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Original poster

To think colleague has bitched about pot noodle

212 replies

Psyberbaby · 29/04/2024 13:59

Last week a colleague said to me "I would never have thought of a pot noodle for lunch!" which I thought was a bit random.

This morning we have all received an email from comms about keeping fridge clean and "avoiding overly smelly and slurpy foods" in lunch room.

OP posts:
AlanBrendaCelia · 29/04/2024 22:22

Longma · 29/04/2024 20:45

I think Mumsnet needs to develop a list of food that is not offensive to eat in a work staff room.

It must not have any form of smell whatsoever.
You must be able to eat it silently, and with no obviously facial expressions to suggest you are chewing, sucking, slurping, etc.
It must also meet the the MN standards for being 'healthy', substantial, not too expensive but not really cheap either, oh and ensuring the portion sizes are of a MN size.

Any suggestions?

Massive salad?

Aproductofmyera80s · 29/04/2024 22:16

Pot noodles, or any other brand instant noodles are what we call a poor man lunch at work, the time of month where everyone’s waiting for payday and trying to stretch the pound 😅 the guys at work eat them quite often..

pontipinemum · 29/04/2024 22:05

It depends how you eat it. A small amount of noodles and twirled around a spoon then into the mouth in 1 go, I think OK.

If like my old colleague you shovel a fork load in with noodles half hanging out of your mouth then suck them in, you need to eat in a room alone!

UnbelievableLie · 29/04/2024 22:03

So according to this thread, lunch food cannot have a smell or make a noise when eaten?

That leaves dry bread then. Staff/lunch rooms are for eating in, if you don't like it, fuck off out and leave people be.

Renamed · 29/04/2024 21:45

I thought comments about food smells were for when people ate at their desks? If you are in a separate room, everyone’s food is going to smell of something surely?

On reflection I think perhaps andouillette would be unsuitable

Original poster
Psyberbaby · 29/04/2024 21:40

Thanks for the replies guys! Maybe bombay bad boy is too intense, I will try a lower key one. As for the slurping well I do my best but I mean its noodles in broth, so...

OP posts:
gindreams · 29/04/2024 21:16

I think @Roja7 is so busy trying to be right on they appear slightly ignorant themselves

AWOL66 · 29/04/2024 21:06

BeBrightBeHappyBeYou · 29/04/2024 19:45

When you have worked in an office with a colleague who would enthusiastically eat pilchards straight from the tin, holding them up in the air each time and licking his fingers after each one, with oil dripping onto the desk, that’s anti social. To cap it all, he would lob the tin in the office bin (without wrapping it up) so it would fester away in the heat the entire afternoon. Zero self awareness and vomit inducing behaviour!

Eugh! I agree that if you are eating in an office you should be respectful of others and be clean over the desk space and if you are eating anywhere you should have good table manners! The worst is when you have to clean grease off the desk after someone's been eating there. 🤮

BarberellaWife · 29/04/2024 21:06

The person I work with makes sardines on toast to eat at their desk half an hour before our official lunch. Pisses me off every time!

5YearsLeft · 29/04/2024 20:50

Megifer · 29/04/2024 14:49

It's in our handbook at work that microwaving fish will result in the immediate removal of the facility 🤣

Show quote history

For a second, by “facility,” I thought you meant your whole building and I thought, well they’ll have to, won’t they? It’ll never stop smelling of manky fish. It’ll just get a shorter and shorter half-life but ALWAYS smell faintly of fish. Doesn’t matter what you try. Then it will smell of Zoflora and fish, or Febreze and fish, or a fucking Jo Malone candle and fish. There’s just no bloody hope. Burn the whole place down. And have a seafood BBQ in the flames.

Longma · 29/04/2024 20:48

You can make very nice jacket potatoes in microwave with butter and melted cheese...in case you like hot food at lunchtime

You can make jacket potatoes in a microwave but they don't taste great - certainly no where near as nice as an oven cooked one. Even one started in the microwave and finished in the oven, or one started in the oven and reheated in a microwave isn't anywhere near as nice as a properly oven cooked one.

