To hate packing food to take to work

[waitingforautumn]

I live just outside and work in central London. Cost of living rising means I'm starting to feel guilty about the money spent on coffee, breakfast and lunch at work. I do somewhat 'budget' for this (i.e. am single, no kids, don't care for designer stuff etc, walk where I can rather than train or bus). However I do realise how much I could save if I were really disciplined about going to the supermarkets and stocking up for a week of homemade lunches and prepped breakfasts, which do sound appealing in theory..

Only issue is, I REALLY tend to miss buying things out - esp lunch. Just being able to pick something new each day, made with ingredients I wouldn't usually buy. I just feel like I eat more healthily/get more variety when I allow myself this. There's the option of sandwiches and baguettes (Pret/Paul/Leon type thing) plus lots of hot options where I work. I also love a good old Tesco meal deal so often have that for lunch too (love the mix and matching element).

Can cheapen breakfast by stopping at a supermarket bakery on way (£1 for a pastry rather than say £2.50). And it's still lovely (am a sucker for pastries and now associate office days with getting one). In the past I've made overnight oats and did keep that up for a while but got out of the habit after the pandemic return to work, and also loathe the washing up part at the office sink.😆

Is it me or is there something nice about strolling to work with a coffee you didn't have to make yourself, a fresh pastry and picking up a lunch you didn't have to plan way in adv or prep?!

I do wonder if this is quite a London thing with all the variety around. Have to be up around 6.30 to get around without the trains/tubes being busy so it feels to early to eat something before leaving home - and I'm always hungry when I sit down having had to walk past upteen bakeries to get in! I feel stopping for coffee/food helps make the working day nicer, I can pick something I fancy there and then. Few colleagues bring anything to eat from home and get all their meals/drinks out for the day so this really feels like the norm. We must all be spending anywhere from £5-£15 a day on all this. 🤔

Nobody single from my generation can afford to get on the housing ladder here anyway, even with decent savings. Some of my friends easily spend £35 a pop getting nails done every 3 weeks, which is outrageous to me. So I'm inclined to say whatever treats get you through life?!

AIBU? Am I lazy? Do I need to find another source of joy in my life? Writing this on the train on the way to work obvs and I have absolutely nothing on me for the day ahead!

When I was a single girl in London I chose to eat my main meal at lunchtime most days, either wfh or from a cafe/restaurant, maybe do that?

or chose which days to lunch out? Sushi from supermarket is nice and cheap if you BBC want to avoid bread everyday.

I never had an office base, so no fridge or kitchen to store a packed lunch, so never bothered.

You’re being very gracious to all the twats on here op.

I agree with you, and I have the same problem. I’ve recently changed jobs and had a significant (and much needed) pay rise. I can afford to spend the money in some respects but I’m genuinely worried when the mortgage needs renewing that we will lose the house as we won’t be able to afford the repayments anymore, so saving as much as possible would be much much more sensible. But my work days are long, and I’m up to 50 hour+ weeks now, which I haven’t done in years so it’s a struggle to go without my ‘treats’.

i loved the line ‘recalibrate treat expectations’ because it’s exactly what I need to do. Other people seem to manage fine without 2,3, 4 sugary treats a day. Or even 1. Eating’s been a problem for me recently 😔

I just put a stone on reading about daily pastries and take away coffees!

If you can afford it and enjoy it then you don't need to justify it. You earn your money and can spend it as you please.

Doesn't sound very healthy though. Personally I would keep it as a treat.

Up to you, as others have said. Good coffee is lost on me, so I'd bring a travel mug from home with a warm drink in the morning / bring a stash of the tea I love into the office. When I was in the City I used to buy an M&S 3 for £7 (as it then was, I dread to imagine it now!) meal deal with pasta type meals and a bag of salad on the Monday, and that would be lunch Mon-Weds. Tended to have breakfast at home/just grab a banana.

I took packed lunches every day then that dropped off when we had to sort kids in the mornings, but the snoop app shows just how much we were spending a month and helped us cut back again, on lunches and takeaways, it was a quite scary figure last month.

@Tsort Wow you really told OP 🙄. In my experience even people who live in central and frequent all the best non-chain spots can still get excited about a Leon coffee or an almond croissant from Pret. Unless they are a joyless snob.

No. I prefer to take my own food as it's usually nicer. When I was working in the office I used to take nothing on a Friday with a view to treating myself but I stopped doing that because all the lunches I bought were disappointing. And, yes, it was in a big northern city with tons of options, chains and non chains alike. Imagine! Tesco meal deals are mostly grim and it feels like a punishment to have to get one of those.

I have no idea because i've always worked in the middle of nowhere where i've not had the option to buy coffee on the way to work and there's only one option to buy lunch which is a 10min walk each way. But I am about to move into the city centre and I am determined to keep in the habit of making packed lunches and not get sucked into buying food every day! It will be a once a week treat at most or I'll be bankrupt and 2 stone heavier by the end of the year!

