Marie Callender's Beef Pot Pies Might Not Even Be Worth A Try, According To Reviews

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In the world of frozen prepared meals, pot pies typically tend to be fairly solid. The flaky, pastry exterior crust encapsulates a rich filling with vegetables and some type of protein — typically chicken, turkey, or beef. When we ranked nine popular frozen meal brands, one of the better ones we tried was Marie Callender's turkey pot pie. We also found that the chicken pot pie was pretty good.

So, that's why it was so surprising to see the overwhelmingly bad reviews for Marie Callender's beef pot pie frozen meal. The pie comes in two sizes – 10 ounces and 15 ounces — and is marketed as a "hearty meal of premium seasoned beef, carrots, celery, and potatoes baked in a golden, flaky, made-from-scratch crust," according to Marie Callender's website. At a cost of $3.29, it's not a bad deal. But on that same product page, the dish gets absolutely hammered in reviews by impassioned customers. If a three-star rating is considered mediocre or average, then a 1.4 rating is flat-out abysmal — and that's exactly what this pie is rated on the Marie Callender's website.

The reviews speak for themselves. "Just had the so-called beef pot pie. Not sure what I just ate but I will NEVER purchase any of their pot pies ever again," one says. Another reads, "bland flavor, gristle meat," while someone else writes, "0 stars. This was absolutely disgusting. I cannot believe what I just tasted." The terrible feedback goes on, and on, and on.

Over on Target's website, the reviews are a bit more positive. Marie Callender's beef pot pie gets a 3.1 rating here, but that's mainly because it's easy to prepare. The dish received a 2.2 rating on taste and a 1.6 on quality. Only 16% of Target reviewers would recommend the beef pot pie. "I liked the flavor, but one beef cube was inedible and felt very sick after eating the meal," one reviewer said. Many other reviews also question the quality of the beef, calling it "dog food," "a formed rubbery substance," and "pressed cubes of processed something-or-other, not real beef."

We're the first to tell you to try something for yourself, but this beef pot pie sounds like it's in the same realm of processed and tasteless meals produced by Hungry Man – both of which are perhaps best left on the freezer aisle shelf. It has to be one of the worst-reviewed products we've seen. With all that negative feedback, it's safe to say we'll be avoiding the Marie Callender's beef pot pie until further notice.