Lunches at work

Former Member

What does everyone do for lunch at work? Do you go out for lunch or bring in a packed lunch?

I've realised I'm spending quite a bit of money on buying food at lunch time - either that or I'm making do with a chocolate bar for lunch as I don't have the time to go get something.

I'm gonna try find the time to make a packed lunch the night before - what kind of things do you have? I'm a veggie and I don't eat cheese so I end up with salad sandwiches which are a little boring and tend to look less than appetising by lunch time. I'm also trying to put on weight so need stuff that is quite high-calorie.

Any suggestions?

Former Member

I know what you mean about spending too much money, i'm starting to make my own sandwhiches aswell, although i can't advise you on what to make because i'm not a vege and i eat cheese! lol... so yeah, you could look it up on google or something or ask.com

Former Member

Hi Pinkie, I take my own food every day unless there have been problems at home etc which prevents me from doing so.

There are a million options, for a start you could use faux meat sandwhiches like quorn turkey/ham/beef etc..

Does it have to be sandwhiches though, do you have access to a microwave to warm food up or bake a potato etc?

Another fav of mine is pasta, I make it up and take the sauce in work, tbh usually now just red or green pesto and I leave the sauce in the fridge and put it on fresh when I eat.

There are endless options though

Former Member

Yeah I do have access to a microwave but generally don't tend to use it because I think it's a bit anti-social having all the food smells around the office!

Have never tried the Quorn meat slices - might give them a go though.

Former Member

I either make a sandwich of some description, or alternatively I take some hummous and either some pitta bread or some carrot sticks to eat it with. Would you eat hummous? I can't get enough of the stuff.

Former Member

Depends where I'm working. If it's in the city or town I'll just pop over to subway or McDonalds or somewhere, at a building site I'll just bring a pack lunch with a few sandwhiches, biscuits, bars and a bottle of coke. Nothing too healthy.

**helen**

I really like getting soups this time of year - couldn't live on cuppa soups -but the ones with noodles in aren't bad at all and good to alternate with pastas/salads etc.

Former Member

I usually have pasta or cuppa soup.

littlemissy

I vary.

I quite often have toast or similar. If not, I'll take a sandwich. Or I'll microwave something. Tomorrow, I am taking some chicken soup

Former Member

At the moment I take peanut butter sandwiches with some carrot and/or cucumber sticks, a teeny tiny (tesco value!) bag of crisps, an apple and a chocolate biscuit.

Last week I took that but with cheese and salad sandwiches instead of peanut butter.

Me and my work buddy have started doing "cake saturday" now as well, where we take it in turns to bring cake as a reward for doing an 8 hour shift in Morrisons!

Bunnie

How about cooking some falafel the night before and taking a salad pitta with you? I took a few with me the other day but I was still hungry so I would recommend the pitta.

and they are pretty much ALWAYS reduced on an evening in Asda!

Former Member

takeaways r best, i cud neva get used 2 preparin stuf the nite b4
sounds 2much like hard work!

Former Member

Imran wrote: »

takeaways r best, i cud neva get used 2 preparin stuf the nite b4
sounds 2much like hard work!

Writing properly seems too much work too.

Former Member

I dont understand how people can afford to buy stuff every day, its going to be at least £2 or 3, that's £15 a week.

I normally take left overs from the night before, or sandwiches, or humous, or I'll buy home made samosa's from the corner shop near my house for all of £1.

Former Member

avocado bagette

Former Member

What's a lunchbreak?

Former Member

you "important" management types cant have one of course :rolleyes:

Former Member

y write prpa wen u can save tym writin short.
lol r u 1 of them ppl that can offended by shortcuts

Former Member

Imran wrote: »

y write prpa wen u can save tym writin short.
lol r u 1 of them ppl that can offended by shortcuts

Good lord my eyes

Anyway, I suggest you read this.

Former Member

A coffee and a sandwich every day will set you back about #4, I reckon. Over a working year that's about a grand.

I don't know how anyone can pay for it. Well, I do- they pay for it with credit cards.

I prefer making my own stuff, I know what goes into it and I can control how much I eat. My biggest gripe about pre-packed sandwiches is that they always put mayo and butter on- what a waste of calories.

littlemissy

Imran wrote: »

y write prpa wen u can save tym writin short.
lol r u 1 of them ppl that can offended by shortcuts

Unfortunately, it takes longer to decipher what you write.

