Forgot Your Lunch? What Do You Do?

[roxtarrr]

Ever have one of those hectic mornings and get halfway to work and realize your lunch is still in the fridge or on the counter? 

What did you do the last time you left your lunch at home? What's your back up?

Luckily, I have a grocery store near my office (and in the opposite direction of so much temptation... you have no idea!) so sometimes I'll pick up the ingredients and make my own salad and it's usually enough for at least one more day.  

These are my go-tos:

1. Slice about half a pint of cherry tomatos in half. Sliver up some red onions (up to you how much - I usually use about 1/4-half) and cut an avocado into chunks.  Mix it all together with a little bit of olive oil and S+P.  Really good on it's own or on some nice toast.  This is also usually a big hit at barbecues, by the way.  

2. Cut up a tomato into large chunks and mix it together with some roughly chopped kalamata olives and bocconcini cheese (pearls are best!) and add some croutons for crunch if you'd like. 

Got any good ones or back up plans?  Please share!  

[carl669]

wendy's spicy caesar salad with grilled chicken.  ditch the croutons and only use 1 packet of the dressing. although, i can't imagine how someone could use both.  the salad would be swimming in dressing.

[EmilyEL]

 @roxtarrr I love this thread!  Keep the great ideas coming.

When I forget my lunch, it's usually yogurt, a piece of fruit and a slice of bread with some peanut butter, if I'm lucky.  Sometimes I only manage to bring part of a lunch due to time constraints, so I'll supplement it with fruit from the grocery store or something less healthy in a pinch.

[roxtarrr]

Apparently I was tempting fate by posting this because I did end up leaving my lunch at home the next day.  But luckily it was a good reminder that I do have those salad options and I went with the tomato/olives/cheese one.

I wish I had a Wendy's near me!  Their salads are great, but it's so rare that I get to go that I always get my favourite - spicy chicken sandwich with fries.  Mmmm.  

Picking up some fruit is also a good idea.  The grocery store I go to usually has a good selection of fruit already cut up and ready.

[EmilyEL]

@roxtarrr Fruit salads are the best.  On a weekend, sometimes I'll go to the farmer's market, pick up a bunch of fruit, then cut it up, portioning it into containers for easy grabbing from the fridge throughout the week.  Delicious and cost-effective.

Does your workplace have any other healthy options nearby? 

[Conj]

Lucky enough to have a cafeteria at work - so lunch becomes more expensive than brown bagging it, but fresher 🙂

[EmilyEL]

@Conj What sorts of things do you grab at the work cafeteria? Are there some good options to choose from?

[roxtarrr]

@Emily There isn't really a whole lot of healthy options in the area now that I think about it.  There is one vegan take out restaurant but it's really expensive.  I bought a delicious black bean burrito recently and it was $15 just for the burrito and a tiny bit of "hemp-kale coleslaw"! 

Plus to get to it, you have to pass shawarma, poutine, burritos (1 of 4 places in the area btw) and sushi... They're pretty easy to avoid 99% because I know I always feel awful after eating them but sometimes the cravings in the moment override that.

Oh! Another thing I do is to try to always keep a can of soup in the cupboard at work.  Especially during winter so I don't have to go outside when I don't have to.

[Conj]

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@Emily wrote:

@Conj What sorts of things do you grab at the work cafeteria? Are there some good options to choose from?

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we're really lucky - the cafeteria is run by the local culinary school.  They have a great salad bar.  And usually a local special.  Plus a grill, a deli, and a hot lunch section... and soup...  and pizza.

Salad is pretty cheap, and fresh.  Sometimes they grow the veggies on site.  Other times a wrap from the deli... 

[sakurasin]

I am lucky that I work across the road from a cafe that does a lot of healthy options; the last time I forgot my lunch I had a salad with quinoa, grilled chicken, a little bit of feta and lots of salad greens. It inspired me to start making my own version! If I am near one, my other alternative is sushi rolls.

[CAGIRL]

Go to Whole Foods or somewhere else and get a salad.

[HoneyClover]

The first and last time this ever happened, not only did I forget my lunch but I also did not eat breakfast that day and I forgot my wallet at home. So for lunch time at work, I found a dollar in my desk drawer, bought myself a cup of noodles to last me through the day. Oh dear... If I had not forgotten my wallet, I would have gone to a nearby (quite cheap) sandwich shop and order myself a wrap, a bagel sandwich or soup with bread. My office has no grocery stores nearby; just a bunch of food courts and cafes! 

Now my back up is extra money in the drawar. That's it.  

[Cazza-70]

I steer clear of cafeteria... i like to know what is in the salads & other healtly option meals ... like dressings etc.. can be lots calories in these.. Like to know how fresh or old these things are also..