If you had £7.50 to buy lunch with what would you get?

[Lovelysummerdays]

I’m allowed to get reimbursed for lunch at work as out and about. General rules are no grocery shops, you have to eat in, so no takeaways. I’ve generally had coffee and cake somewhere but I’m going to be huge if I eat cake everyday. I stopped off at KFC today and had a rice box which was quite nice and probably slightly healthier than cake. Are there any decentish meals from fast food places for £7.50 or less?

Another vote for Leon's here. Yummy and healthier than MacDonalds.

It has to be one receipt. Otherwise I’d probably just feed my coffee addiction all day!

I don’t have a Leon’s sadly.

A baguette/panino/sandwich and a drink.

I'd still take my own, because the food you can get at all the places you're listing (McDonalds, KFC, Pret, Greggs etc.) is high calorie for very little nutritional value

Ok - but if you got a coffee with lunch and then a juice, or a coffee in a thermal keep-cup, that would work?

One of those Pret avocado sandwiches..or the Tesco premium salmon & cream cheese sandwich meal deal.

Your average sandwich / salad is often ten quid in an independant coffee shop or cafe and service is quite relaxed. I can take how long I like but it’s unpaid so I just want twenty minutes really. My local Costa is often really busy and they seem to concentrate on drive thru so it’s queue for ten, wait five for food / coffee. kfc was a revelation I ordered went to the loo and it was ready. I don’t normally do fast food places so thought I should broaden my horizons.

Your average sandwich / salad is often ten quid in an independant coffee shop or cafe and service is quite relaxed. I can take how long I like but it’s unpaid so I just want twenty minutes really. My local Costa is often really busy and they seem to concentrate on drive thru so it’s queue for ten, wait five for food / coffee. kfc was a revelation I ordered went to the loo and it was ready. I don’t normally do fast food places so thought I should broaden my horizons.

Do pubs count as 'eating in'?

If so, a large glass of wine and a bag of crisps.

I find it really hard to say no to free(to me) food. I’m happy to get salad or fruit pots type stuff.

Pret salad , bread roll and some water or tea. Or soup in the winter I know it sounds a bit joyless but I agree most lunch are too junky to eat every day. You can also get a good salad from Subway. Philpotts?

@Lovelysummerdays genuine curiosity....why does it have to be eat in? Why can't you go to a shop and buy a meal deal and eat on a park bench? It's a weird rule.

No alchohol allowed but you could eat in a pub. Pubs round me are expensive so you’d be lucky to get change out of a tenner for a large wine never mind crisps.

@Lovelysummerdays but when that food is bad for you? Eating toasties, McDonald's, KFC etc everyday isn't good for you?

Cafe nero toastie and a drink

Subway salads are pretty good and healthy as long as you don’t drown them in mayo.

Itsu, wasabi, our lovely independent local café to work does a lovely panini and coffee of your choice lunch deal for £7.95 I'd happily pay the extra 45p

Chicken and bacon subway salad roll with southwest sauce and sweet onion sauce mmmm

Also we have a nice local sushi place most lunches would be 7.50-10 and I wouldn't begrudge topping up because I'd be supplying much at my own cost otherwise

I’m not sure tbh. I think what’s happened is people take the mick and get takeaway on the way home. Your only allowed a subsistence payment during your working day subject to fulfilling criteria. Claims during travel period are essentially fraud. So they’ve clamped down(before my time) and said only for food consumed during work period, eat in is an easy way to show that.

It used to be an automatic payment of £5 per day. It has gone up to £7.50 but it’s now reimbursable so is a bit of a bone of contention.

@Lovelysummerdays surely if you went to Tesco or wherever you'd get a receipt with the time on which would show you went during your working hours ?
Very odd rule.

Yeah, but it wouldn’t show you ate it then. So you could nip in and get a bottle of wine and crisps (etc) but actually bring sandwiches.

Itsu?

Leon in Liverpool Street station was possibly the most revolting £10 I've ever spent. But the Wimbedon one is nice.