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Launched in 2018, DabbaDrop was the brainchild of Mumbai-born Anshu Ahuja and New Zealander Renee Williams.
Why did they launch DabbaDrop? Too many years of unfulfilling takeaways made with low-quality ingredients, offering minimal vegetarian options and leaving the customers with excessive plastic waste to dispose of.
As these two time poor mums started looking for a better alternative, DabbaDrop was born. What began life as an East London only neighbourhood delivery service, DabbaDrop now covers London zones 1-3 and has delivered in excess of 200,000 delicious, homemade meals, with zero waste and zero emissions.
Inspired by Dabbawalas born in Mumbai in the late 1800s (dabba meaning 'box' in Hindi), DabbaDrop gets its name from the steel boxes which have kept cities fed for over a hundred years.
It began as a stacked dinner delivered by bike or railway train to neighbourhood workers who would enjoy their meal from top drawer to bottom and give back the containers on the delivery person's return journey. (As an aside, my wife's father who was of Indian heritage used Dabbas! What a small world!)
Along with the reusable steel dabba's that reduce environmental impact by being sterilised, refilled and reused, DabbaDrop's innovative pre-ordering system also means minimal food waste as they know exactly how many to make.
Deliveries are then made using only eco-friendly methods like as pedal cycles, e-bikes, and zero-emission vehicles.
To date, 404,584 plastic containers have been saved from being used; 3,200kg less food wasted and 25,478kg of carbon and greenhouse gas emissions have been avoided. That's the same amount as flying from London to New York 26 times!
Reclaiming mealtimes
With a mission to reclaim mealtimes, DabbaDrop's subscription means customers can opt for a once a week or once a fortnight delivery, taking the hassle out of meal planning and a promise to put the joy back into takeaways.
With community and nourishing food at its core, customers are taken on a culinary journey across South Asia and beyond, through a set menu of hearty family recipes that are deep in flavour and full of goodness - and all cooked from scratch using the freshest ingredients.
As busy mothers, Anshu and Renee know the value of connecting over a meal. By leaving DabbaDrop to do the legwork at least once a week, means friends and family can use the time they would usually spend scrolling for a delivery to instead reconnect over food that's beautiful, soul-lifting - and convenient.
Next week (2-4th Oct) DabbaDrop will be serving a brand new menu from Kerala
This October half term DabbaDrop are offering a Buy ONE Dabba, get another HALF PRICE promotion.