Home-packed lunches used to be kid's stuff. Not anymore. The familiar black lunch pail with its curved top, the brown paper bag, and the cartoon-decorated metal box have graduated and are turning up on the classiest desks in town. So are elegant sandwiches, homemade stews, and such work-stoppers as cold marinated grilled lamb, pasta primavera, and crispy barbecued ribs.
Hefty tabs, thronged restaurants, and so-so food are forcing office staffs to rethink lunch. One enterprising wife, describing her efforts in Gourment magazine, took the lunchtime dilemma well in hand. For years, her husband had carried lunch to work in the standard black pail, much to the scorn of fellow office workers. To prove how elegant a home-packed lunch could be, she launched a carefully-plotted daily campaign to dazzle his co-workers: fettuccine Alfredo with fresh chives, mushroom-stuffed Rock Cornish game hen, cold asparagus, chilled lobster, wine, dinner mints, cheesecake - all the makings of an epicurean treat. Of course, she packed up the proper utensils, linens and glassware, too - except she discarded the idea of including Cognac and a balloon-shaped snifter because they just wouldn't fit under the black lid.
A costly joke, you might say, but this cook proved a point. Made-at-home lunches can be delicious, portable feasts. And, with careful planning, a slim investment, and minimal fuss, you can tote a delectable meal to work, and enjoy it picnic style in an empty office or alfresco in a quiet park. Not only will you save money, but you eat just what you want when you want.
Leftovers - sandwiched sliced pork from last night's loin, or pieces of cold
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