Lunch Time. Get your chef on!

Does the idea of having a place where you can store, prepare and enjoy a healthy lunch appeal to you? Are you sitting down? Imagine a comfortable place, a short burst away from your desk. As winter and the cold descends upon us, too many eat lunch at their desk to avoid the rain outside and skip the essential breaks needed. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a comfortable space at work to quietly prepare a nutritious lunch or chat to others on a break?

Recent findings in a survey called ‘Take Back the Lunch Break’ found that staff who take their allocated lunchtime break are actually more engaged at work. The survey report adds ‘employees who take regular lunch breaks report being more satisfied with their jobs than those who don’t.’ This satisfaction increases where employees come together and interact with each other in social zones, enjoying some culinary comfort and quality time together.

Sacla’s kitchen and boardroom dining room culinary concept

Of course, if you’re running a business connected to food, it makes sense to make lunch breaks at work a chance to shine. Sacla, leading Italian pesto and pasta sauce brand, recently had their staff kitchen redesigned by us in suitably ‘italian’ themed colours.

This stunning, contemporary designed space is now used by staff to cook their lunches, and once a month cook for the whole workforce, transforming the boardroom into a dining room for all to share a big, hearty meal. The kitchen is also used for clients who would like a cookery demonstration of their products, and suppliers who’d like to pitch a new product to Sacla.

Getting granular about coffee in the kitchen

Coffee in the workplace is a huge opportunity to increase group interaction and productivity. Did you know investing in a quality coffee machine, (think Jacobs Douwe Egberts or similar) is a small outlay with a potential big return? If people choose to stay on-site they are more likely to collaborate, catch-up – and enjoy the coffee! There is a way to entice your staff back from the high street!

Coffee at work is the fourth most regular place to drink this elixir of productivity after high streets, cafes or department stores. Quality coffee is a brain booster valued by 80% of the workplace who see it as a functional must-have.

Did you know the average worker has 6 cups of coffee a week and is more likely to drink it if the beverage is of high quality and super quick to make? With latte and cappuccinos consumed by 39% of coffee drinkers the ability to make a fancy coffee at work leads to a happy workforce indeed.

Wellness and productivity

The simple act of taking a lunch break in a space away from the desk provides the energy to fuel creativity and employee engagement for the rest of the day. Not only this, a dedicated and equipped space to whip up a culinary delight also encourages employees to eat a more balanced diet rather than reaching for convenience foods. Allowing workers to feel valued when doing something as simple as having their lunch break or enjoying a coffee together encourages collaborative working and positive feelings towards the workplace and their employers.

What brings it all together is the design and flow of your workspaces. In this, we are able to guide you towards a place that suits your people, the way they work, and your unique organisational culture. To transform staff kitchens and general spaces into inspirational, happy places, please get in touch with us for a first meeting to discuss your ideas.

Coffee stats courtesy of Allegra 2018, Allegra Café Project 2018, Office of National Statistics, Great Place to Work 2017.