Banish lunchtime boredom and say farewell to food envy!

Have you got ‘déjà-food’?

If you have, you’re not alone. According to new research from The New York Bakery Co, one in three Brits face ‘déjà-food’ on a daily basis by eating the same lunch on repeat.

It’s probably something we’re all a little bit guilty of – grabbing something quick or easy or falling back on old favourites. And there’s nothing wrong with that sometimes – but isn’t it good to mix things up from time to time? The research revealed that 80 per cent of us are bored by our lunchtime choices and one in 10 went so far as to say a bad lunch ruined their day. A tad dramatic maybe, but as food lovers we can sympathise.

Food envy was something the research covered and half of us admitted to suffering from the green-eyed monster. Seeing Susan from accounts tucking into last night’s leftover paella, suddenly your limp salad seems a bit dull. Not that we don’t like a salad, we love them – but you know the kind we mean, all soggy lettuce and no substance.

12.55pm is the time we’re all tucking in. There’s nothing worse than eating your lunch at 11.30am and then realising by 2pm that you’re ravenous again. Apparently three quarters of people take their lunch to work from home. Does that include people who work from home? And one in five admit to munching their lunch at their desks every day – which EVERYONE agrees is never a good idea. You’re never going to enjoy your lunch if you’re eating it one-handed whilst emailing your boss (or even surfing social media). Good food deserves your full attention. Sixty one per cent confessed to skipping lunch on a regular basis because they were too busy, which just makes us sad.

The research even revealed the favourite lunches from different cities around the UK. Who ate all the pies? Leeds apparently.

·        Manchester – just love a jacket potato

·        Leeds – pick up a pie (5 times a month)

·        Birmingham – bound to want burgers

·        London – love last night’s leftovers

·        Nottingham – so into sandwiches

·        Edinburgh – scoff sushi

·        Belfast – perfect lunch = pizzas

·        Cambridge – prefer paninis

·        Liverpool – have a passion for pasta

Helmsley didn’t feature in the list (how rude!). But if it did, we know exactly what would take top spot for lunchtime. Roast Beef and Horseradish deep filled sandwich on brown. Closely followed by our home roasted ham with salad on white. They’ve been our best sellers ever since we can remember. Closely followed by pies, sausage rolls and pasties. And rice and pasta and salads. Or soups. In fact, if you come to Hunters, there’s no need to have the same lunch two days in a month! ‘Déjà-food’? I don’t think so!