I’m Bogdan Sandu. I run Burpy, a small site with one goal: help you figure out what to cook this week and buy only what you need for it.
Way back in 2008, I was mostly focused on design. Design and tech, to be more precise. I could talk for hours about pixels and code and how they intertwine on the web.
Then something shifted. A tiny seed of passion started demanding its space, and it wasn’t about design or technology. It was about food. Burpy is where those two things finally meet.
First, the part you might be here for: the old Burpy
If you know the Burpy name from Texas, that’s because burpy.com used to be a same-day grocery delivery service. It delivered from H-E-B, Walmart, Kroger and Whole Foods in Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio and Fort Worth.
That company shut down in 2021. In 2023 I bought the domain and relaunched it as the site you’re reading now.
Burpy is about groceries again, but in a different way: it helps you plan what to buy. It doesn’t buy or deliver anything. So, to be completely clear:
- Burpy no longer delivers groceries, and there is no way to order, log in, or become a shopper here.
- I am not affiliated with the former company, its founders, or its staff, and I don’t have access to any old customer accounts or data.
- If you’re looking for the old service, it’s gone. Sorry. But if you’re trying to get dinner sorted for the week, you’re in the right place.
What Burpy is now
Smarter meals, easier groceries. That’s the whole idea. Burpy is a site built around free tools and practical guides for everyday cooking and grocery shopping.
The center of it is the free meal planner. You tell it how many people you’re feeding, how many days to plan and what you eat, and it builds a weekly menu of breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks. Then it turns that menu into one grocery list, sorted by store aisle, with the amounts already added up for your household.
- No account, no signup. You open it and start planning.
- Your plans stay in your browser. I can’t see what you plan, and nothing is stored on my side.
- It works around real life: diets and allergies, picky kids, a set budget, leftovers for lunch, nights you eat out.
Around the planner you’ll find guides on meal planning and grocery shopping, recipes and side dishes, and a set of kitchen tools I built because I kept needing them: a recipe converter, a grams to cups converter, an air fryer conversion calculator and a few more.
And yes, the Costco guides are still here. If you just brought something home from Costco and want to know how to actually cook it, there’s a good chance I’ve already tested it.
How I build the guides and tools
For the meal planner:
- Every recipe lists its ingredients per serving, so the grocery list scales correctly for one person or a family of six.
- Calories and protein are estimates based on USDA FoodData Central averages for each ingredient. They’re a planning aid, not medical advice.
- Costs are rough US averages for the amount you use, not package prices. Your receipt will differ.
- Cooking temperatures in the recipes follow the USDA safe minimums.
For the Costco and Kirkland cooking guides:
- I cook it more than one way: oven, air fryer, stovetop, microwave, whatever makes sense for that product. Then I write down what actually happened, not what the package promised.
- I check internal temperatures with a thermometer and use the USDA safe minimums, not guesses.
- I go back and update when Costco changes the packaging or the instructions.
Cooking solo vs. cooking with the squad
Sometimes the kitchen is my sanctum, a place where I lose and find myself. The steady rhythm of chopping, the meditative stir of the spoon, the satisfaction of tasting something that’s just right. That’s what I call solo therapy.
But other times it’s a family gig.
Sundays are special. My wife, my daughters and I turn into an unbeatable team, whipping up course after course, tasting, laughing and creating memories. Sundays are when the kitchen sees the best kind of chaos, and when the “what are we eating this week?” conversation usually happens.
Who is Bogdan Sandu?
I’m a home cook, not a chef, and I’m not going to pretend otherwise. My professional background is in web design and development, which I’ve been doing since 2008. That’s also why this site loads without twelve pop-ups, and why the tools work on your phone in the grocery store.
What I can honestly claim:
- I’ve been cooking for my family almost daily for 20+ years.
- I’ve personally cooked every Costco product that has a “tested” guide on this site.
- I run the meal planner and every tool on Burpy, and I fix them when something is off.
- When I’m wrong, I fix it. If you find a mistake, email me and I’ll correct the article or the tool and note the change.
Everything I’ve published here is listed on my author page.
How this site makes money, and what it doesn’t do
Burpy shows a few ads and may include affiliate links (if you buy something through one, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you). The meal planner and the kitchen tools are free, and they’ll stay free.
Costco doesn’t pay me, sponsor me, or review anything before it’s published. No product on this site was sent to me for free, and no brand or store has ever paid to be placed in a cooking guide, a recipe or the meal planner.
Say hello
Questions, corrections, a feature you’d like in the meal planner, or a Costco product you want me to test next? Email me at bogdan@burpy.com or use the contact page. I read everything, and I answer most of it.