Learn to touch type. You will be able to type quicker when writing full words than that crap.

As for lunches, at the moment I've been taking bread and stuff to work and making sandwiches there (more out of laziness in the morning!) We also have a toaster which I use fairly regularly. Oh yes.

And, if all else fails, there is school dinners, which is bargainous at £1.65 for a mush starter and a tasteless dessert :thumb:

Former Member

katralla wrote: »

avocado bagette

That sounds good. I do soups, sandwiches and if I have time in the morning, salads. I love campbells soup. So filling and tastey and dirt cheap and buy the big can instead of the personal meal and it lasts two lunches! I also just like to bring bread and nutella. And a yogurt and some fruit too. And peanuts and crackers for snacks. Alot of people I see are always brining those frozen dinners. I do that sometime when I can find them on the cheap, but often they are like 3/4 for one, which is no better than going out.

At one job I worked for a year and a half, I went out probably 90% of the time. It was after, when I saw how much money I was saving I was shocked.

The boyfriend, since he's been working, for 14 years, has never brought a lunch. Gone out every single day, and for lunch when he was at school too! It pisses me off because then he gets sick of places and then doesn't want things that I want for dinner :grump:

Former Member

I do salads, sandwiches, soups. We're round the corner from Sainsbury's where i work so i just stock up on sandwichy type things on a monday and then have fridge picnics the rest of the week. Sometimes i supplement it, but usually i don't. And i never take my full lunch - if i have time, i'll eat at my desk.

Former Member

Man Of Kent wrote: »

What's a lunchbreak?

Quite...they are a bit of a distant memory to me at the moment!

Former Member

When I worked in a supermarket we got a subsidised dining room, cooked breakfast was cheap, my usual was two rashes of bacon, a few sausages, fried egg, fried bread and baked beans which came to about £1.20 I think. Lunch used to get a sandwich out the vending, £2 or £3 on the shopfloor - was 80p upstairs for us! Or could get cooked lunch; soup or salad and a meal option which varied. Now at uni so lunch is just toast and somethign in halls kitchen in front of neighbours :P

Former Member

ha i always get my 1 hour lunchbreak, i get 2 or 3 breaks during the day in this job as well it's like being back at school....used to make packed lunches but i think i'd get some weird looks if i did that now lol.

Former Member

rachie004 wrote: »

That'll be lunch breaks or even a loo break being a distant memory :yes:

:yes: I quite often get home after a 12.5 hour shift only to realise i am bursting for the loo cos i haven't had time to go all day!!

Former Member

I make up a largeish vat of soup on a sunday night and then store it in the fridge and then eat it over the course of the week. Usually with a bit of bread and an apple. Its really easy takes only about 20 mins and then feeds you all week (i have a treat sometimes on a friday and get a sandwich or something).

I'm making leek and potato at the moment but my over excitment recently was making carrot and corriander - i feel like i'm turning into nigella but it was sooo easy.

You just need an onion, bag of carrot battons and a largeish potato, a little bit of olive oil, a bunch of corriander, plus some vegetable stock.

You chop the onion and fry it in oil, cube the potato and then add that and the carrot battons plus the stock into a saucepan with the onions cook it for about 20 mins till its all soft. Then add the corriander - remove any really stakly bits - shove it in the blender and then put in the fridge.

If you're not watching your weight you can add something creamy but you don't need to as the potato kind of does that for you.

Former Member

I made leek and potato soup last week and it lasted 4 lunches and cost about a pound for the whole thing. Unfortunately by the last serving I was soooo fucking sick of eating it! Bah

Former Member

Oh I adore leek and potato soup. Anybody want to share a good recipe they like

Former Member

Simba T Lion wrote: »

Oh I adore leek and potato soup. Anybody want to share a good recipe they like

Mine is...

gently fry an onion and some garlic for a minute or 2

add a large chopped leek (or 2 small ones)

add some chopped potatoes (2 or 3) and jiggle in the pan for a couple of minutes

add enough stock so the veg is covered, stick in a couple of bay leaves and some thyme (dried works pretty well) and simmer for about half an hour (or until you've finished whatever else you're doing)

add some milk (1/4 pint?) and lots of black pepper and blitz with a blender. add a little bit of cream for extra indulgance

tadah