Amuse bouche... Office lunch

‘H ow much is it for the salmon and the three salads?” asked Helen. The young fella pointed to the blackboard — €13.95.

Helen tried not to look shocked.

“How much for just the three salads?” she asked.

The young fella had to ask his boss.

“Ten euros, 95 cents,” he said.

Only three extra euro for the salmon? Sure it was the priciest element, thought Helen, even if it was only a wan-looking darne, smeared in sweet chilli sauce to make it look more exciting.

The salads weren’t exactly exciting, either. There was no avoiding broccoli and feta these days, and as for the tomatoey chickpeas... Helen reckoned that the two of those, plus the green salad with the bouncy-looking mini-balls of mozzarella might fill her up. Maybe.

“Do the three salads come with a slice of bread?” Helen asked. The young fella smirked. “No,” he answered. He probably thought she was mean. And old. None of the young people from the surrounding offices were asking the price of anything. They were just blithely ordering and then tapping to pay for the salmon/chicken/chilli and salad combos, and the €10 sandwiches — which came with no salad, but you could have a cup of soup for an extra €2.

They probably bought their lunch every day, Helen thought, so the prices came as no surprise. Only she, clearly not dressed for the office, was asking about the prices. She, the stay-at-home mum who found buying her lunch not only a novelty but a complete culture shock.

Back when she was in the workplace, no one bought lunch every single day. Sure how would you save money if you did that?

And she and the girls in the office would have laughed at any place charging a tenner for a sandwich. Maybe they’d been too sensible, Helen thought.

If she went back to work, Helen wondered, would she have to buy lunch every day to fit in? There was no way it would pay to work if she did, not with the childcare costs as well.

It would be a home-made sandwich at her desk, maybe even a Tupperware of salads. They’d be smirking at her. She’d be the oul wan with her funny ways.

Helen ordered just the three salads. The young fella didn’t exactly load up the plate, but Helen was too cowed to comment.

“Would you like a coffee?” asked the girl at the till.

Helen didn’t dare ask the price.

“Not today,” Helen said.