Potatoes when heated also smell. They are not odourless.
And obviously a lot of cheeses smell, especially when melted.

And even when reheated can rake over the microwave for a chunk of time.

DrJonesIpresume · 29/04/2024 20:46

Why not have sardines on toast instead?

Longma · 29/04/2024 20:45

I think Mumsnet needs to develop a list of food that is not offensive to eat in a work staff room.

It must not have any form of smell whatsoever.
You must be able to eat it silently, and with no obviously facial expressions to suggest you are chewing, sucking, slurping, etc.
It must also meet the the MN standards for being 'healthy', substantial, not too expensive but not really cheap either, oh and ensuring the portion sizes are of a MN size.

Any suggestions?

Snugglemonkey · 29/04/2024 20:40

PostItInABook · 29/04/2024 18:41

I get a thirty minute lunch break. By the time I’ve done a jacket potato in the microwave my break is practically over, so, no thanks.

Show quote history

You cook it at home. Then it is just heating it up.

Atethehalloweenchocs · 29/04/2024 20:39

Werent you on a while ago talking about having the same pot noodle for lunch every day?

TheDandyLion · 29/04/2024 20:38

All food smells and all kinds of noises are made when people are eating.

If you can't do that in a lunch room where are you suppose to do it?

Snugglemonkey · 29/04/2024 20:31

Mcvitieschoccybiscuit · 29/04/2024 16:32

Some people slurp water though- yeah it’s annoying but what you going to do ban water.

Fucking right I would if people were slurping it.

Bananabreadandstrawberries · 29/04/2024 20:23

I think some Pot noodles smell really good, like the Nonshim spicy Korean noodles.

others I’m not as big a fan of, but certainly don’t consider them messy or smelly. They don’t even go in the fridge!

NoahVale · 29/04/2024 20:04

ChurchOfSeitan · 29/04/2024 17:26

All pot noodles are vegetarian.

In fact the vast majority of them are in fact - trigger warning ahead — vegan 😮.

Show quote history

i know, i made an error,
i was a vegetarian but could still eat beef pot noodle and i liked it

tigger1001 · 29/04/2024 20:00

Londonrach1 · 29/04/2024 17:58

I agree it's very antisocial. I never see anyone have a pot noddle at work due to the smell. You can make very nice jacket potatoes in microwave with butter and melted cheese...in case you like hot food at lunchtime x

One of my favourite toppings for a baked potato is tuna mayo - according to some that's just as bad.

Foord, in particular hot food has a smell. It's a kitchen and a lunch room - perfectly acceptable to be eating food others might not like the smell of.

Even some sandwiches smell.

RedHelenB · 29/04/2024 19:56

FelicityBeedle · 29/04/2024 14:22

A pot noodle is a perfectly normal work lunch, I can’t believe these responses. I work shifts and we all have something hot as a rule, often soup (slurpy), leftovers (smelly?), pot noodle or mug shot (slurpy and smelly??). Why has eating perfectly normal foods been demonised

This. It's handy to have in the car or staffroom cupboard in case you ever forget your sandwiches.

LyndaSnellsSniff · 29/04/2024 19:52

I have a colleague who eats a boiled egg for their mid-morning snack. A good, healthy choice but...whiffarama!!

gamerchick · 29/04/2024 19:52

Roja7 · 29/04/2024 19:46

Casual racism if your colleague isn't white English and I'm making (big) assumptions here he isn't as goat curry isn't generally available at the local takeout.

Show quote history

We make goat curry and are white English. Nice bit of grub that.

HesterPrincess · 29/04/2024 19:48

He is white English actually @Roja7 . No racism implied whatsoever, he just eats weird (to me) food. I'm vegetarian and found it grim.

gamerchick · 29/04/2024 19:47

Love a pot noodle me..comfort food Grin

Not sure what it has to do with fridges like. Nobody puts a half eaten pot noodle in the fridge.