Five Tampa Bay locations can have their Fitlife Foods delivered

A Tampa lifestyle brand has launched its own home delivery service.

Started in 2011, Fitlife Foods creates healthful premade meals using 39 sauces and 13 spice blends, offering 60-plus menu items for customers to choose from. With nine retail locations throughout the Bay area, the new delivery option heightens Fitlife's convenience. The weekly service is now open to Clearwater, North Tampa, South Tampa, St. Petersburg and Wesley Chapel residents.

"So often, we see that customers want to lead a healthier lifestyle and eat better, but schedules get in the way of being able to cook at home," said founder David Osterweil in a statement. "Instead of defaulting to paying high prices for delivery options with minimal nutritional value or waiting in line for a quick bite, people can have a week's worth of meals delivered to their homes."

Ranging from $4 to $12, the meals, made with organic and local ingredients whenever possible, have nutritional information printed on their labels, and they also cater to the gluten-free, vegetarian and low-carb crowds. Chicken enchilada bake, farmhouse scramble and are among the options for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacking.

Delivery orders — left on doorsteps in insulated cooler bags and available in quantities of eight to 12, or 20 to 24 — arrive by 5 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays. Additional drop-off days will begin in late January. Each dish comes packaged in a reusable, recyclable plastic container, which customers can return to Fitlife for credit toward future meals.

This article appears in Jan 5-12, 2017.