US Americans, do you pack your lunches for work or do you eat out?

Mostly pack. Eat out about once per week, typically Fridays.

I almost always bring lunch, but it seems I'm in the minority wherever I work.

Both/either. Sometimes I meal plan but usually if a recent meal had enough leftovers I'll do that. Also we can walk to get food or drive about 10-15 min

Pack . Way too expensive to eat from a vending machine or even to eat out

My employer makes food and provides snacks for the clients. Often there are leftovers, or enough to feed staff as well. We have fridges for storing that, and cold snacks. As well as separate countertop snack areas. Ideally it's all for the clients, but we're permitted to snack while working.

I like eating out, it's like my #1 luxury expense

neither. my breakfast and lunch are both just a metric fuckton of coffee. then i eat giant dinner.

I work somewhere with a good cafeteria, which makes me lucky.

My current job provides breakfast and lunch as a weird perk, but before this job I definitely packed my own lunches.

I don't like to eat at work. If i do eat its usually a little junk food. Haribo gummis are a fave

The last time I was in an office was back in 2016. It was a startup and we had a free buffet lunch every day. The CEO explained that it was better that people not have to plan for or leave for lunch, and that they talk to their coworkers while eating.

They started out being a full meal: Ribs and brisket, spaghetti and lasagna, tikka masala and vindaloo.

But after we got bought it became soup and sandwiches and salads. The last time I was ever in an office we had to actually buy our own lunch.

I’ve worked from home ever since.

I pack whatever is left from the previous night's dinner. I rarely order out for lunch, and save that for at home, then take the leftovers in to work the next day.

I also keep peanut butter and marshmallow fluff in my desk drawer in case there's no leftovers. Like when the 17 year old decides to raid the fridge after we've gone to bed.

Packed, always. I make big batches on my day off, it's time consuming but my spending and my cholesterol are both down.

In the before times I would bring or buy things to snack on but never really ate an actual meal for lunch. Now I work remotely and often have a real lunch but I still usually take as little time as possible and work while I eat. There's been a handful of times that I've brought my laptop to a restaurant and worked from there. I don't usually like having a real lunch break when I'm in work mode, I find it distracting and anxiety inducing.

Inspired by the !asklemmy@lemmy.world thread about Burger King

I used to eat out all the time, but now that I work from home, I make food at the house typically

We like our kills fresh and always bring a mallet to work in order to capture the highest quality bats.

I prepare at home for lunch: yogurt, fresh berries, trail mix, espresso and a peanut butter cup. Every day.

Neither. I try not to eat while I’m at work. They sell all the junk food at work, so it can be difficult to not give in to temptation. I might indulge in a couple of uncrustables each night, but that’s fine with me.

If I have leftovers I try to eat those but if not I’ll pick something up

Sometimes I pack lunches if I have leftovers that work well as a packed lunch, but I frequently pick up something from the vendor that stocks things like cold sandwiches, salads, fruit and yogurt cups, and other things that are pretty close to what i would have brought in a packed lunch.

I don't go out for fast food from work anymore because the vendor options are cheaper, better, and more convenient.

Pack if it's an overtime day. Usually just bring water and coffee though. I have too many allergies and dietary restrictions to safely eat out

I'm permanent WFH so I cook lunch daily

I have done both and have sorta have streaks in the passed one way or another. given inflation if I was in office I think I would be inclined to pack nowadays.

I suspect that a large portion of people who eat out everyday for lunch aren’t the most confident in their kitchen skills.

Not everyone, of course, but I have noticed some correlation there.

I pack when I’m in going to be in the office and I keep a few cans of soup in my desk in case I forget. If I’m off site, I’ll expense something nearby. If I’m working from home I’ll usually make a salad or sandwich there.

Both. I pack a lunch and eat my wife out. The real question is hotter long it took me to learn how to make a sandwich on her stomach when I can't see what I'm doing.

Horrible joke aside, I don't work any more, so it's neither. But, back when I was working I vastly preferred to make my own. Wasn't always possible, depending on which job I was doing and where it was being done.

When you're driving all over three counties seeing patients, it isn't realistic to bring food that's worth eating. Same when you're at a bar as a bouncer. It isn't that you can't bring food along, you're just very limited in what you can reliably keep at safe temps and not have it go missing. So it's more useful to just eat whatever you can grab.

But, if I was doing longer shifts with single patients, it was part of the agreement that any caregivers can store their own food within reason. So, I could bring in a proper lunch that was healthy.

At the one club, the staff room had a fridge that the boss had put a camera on, so nobody would fuck with your stuff. Other places, not so much lol.

I used to pack sandwiches but I got spoilt by my old break room having a toaster oven. So eating a cold sandwich in freezing temps really isn't the move for winter. It's also the meal where I don't have to consider my wife's vegetarian preferences. So I eat out often right now depending on what leftovers are at home.

I have a fridge at work, so I just shop separately for groceries there. I usually make my own salads, but some weeks I shift to sandwiches or soups.

OMAD

too broke to eat out that often. its ~$10->$18 for lunch here. west coast. i cook dinners for 4-6 so my partner and i can take lunch.

I quite enjoy getting out of the office for an hour each day and fortunately have several places to eat within easy walking distance.