One of the big advantages for me not taking my lunch is that it means I have to (and my boss has to let me) leave my desk to actually get my lunch. I shit you not, this is a very sad fact in some places I have worked. It's then far easier to add in a 40 minute stroll around the park, and whilst I would get questioned when I got back about using my entire lunch hour, it was far better for my mental health.

I have a selection of lunch boxes now, including a thermal pot. I take a mix, either a nice warm dish that I batch cook and freeze then reheat in the morning, or something like a Middle Eastern platter, noodles, Poke Bowl, leftovers.

Most of the Leon's recipes you can find online.

I haven't compromised on my morning dirty chai latte though. Yet. But I do drink crappy instant coffee the rest of the day.

Do you need to save? We spend probably the same on takeaways in a week. If it's a habit you can afford then why not.

I hate this too. But I live outside London and hate having to carry the extra bulk with me.

Starting my day with an onerous commute with bad tempered people while weighed down by everything you need for the day is a right pain in the arse.

P.s. maybe just do your own lunch half the week?

It doesn't have to be all or nothing! Cut down on every day. If you set aside the money you would have spent after a few weeks you can use it for a significant "treat"....... Theatre trip, meal out,hotel stay, equipment for a hobby.....

A tuna baguette from pret has exactly
White baguette, Tuna Mayonnaise (Pole & Line Caught Tuna (Fish)(23%), Rapeseed Oil, Water, Free-Range Egg Yolk (Egg), Spirit Vinegar, Sugar, Red Onion, Cornflour, Salt, Capers, Spring Onion, Anchovy (Fish), Horseradish, Concentrated Lemon Juice, Black Pepper, Olive Oil, White Wine Vinegar), Cucumber(16%)

So again, what are all the “grim” ingredients Pret are adding?

You are obviously thinking about how much this costs you and how much you could save.

You wouldn’t have posted otherwise:

Even if you halve your spends, you’ll probably save £700.

But it’s up to you really isn’t it.

The person just below you has just called the OP ignorant, they certainly seem offended.

I'm not really bothered if you think I've misunderstood how none of you are offended, you're "just taking the piss" (which is obviously hilarious and not at all tiresome for the OP who made one clumsily phrased remark and now has several pages of "witty" comments all paraphrasing each other to wade through), I'm not the one getting indignant about supermarket locations on a chat forum.

I live in Leeds and we have lots of choice too! Amazing places to eat here.
But anyway, it doesn't have to be all or nothing. You could alternate - one day buy lunch out, another day bring your own. Make your own lunch more appealing by buying really good rolls, fancy cheese or meats and chutneys etc. It will still be MUCH cheaper than buying lunch I just bought a big olive roll at Waitrose for 30p and some good quality cheese for lunch.

I say, if you can afford it then do it. Why not?

Days I wfh (medium sized coastal town) I'm not tempted to buy lunch at all as the choices are bakery sausage rolls, supermarket, fry up or pizza! London and other major cities obviously have much more variety by their very nature.

My takeaway coffee was the highlight of the day and made an awful job bearable.

I absolutely relate to what you're saying.
And I do think the London element is relevant.
If I worked in my nearest town I'd have the choice of the usual chains and a couple of independent cafes for lunch.
I work in Central London and within 5 minutes of my office I have a weekly street food market, an amazing Greek cafe, an Italian cafe and about 20 other options.

I work in the office 2/3 days a week and have similar guilt about breakfast & lunch. I was in a rush this morning so will be buying my lunch today but managed some toast before I left.

For me the key thing is, would I like to spend the money on something else? The answer is yes, in general I would , so I aim to buy lunch only once per week. The rest of the time I try to take it. I often take leftovers and heat up in the microwave or make soup which lasts a few days.

I live on the outskirts of London and work in the centre and the range of food options between the two are vast. There is a tons of street food vendors near my office - I really wish we had half the choice in my town. You’re not unreasonable to want to buy food
out but £10/ £15 a day is a whack so I’d save it maybe for a Friday treat. I bring in leftovers so it doesn’t impact too
much in the evening although I have to wear a rucksack because it’s all
pretty heavy

Have a look at some bento meals. It doesn't have to be Japanese food, I have a box that has 5 compartments which means I pack 5 different things.

I might have meatballs, some salad, crackers, fruit etc.

I have quite an array of 'packing up' boxes, Tupperware, silicone moulds.

If you stick tot he Japanese idea you will have a portion of carb, one of protein, a couple of 'fillers' and some fruit.

www.justonecookbook.com/how-to-make-bento/

It's my fave thing about office days. I've got a pret subscription for coffee now. And just budget for a nice lunch.
I'm lucky we also have a canteen so if I am low on budget I can get a baked potato with cheese and beans for under £3 and not need much for dinner.

I wouldn’t even worry about it, your clearly frugal in other ways. When I’m working in London it’s a joy to buy lunch! Crack on