Have Your Workday Lunch Habits Changed Due to the Pandemic?

Do your workday lunch habits seem different today amid the changes the pandemic has brought to your life? Do you leave the office for lunch less than before 2020, or do you just work from home and eat there now? Lately Washington Post reporter Taylor Telford’s story explored this question:What Did the Pandemic Do to Lunch?”and we thought it would be an interesting discussion today. Regarding the impact on restaurants, the story said, “It used to be a vital part of doing business, but lunch is delayed downtown because workers stay home.”

Readers, we wonder: Does this story sound right to you? Has the pandemic changed where you eat your workday lunch or how you connect with your business contacts?

{relating to: 6 tips to save money on lunch (even if you eat out all the time!)}

Here are some quotes Washington Post story to start our discussion:

Business lunches will never die, but the re-evaluation of business continues to evolve: Professionals who see lunch as an essential part of doing their job are going out far less than they used to. Upscale restaurants in major business centers cannot trust commuters and are reducing their offerings and reducing their hours.

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When employees go to offices or work from home, most people prefer takeaway. According to the data, three-quarters of restaurant traffic, up from 61 percent before the pandemic, is now consumed in the actual restaurant or off-site. [from] National Restaurant Association.

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Another reason downtown restaurants find themselves lacking in lunchtime traffic is because employers are putting more effort into making offices attractive and encouraging workers to stay in place with high-end corporate cafeterias.

{relating to: our top tips for business dinner etiquette}

Readers, tell me: Has your lunch alone at the restaurant or lunch with colleagues or network people turned into phone calls or Zoom/Teams calls?

If you order lunch, are you more likely to answer “to go” now rather than “for this place”?

Do restaurants near your workplace have limited hours and/or seem less busy during lunch time?

If your summer co-workers or interns are coming to your firm or company in a few weeks, has Powers Networking changed the lunch rules?

And if your employer has a cafeteria, have they recently improved it?