The benefits of cooking and eating together at work
By Simone Jones for Ethos magazine: issue 10| May 2019
Food is one of a handful of universals in our world. It brings people together: a chance to pause and chat; connect and, well, chew the fat.
I’m lucky enough to head a team that includes several chefs and an assortment of other talented people who know how to cook. We don’t run a restaurant. We develop food products for retailers. It’s our job to come up with new product ideas and bring culinary expertise on how existing products can be made to taste better.
We all love food. And eating. The place where we work is half office and half kitchen and we spend a big part of each day creating recipes and tasting products. There’s always stuff left over from our product tastings, but we still cook and eat lunch together. Sometimes we might be 15 people, sometimes only four.
On the days that we have lots of tastings and plenty of food left over, lunch can be like a banquet, fit for a queen. Or it can more closely resemble an all-you-can-eat buffet. On a day like this we might have steak and sausages, chicken nuggets, oysters and a range of tofu — all served-up with an array of ketchups and a variety of jam products. In the height of summer we might sit down to chocolate Easter eggs and cheese fondue (a traditional winter meal in Switzerland) — or it might just be cold pizza and salad. On days with no tastings we’ll just see what we have in the fridge or in the cupboards and a couple team members will cook for everyone.
Our lunches aren’t just about getting to eat some (sometimes) very delicious food though. Lunchtime is a great chance for the team to come together in a relaxed atmosphere and the conversation often ranges beyond the usual work-related topics. It gives us time to talk about personal stuff, things we might have done on the weekend or a chance to find out more about each others’ hobbies. Often it’s just an opportunity to have a laugh and bring some comic relief to the challenges of everyday work issues. Eating lunch together breaks down the barriers that an office hierarchy can create, builds our relationships and helps to create stronger bonds within the team. And our clients and colleagues often comment on the close team culture we have.
Inevitably, we do talk about work. But it’s never anything scheduled. It just happens naturally. Someone might be stuck in a project and helpful ideas are exchanged, or we might talk about exciting new product opportunities. Conversations that start out as frivolous flights of fancy or bizarre rants (which are always great for a laugh) can hide the kernel of an idea which develops into a new product and finds its way onto the shelf.
Obviously, it’s easy for us. We have the food, the skills and the facilities to make it happen. But it’s also something that can be achieved elsewhere, in environments that are less well-equipped. Food can be prepared at home and brought in to share without the need for a kitchen — but even the most basic of office set-ups can still provide the means for meal creations. I mean, every office has a kettle. Right?
Yes, the humble kettle can be the gateway to delicious, healthy lunches. One of our office favourites is this recipe for couscous salad. Give it a try…
Couscous kettle salad
500g couscous
1 litre vegetable stock, boiling hot
Put the couscous in a big, wide bowl; add the boiling stock and cover with a plate. Leave to steep for 20 minutes. Now prepare your other ingredients. You can add all kinds of veg, dried fruit, nuts, grains and spices but for this recipe we use cucumber, cherry tomatoes, peppers, spinach leaves, olives, pumpkinseeds and chopped parsley and mint.
For the dressing:
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp vinegar
Salt
Pepper
Mix everything together, top off with chunky pieces of feta — and take the time to chew the fat with colleagues.
Simone Jones is Head of Food Consulting at Betty Bossi. She develops new food products for Coop, Switzerland’s second biggest supermarket.
