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?

Crazy precise policy. Can’t you query the wellbeing benefits of eating your sandwich in the fresh air of a park or overlooking the sea (depends where you are obviously) Little local cafes might be your best bet but that always feels like taking a chance if the place is new to you.

As a doctor we have to prove we are keeping up to date to keep licence to practice with GMC. This can involve days away around the country for educational meetings. I can claim £75 a night for a hotel and up to £25 a day for food. Never find a hotel in London I’d feel safe in for that.

The systems should treat us as grown ups.

A dragon Sushi roll from Wasabi... yum still money left over for a soup or crackers.

A local Mexican cafe which does delicious burritos. We've got a good local French place that does quick food too, like croque monsieur.

Lots of sandwich places, places that do soup or salad, jacket potatoes.
do the places you a re getting cake not have sandwiches?

Can you make your own and hit them up for the ingredients?

I can claim £75 a night for a hotel and up to £25 a day for food. Never find a hotel in London I’d feel safe in for that.

I thought our expenses were bad. London, we could go to £125 but other cities should be less than £90 for a hotel. Are you constantly reminded that if breakfast is included, you can't claim £5 for that (even if it's a piece of bread and a cup of coffee left to collect in the lobby), nor the £5 for lunch if organisers provide it (and I never eat because they don't suit me). Our dinner allowance is £10.

That’s a hard no, no groceries.

Last meeting I went to in Nottingham the hotel was £150 a night. Prices seem to have rocketed post COVID. It’s up to £25 receipts needed and no alcohol (fair enough) Don’t even get me started on the app we have to use to reclaim it which requires you to set a new password each and every time you login in 🙄

I would walk up the road to the samosa shop, it’s quite new, the samosas are huge, freshly cooked and perfectly spiced….. but it’s too early inthe morning to think about them, and I have just remembered I am going to the pharmacy later and will have to walk right past the samosa shop. So that’s my lunch sorted. Hope @Lovelysummerdays has the same good fortune.

My favourites are

Chicken Laksa soup and Scandi roll or Jambon beurre from Pret.

Salmon sashimi and detox miso soup from Itsu.

Subway chicken salad box.

Some of these cost more than £7.50 but I'd just pay the extra.

Itsu, or Leon

“do the places you a re getting cake not have sandwiches?”

It is unlikely that OP would get a sit in sandwich for less than £7.50 in many places.

Subway salad box with tuna

They are often really expensive £8 -10. I did get a lovely lentil soup with a homemade cheese scone the other day in an independent but lunch took ages as ordering and food arriving took over twenty minutes and it was piping hot. Tasted great but the faster I get through lunch the earlier I can get home! I would love s leisurely lunch but juddgling kids and activities and homework.

Costa mac and cheese or a toastie, my mouth is watering thinking about it

Wetherspoons do small fish and chips with a cup of tea for £7.62, so would only cost you 12p!

bowl of soup in a local cafe/pub

Tesco meal deal would be the cheapest option.

But I'd just pay the extra and be glad to be reimbursed for anything. Most people are not getting a free lunch with their jobs. I did used to take my own in but I prefer having the walk to go and get something.

I used to work for HMRC and have never heard of a restriction on grocery shops and that’s exactly where I’d get my lunch supplies and claim on expenses

My work used to do the same, I always went to pret. My go to was the soup and the bread roll because it was the cheapest thing on the menu!

itsu or wasabi and get sushi or stir fry

@Lovelysummerdays yes has the "no grocery shops" rule been misinterpreted?
A receipt that shows a loaf of bread and bits to make a pack lunch is different to a receipt that clearly shows you just bought a meal deal.

Leon haloumi wrap or a naked burrito from Tortilla.

I think id take my own food then use the 7.50 fpr coffee and cake but take the cake home and store in the freezer for when I want cake as a treat. I once found myself with loads of weekly garden centre vouchers and no garden, and I used them on this sort of thing. I had cake for free for about 6 months!

Leon’s/Itsu
sushi
falafel wrap from a local place
check out any local places doing salads, sandwiches or baked potatoes.

take a water bottle so you don’t waste several quid on a plastic bottle