Bad morning? There's one sure-fire, instant cheer-you-up: a trip to your favourite lunchtime haunt. When work becomes too much to bear, swinging through the door of your preferred local eatery for a steaming plate of something delicious is hard to beat. Your canteen might be marvellous, your sandwich-making skills unsurpassed – but a lunchtime treat (or perhaps just a trip outdoors to sit in a different environment) can jolly up the dullest day.
But where to go? Despite some strong contenders I am still hunting for my new failsafe option following the Guardian's move to a new home at King's Cross. The news that The Eagle pub, very close to our former office and a firm favourite with many staff, has revised and reprinted its cookbook does at least mean I can recreate favourite dishes at home, in a recession-friendly manner.
But that's not the same as leaving your toils behind and stopping for lunch. The perfect place shouldn't be too expensive – in fact, the opposite is true, given that this is a weekday lunch and everyone is feeling the pinch. But it must be a bit special (the local gastropub), hot and comforting (the caff at the end of the street), or fast, cheap and tasty (a quick noodle-bar trip, perhaps). You should be able to catch up with a friend without colleagues overhearing too much information; service must be brisk enough to avoid any time-related stresses; the food must be delicious, but filling enough to serve as fuel for the rest of the day.
Which is starting to sound like a very long list of demands – if I was on Location, Location, Location, Kirsty would be close to slapping me round the chops by now – but there really is nothing like a faithful lunchtime retreat. So what makes a good lunchtime venue for you? Share you thoughts, your favourite places and their best dishes with us – and what makes them so good.
