I love buying lunch at work.

[motherto2]

I would love to eat out lunch every day but I don't because around here it's at least $10. and that's without a drink. Plus, the sodium and fat content just isn't worth it. Especially the sodium. But on days when I do have to go out, it's such a nice treat not to have to pack up everything and haul it in. I also take in snacks, because I can't go too long without eating ;D.

[Frugal Nurse]

T-bird: I'm not vegan, but I am vegetarian, and it is really difficult finding vegetarian options that aren't some form of potatoes or cereal! I mean, is it really that hard to offer veggie options? A salad without meat on it or a fruit cup or something? I find it much easier to just bring my own food.

[Cookies Galore]

Mar 9, 2011 16:30:18 GMT -5 @tbird said:

not bringing my lunch generally sets me back 7-10+. Being vegan on michigan avenue - there aren't that many low cost options.

Bummer! There is an amazing vegetarian/vegan lunch truck near my office that makes the best dishes for a decent price (I usually spend $5). Tasty, filling, good for you, and massively crowded, so I only go there when the two neighboring college campuses aren't in session. Their seitan grinder is what dreams are made of.

I bring lunch 3-4 days a week, but Fridays are Burrito Friday, no questions asked. There's an awesome Mexican truck two blocks from work, so we always go. I get Indian every so often, but one of my work buddies is pregnant and seems to get a craving every couple of weeks. I'm so weak that when she asks me if I want to get the buffet, I immediately forget my lunch in the fridge.

[midjd]

I know it is a huge money drain, but I love buying lunch too! My office is in the middle of the downtown restaurant district, so there are a lot of great options (local and chain restaurants). There were some blustery winter days when I would have sold a kidney for a bowl of Au Bon Pain corn chowder. Plus I think it's my boss' mission in life to make sure I eat at every restaurant within a 1-mile radius of the office

I typically bring my lunch about 2x a week and go out to lunch with DH, my boss and/or coworkers 3x a week. Probably average $6 - $10 per meal (sometimes if it's just my boss and me, he buys). Lunches are really my only splurge, so I'm OK with it. I'm really looking forward to the warm spring weather when I can start eating outside ;D

[Agatha]

Yes, frugalnurse, hospital cafeteria food is something to avoid, whether you were a vegetarian, vegan, or omnivore.

But I always packed my lunch for one simple reason. TIME! Thirty minutes to go get something to eat? First find the charge nurse to tell her you are going to lunch. Oops, it's you today. Find another nurse so she can keep an eye on your patients. Get to the elevator. Wait five minutes, get disgusted, and head for the stairs. It's only six floors down. Jiminy Cricket! That line is 20 people long! Ah, good, Rapid Myrtle is serving today. 12 minutes and you're sitting down to eat. You better scarf it down quickly. Socialize? Surely you jest. Get your now empty tray on the conveyor belt and run for the elevator. Now for the true test of patience. Do you wait for the elevator again or head up six flights of stairs? You must have six whole minutes left in your lunch break. Up the stairs it is! You grab your breath at the top and head for your relief nurse. You left everything fine; it should be fine. "Hey, Aggie, you look whacked! Didn't you go to lunch? Oh, btw, I had to medicate Mr. Richards about ten minutes ago and Dr. Brown is wanting a setup for an LP in 603; he'll be here in five minutes and you know he'll need help with that one."

No, I learned to pack a lunch, find a hiding spot, and spend a blissful 25 minutes in peace and quiet. Cheaper? I really didn't care at the time.

[RoadToRiches]

I see people here buy lunches EVERYDAY. That's like 15 bucks EASY. Daily.

Not to mention, and please, I am not trying to judge or anything, but 90% of them could really use some healthy food and join the gym instead. It's crazy.

[azphx1972]

I'll admit it, I spend a lot of money on lunch and dining out. It is a splurge for me, everyone has theirs. I am pretty frugal elsewhere, so it doesn't bother me. The sum of all my annual expenses (excluding income taxes) represents less than 40% of my income, and I'm socking away over 40k/year toward retirement and savings.

I don't like to cook, and eating out is a social activity for me, plus I enjoy supporting local businesses. I eat very healthy though (pescatarian), no fast/junk food for me. I have between 6-8% body fat, a 28" waist, and hit the gym at least three times a week. YMMV.

