains four meals at a minimum, at $51.96 plus $10.99 shipping each week. In total, you’ll be paying $377.70 with shipping to get the oven at a discounted rate of $49.

I also noticed a discrepancy with pricing between what the website told me and what the Tovala representative said. On the website, Tovala states the discounted rate for the oven is $69 when you order meals six times. Then on another page, it said the discounted rate was $119. It appears the difference in price is due to Tovala showing a photo of the Smart Oven Pro at $69 when it should be a photo of the standard Smart Oven. Here’s what the rep told me initially:

The smaller Steam + Air Fry Smart Oven is currently $49 as well when you order 6 weeks of meals over 6 months. If you would like to purchase it without ordering meals, it is $349. 

However, when I asked about the discrepancy, she said this:

I apologize, it does appear that the $49 discount for the Smart Oven Pro ended on April 7th, however, I would still be able to the honor this promotion.

To clarify, the regular Smart Oven (without steam) is $299 or $69 with a commitment to six weeks of Tovala meal deliveries. The Tovala Smart Oven Pro is $349 or $119 with a commitment to six weeks of Tovala meal deliveries. Reach out to Tovala to see if there are any additional discounts available.

Overall, I think Tovala’s meal delivery service is very good. However, I have a few complaints. My first main issue was preparation. While it is easy to prepare the meals, it’s still an extra step that other meal delivery services don’t have. Another thing to consider is the portions. Because Tovala only comes in one or two portions for each meal, is not ideal for a family of three or more.

For larger families, you may have to cook several individual meals, which is going to take a lot longer. You can cook a few of their meals at once, but not all of them. You cannot cook different meals at the same time due to the different cooking settings (temperature, steam level, time) for each meal.

Meal Freshness and Cleanup

Every meal that I ate was delicious and fresh, except for one. The salmon quinoa Bowl started to spoil three days before the expiration date. While I understand that this can happen in any meal delivery service, it was somewhat disappointing. You may want to freeze your protein source as soon as you get it and thaw it out later. I still ate the meal but swapped out the salmon for some falafel. Tovala made this right by sending me a free week of meals.

The meals arrived in a cardboard box with instructions. The ingredients are separated in plastic packages and mini foil pans. I liked how easy it was to prep and then recycle everything for easy cleanup.

Portion Size and Variety

I was pleasantly surprised about the portion size of each meal. While calories vary per meal between around 400-800 calories, I was impressed by the amount of protein each meal had and how full I felt, especially since I’m trying to lose weight. Although I received only four different meals to try, Tovala offers a wide variety of meals and 35 or more choices every week. One thing is certain, you won’t get bored!

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Tovala’s Meal Delivery Pricing

Double-portion meals start at $9.99. However, most of the meals are single serving and cost $12.99. There are also a few premium options that cost even more than that. While I can appreciate the convenience, that might not be much different than getting takeout*. However, it is less expensive than other meal delivery services like Cook Unity if you’re looking at per serving prices. I wasn’t able to find any discounts for Tovala’s meal service, only the Smart Ovens. A Tovala representative told me:

Meals start at $9.99 per serving for dual portion meals, and $12.99 per serving for single portion meals, though some meals are subject to an additional surcharge. The surcharges are primarily for meals using premium ingredients or proteins and dual portion meals.

*This may vary greatly depending on where you live, I can’t get a hamburger for $12. –ed.

• Chipotle Ranch Chicken Taco Salad: This was my favorite! It came with a chicken breast, chipotle sauce, spinach, cherry tomatoes, sour cream, shredded cheese, tortilla crisps and chipotle ranch dressing. I was really impressed with how juicy and tender the chicken breast was — you probably know how easy they are to dry out. The sauce was a little spicy but not too bad. The spinach and cherry tomatoes were also amazingly fresh and delicious.
• Mediterranean Salmon Quinoa Bowl: Unfortunately, the salmon went bad before I could try it (three days before the expiration date). However, the quinoa, feta cheese and cherry tomatoes were very fresh and delicious. I let Tovala know and they made it right by giving me a free week of meals!
• Coconut Red Curry Chicken Noodle Soup: This was also very delicious but a little on the spicy side. It would be great if you were sick and needed something extra spicy. However, the noodles, chicken, veggies and sauce all tasted very good and I would order it again.
• Red Wine Braised Filet Mignon and cheese Garlic Potato Wedges: This is my second favorite of the bunch. I was a bit skeptical that cooking a steak in an oven would be good but I was pleasantly surprised. The filet mignon was very tender and cooked about medium. The potato wedges were also delicious in their garlic cheese sauce. My only complaint about the meal was that the potatoes could be a little bit crispier.

Pros:

• Delicious meals sent directly to your home.
• Easy to prepare and cook meals.
• High-quality smart oven that uses steam to keep food delicious and moist..
• App lets you scan meals and other foods from grocery stores to cook in the Smart Oven.
• Great customer service (they gave me a week of free meals for the spoiled salmon issue).

Cons:

• Only one and two-person options (not ideal for larger families).
• Fresh produce can spoil quickly (our salmon meal went bad three days before the expiration date).
• No meal discount promotions like Cook Unity or Factor.
• While discounts are available for the oven, you still need to purchase it.

I am overall impressed with Tovala’s customer service. I reached out to Tovala’s customer support team via phone and email. They got back to me in less than two hours via phone and less than 24 hours via email. They answered all my questions thoroughly. Regarding my salmon issue, Tovala ordered me a free week of food for my troubles. That made it right and I’m confident they will provide that level of service to all their customers.

Mystery Shopper Results

Online Experience

Tovala’s website is well laid out, simple and easy to navigate. I did experience a couple of issues when I was navigating the site. First, depending on the page you’re on, the links at the top of the page in the navigational bar didn’t work. I had to reload a different page to get where I wanted to go.

I also noticed that pricing for the Smart Ovens was inconsistent. One section of the website said the discounted rate for the Pro model was $69, another page said $119 and then a customer service rep said it was $49. As you might imagine, I was confused.

I reached out to Tovala for clarification and the rep stated that the $49 rate had ended but she would still honor it. For the difference between the $69 and $119, it appears that Tovala showed a photo of the Smart Oven Pro at the lower price of $69 when it should be the standard Smart Oven.

Tovala Smart Oven Warranty

Tovala offers a one-year warranty and will either repair the defect or replace the defective oven with a new or refurbished equivalent oven at no charge to the purchaser. Please see Tovala’s warranty for further details.

Overall, I’m impressed with the Tovala Smart Oven Pro and meal delivery service. The Smart Oven Pro is high quality, durable and extremely easy to clean. It can cook Tovala’s meals easily, as well as scan many other premade meals from grocery stores. The meals I tried were also very delicious and I wouldn’t hesitate to order them again. Even with the salmon going bad, Tovala made it right by sending my another week of meals.

If you’re a larger family, Tovala’s meal delivery service might not work as well. I would recommend it for a smaller family who wants added convenience and wants to portion their meals for weight loss. Because it’s just my wife and me, Tovala’s Smart Oven Pro and meal delivery are great ways to help save time at night when we’re not feeling motivated to cook a full meal. The pricing is comparable to other meal delivery services, so if you can afford it, I highly recommend them both.