Urban AIP

Urban AIP cooks and ships frozen, fully prepared meals that follow the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP), a strict version of paleo eating. It's not a kit; the meals arrive cooked and frozen. The kitchen is in Los Angeles and ships nationwide, and the company describes itself as offering "Chef Prepared, Nutritionist Designed, Organic, Toxin-free Autoimmune Paleo food to repair the gut and nourish your body." That's the company's claim, and its pitch speaks directly to people with Hashimoto's, lupus, MS, RA or Crohn's. If you're already eating AIP and are tired of cooking every meal from scratch, this is one of very few services built entirely around it.

How ordering works

You start by choosing a box, either as a one-time purchase or on "Subscribe & Save." The box sizes are the "Ultimate AIP Box" of 20 meals (Subscribe & Save 10%), the Worker-Bee Box of 15 meals (Subscribe & Save 8%) and AIP convenience with 10 meals (Subscribe & Save 5%). The box is "fully customizable with every order," according to the FAQ: you log in and choose "Edit Contents" to pick your meals.

Subscriptions come with a rule worth reading before you sign up. The subscription policy says "All subscriptions require a two order minimum of the same item," and you can cancel or pause only after your second order. After that, the FAQ says, you can skip or reschedule deliveries "anytime you want," and meal selection and box size can be changed at any point. For a first order, whether one-time or subscription, you can cancel within 24hrs for a full refund; after that, the initial order can't be cancelled.

The menu changes gradually. The company says it adds and replaces meals seasonally but tries "to introduce new dishes monthly." Local customers can also pick up boxes at the commercial kitchen by appointment.

What it costs

Meals are priced individually on the menu page, and the current listings run from $24.50 (Chicken & Sage Breakfast Skewers, Classic AIP Beef Breakfast) through $25.95 (Pasture-Raised Chicken Burrito, Chicken Stroganoff) and $26.95 (Chicken Pesto Pizza, Orange Chicken) up to $28.95 for Tacos Al Pastor. That's before the subscription discount, which ranges from 5% to 10% depending on box size. A newsletter signup offers $25 off your first order, a one-time discount.

Shipping is a real cost here, and the company is candid about it. Its FAQ asks "WHY IS SHIPPING SO EXPENSIVE?" and explains that the checkout charge is its 2nd Day Air rate, while Urban AIP pays the extra to ship overnight, along with residential, fuel and dry ice hazmat fees. It says it makes no profit on shipping and hopes to offer free shipping eventually. The exact amount appears only at checkout.

The food itself

According to the FAQ, the kitchen is "100% free of gluten, grains, dairy, eggs, nuts, seeds, legumes and nightshades," and the homepage adds seed oil to that list. The company says all produce, dry goods, seasonings and fats are certified organic, and it names its meat suppliers: beef from Carter Country Ranch, bacon, pork and duck from Diamond Mountain Ranch in Northern California, chicken from Greener Pastures in Texas, Diestel ground turkey, and organic grass-fed lamb from Australia. Fish and seafood are always wild-caught. One exception it flags itself: the meatloaf uses KC Natural's AIP marinara, which isn't certified organic.

Portions are protein-heavy, with the site listing "4.5-5.5oz of Protein/Meal." Dishes include a Pasture-Raised Chicken Burrito with papaya salsa, Tacos Al Pastor, Orange Chicken, Chicken Pesto Pizza, and breakfasts such as Lemongrass Ginger Breakfast Soup and a Lemon Tarragon Turkey Skillet, several created with collaborators such as Mickey Trescott and chef Kristina Evans. The company says it uses "30-40 different ingredients" across its menus.

Packaging is unusual: plant fiber trays that are compostable, a bisphenol-free lidding film with a layer of non-bleached parchment between film and food, and no plastic or aluminium containers in the kitchen. Once home, meals keep in the freezer for up to 9-months and in the fridge for 5-days. The site doesn't publish reheating instructions. The company is a member of 1% for the Planet, and says that for every 20 active subscriptions it donates a 20-meal box to someone with fewer resources who wants to try an AIP elimination diet.

On health, the FAQ makes its own case for the protocol and says, for example, that it "is designed to heal your body," while acknowledging that weight changes vary from person to person. Those are Urban AIP's views, written by a team that refers to itself as practitioners, not independent findings.

Where it ships

Everything ships from Los Angeles, nationwide, on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, via UPS Next Day Air or Next Day Air Saver; Southern California orders go by one-day ground. The cutoffs are precise: orders placed between 12:01PM PST Wednesday and 8AM PST Monday ship Monday, orders between 8:01AM PST Monday and 12PM PST Tuesday ship Tuesday, and orders between 12:01PM PST Tuesday and 12PM PST Wednesday ship Wednesday. Boxes arrive Tuesday through Thursday.

The boxes are insulated and packed with dry ice for 72 hours of transit. The company admits carriers "often" take 2 days despite the overnight service, says a 1-day delay is still safe, and says a staff member monitors shipments and will contact you about longer delays.

What the site leaves open, and who it suits

The shipping charge is the main unknown before checkout, and it's the one the company itself calls a barrier. The site also doesn't give calories or full nutrition figures beyond protein portion size, and it doesn't lay out heating steps.

Urban AIP suits someone already following the Autoimmune Protocol who wants a freezer full of compliant meals with named, pasture-raised sourcing and is prepared to pay premium per-meal prices plus overnight freight. The flexible box contents and the ability to skip after 2 orders make it workable as a regular service. It's a harder fit on a tight budget, and for anyone who wants to try a single box with no strings, since a subscription commits you to 2 orders first.