[8 Bit WWBG]

...:::"rather than standing on line for half of your lunch period. ":::...

I eat later than most -- I'm usually buying my food around 2pm. At my usual place, it is rare that I don't just walk right up to the counter and get served immediately. Even at Chick Fil-A, by 2pm things have slowed and I am first or second in line.

Now if I had to have lunch at 11:45 or noon like some people.... yah, I would waste half of my time waiting in line. I hate crowds so I eat later.

[azphx1972]

I eat later as well, as that just seems to be the way my schedule goes a lot of the time. So no crowds to deal with either, but sometimes I enjoy taking an extended lunch just to get away from work. Luckily my job is flexible enough that I can manage my own time, and as long as I get my work done no one cares.

[dividend]

WWBG - you know I adore you, but why are you rationalizing buying lunch every day like it's the only logical decision? It's only $5. Mornings are difficult. Even cold cuts are really complicated, and besides, I'd need to plan/shop, and staying out of the grocery store SAVES money. There are no leftovers because cooking dinner at night is to hard/time consuming/messy. These are not impossible restrictions, nor are they supporting statements to the logical truth that buying your lunch is the correct thing to do. But it sounds a whole lot better to rationalize and justify than it does to just say, I'd rather not make packing lunch a priority.

It seems like the pendulum of money trends is swinging back from frugal-is-"in", towards frugal-fatigue, spending-isn't-so-bad. I've noticed it all over the internet, and it's fascinating to watch the shift happening.

[Cookies Galore]

I usually call my orders ahead, so I hardly wait in line. Plus, I order from a lot of lunch trucks, so even if i have to wait a few minutes, I'm still outside enjoying the nice weather.

[debtheaven]

I will go one step further and declare that eating lunch out is actually a frugal measure that can save a great deal of money.

With four kids, eating dinner out (all six of us) was a very rare treat.

But the occasional lunch out, just me? No problem! LOL

To this day when a kid is hankering for a restaurant, I try to take that kid out to lunch, rather than the whole family out to dinner. We do all go out twice a month though. (I think. Does McD's count?!)

So I maintain that going out to lunch actually saves money. :-)

[998fbird]

I enjoy buying my lunch occasionally but most of the time I carry because it's just too much money. As for it being to much hassle in the morning, I find my mornings are much easier if I've planned my wardrobe and prepared my lunch the night before.

[gsbrq]

I love going out for lunch, but the only cheap option for me is Subway; everything else is pricey. Plus, I eat a lot healthier when I do my own cooking. So I only go out for lunch maybe once every two weeks.

[money100]

Sigh. You're killing me. I've been debating this all month now.

If I buy lunch, I limit myself to $6 -- typically a delish sandwich, made fresh, often panini-pressed, with delish coffee. All very filling. Unfortunately, filling in another way as well. My waistline has slowly expanded as I often think that the pasta looks good (far too large of a portion for $6) or the meatloaf and potatoes, etc. On the other hand, all I need to do is shove an apple in my handbag and I'm set for the day. My groceries are a breeze -- deli meat and bread for DH, 10 fruits (one for each of us each workday), 5 meats, 5 veggies and a thingy of yogurt.

When I worked out the math on taking lunch to work (this is a masterpiece lunch, btw: sandwich with yummy hot genoa salami, arugula, cucumber slices and jalapeno havarti, yogurt thingy, apple/pear/whatever, fancy sparkling juice in pricey serving size tins, and baby carrots/grape tomatoes on the side), it worked out to $2.57. This is obviously far more food than I would eat if I were buying, and is the fancy stuff (see havarti & sparkling juice above). Unfortunately, for the 2.5 weeks I did it, I was swimming in my pants and slept better than I had for months. Damnit, but it's more work -- much more work and I'm so lazy! (but also vain! -- what do I do?!)

[Nazgul Girl]

Archie, I got a giggle out of your post on the double lunch thing, so I exalted you. I usually bring my leftovers to work for lunch. I like them. My husband is a good cook ;D. However, I've gotten a little more tolerant of my buying lunch out sometimes. Either way, it takes care of a need. The only time I have a problem with people buying lunch every day is if they have six payday loans out and spend a ton of money on their lunches, like one of my coworkers does. Then, I'm not enthused about buying lunch, especially when she organizes the order. I just don't participate.