Failure to lunch: stuck at home Londoners settle for eating cold beans from the can

A nationwide study of working Brits has revealed that, while millions are still enjoying the perks of working from home, when it comes to our lunch options, things have taken a turn for the worse for Londoners, with nearly three quarters (70%) claiming to miss their office based lunch options.

In fact, 43 percent of the home working Londoners who took part in the survey by Just Eat, claim to be routinely disappointed by their weekday lunch, with 28 percent admitting they are stuck in a rut.

81 percent say working from home has meant their lunches are more boring than ever, while 15 percent eat the same lunch every day. For the many people who work from home across the globe, this could be a sob story. After eating the same foods so often, one may get tired of it. It might be better to look at alternatives that might solve the problem, such as ordering separate meals every day by subscribing to a meal plan. For instance, in India, they may have meal subscription services that are sometimes referred to as dabba services. Someone who wants to have different meals every day can just go online and search for ‘dabba service near me‘ on the web and choose the food service that is suitable for them.

Coming back to our Londoners, a whopping 33 percent opt for a packet of crisps for lunch most days and 26 percent said they usually just make do with a cup of strong coffee.

When it comes to instant solutions, almost half (45 percent) claim they regularly opt for canned soup, four in 10 (40 percent) rely on instant noodles while 21 percent simply stick a ready meal in the microwave.

Biscuits (27 percent), bars of chocolate (25 percent), potato waffles cooked in the toaster (7 percent) and jam on toast (19 percent) are other uninspiring midday meals, according to the 1,500 Brits surveyed.

The research, commissioned by Just Eat to mark free delivery for Pret A Manger, with no minimum order, from its food delivery platform, found that pizza tops the list of lunches we pine for (34 percent), along with burritos (28 percent), sushi (28 percent) and noodle bowls (17 percent).

Andrew Kenny, Managing Director UK at Just Eat, said:

It’s clear that lunchtime enjoyment has taken a hit since lockdown and so I’m delighted our free London delivery on Pret A Manger is available to bring back some of the joy of an office lunch to our customers’ homes.”

When it comes to what we miss the most about having lunch at the office:

  • 36 percent said getting a proper break from work away from their desks
  • 47 percent felt having a variety of choices was something they missed
  • 24 percent said there is nowhere decent in walking distance of their home to grab a good lunch
  • 22 percent say they are too busy at home to find lunch inspiration

Looking at other working from home lunchtime habits:

  • The average Londoner has 12 tedious lunches every month – that is three a week
  • 19 percent of Londoners skip lunch every day
  • 53 percent say they regularly forgo lunch
  • Two thirds (66 percent) get struck down with lunch envy when they see friends and colleagues post lunch pictures on social media
  • 27 percent said having lunch at home was the worst part of home working
  • 87 percent agree having a delicious lunch delivered to their door would make them happy

When it comes to other downsides of home working, 13 percent said the worst thing about it was being with their partner all day.