I bought these to stock up and keep back just in case. Keep in mind, this is not fine dining. It's not a restaurant or even fast food. It's a meal designed for survival in my opinion. Sure you could take it to work for lunch or something but for the price of these, there's cheaper options for that. In a survival situation, I'm confident that everyone would not mind eating it at all if it was the only meal they had.I think they taste great compared to the other brands and actual MREs I've tried. It's just a bit small to be considered 2 servings. For most people, after eating 1, I believe you'll still be hungry.Bought some of these to do a hiking trip where I didn't want to carry a stove (did carry a USB power pack for my phone which also allowed me to bring a little immersion heater for hot water for coffee). Since these weren't going to sit on the shelf, I took a suggestion I found elsewhere and tore off the top tab of all of these, removed the gimmicky plastic spoon and napkin, and placed the now smaller and lighter packages (still had the outer pocket, heating element, and food packet) into a large Ziploc bag. A bit less hassle and a bit less weight and a fair bit less waste to carry around after.For the food, kneading the food packet a bit before placing it in with the heating element helps, as well as removing it after four minutes to knead it again and then let it cook another 2-3 minutes. Yes the packaging says 3-5 minutes, but if you really want it fairly hot throughout, a little more time helps.Because the food never comes in contact with the water you can use water you wouldn't drink in a pinch - letting you extend your potable water longer. I've noticed folks have said adding a little salt to the water will make the heating element get a little hotter as well. What water sources might be available in an emergency that have some salt I will leave as an exercise for the reader.Basically, this is as good or better in terms of taste as the other major hiking food brands - generally a bit better as the food is stabilized rather than freeze-dried. And the convenience really can't be beat. Recommended!Pros:I will throw these into a pack when I suspect my jet boil is getting low. It's nice to have these as a back-up so I can still have some heated food at night. I often hike in places where there are fire restrictions throughout the year so making a fire isn't an open but it still gets pretty cold, so having a convenient back-up for hot food is great. Plus , (depending on elevation) it stays hot for a long time so you can use the little heat pouch as a personal heater :)I've always liked the flavor of these. Have not tried all of them though. Pretty much stick with the chili and southwest ones. I have an endocrine disorder so the ingredients in these aren't normally ones I would eat which is why I stay away from the pasta and pizza. The chili and SW ones don't result in really bad consequences for me thoughCons:The calories are low. I would prefer a pre-packaged meal to have slightly more calories so I can get a dense, hot meal at the end of the miles. I have to eat other snacks with these. Plus with the price of these I would definitely want there to be more calories. That's why I generally stick with the jet boil because I can make some simple and very cheap high calories meals with thatReceived the meals quickly, there was no issues with any of the bags. Tried 1 of each they taste good plan on buying some more for my hunting, and camping trips. I do feel they are a little over priced tho.Variety and taste was better than expected for first timer, texture ok but some meats seemed somewhat dry but overall a good experience.The pasta ones aren't too bad taste wise if you don't mind the Chef Boyardee. Price isn't too bad.I bought some of these for my regular hurricane prep kit and ended up using them during the recent Texas freeze. As another reviewer noted, sometimes you just don't want to get out your jet boil and boil water for something freeze-dried. These are convenient. Another advantage is that you don't have to have clean water, since the food itself is in a sealed pouch. I found the pasta sauces a little sweet for my taste, but not everyone feels the same way about these things. The main disadvantage with these is the portion size, and I usually prefer smaller portions, so that's saying something. But I'm definitely reordering. For anyone buying for winter outage prep, these meals have the added advantage that you can warm up your hands or feet with the bag after you take out the food! However, I recommend letting the food heat for at least five minutes longer than the instructions indicate.The meal tastes fine, but this is not a good option for hiking. First the meal is not dehydrated so it is heavy and the portion size is small. It has its own heat device you drop into water, a food pouch and a water pouch. You drop the heating device into water you add to the water pouch and this in turn heats the food pouch. It frees up your stove, but in the end it was more waste to store and hike out. If you are looking for a lightweight backpacking meal, I would not recommend this product.