In Praise of the Long Lunch
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Somewhere along the line, lunch became a rushed affair — a sandwich wolfed down at your desk, a takeaway salad eaten in the shadow of your laptop, or (on a truly wild day) a coffee and a muffin masquerading as a meal.
I’d like to make a case for the long lunch.
Not as a luxury. Not as an indulgence. But as a better, more human way to eat in the middle of the day. And, surprisingly, a better value one.
The Myth of the Cheap Lunch
The “quick bite” sounds sensible and thrifty, but let’s do the maths. A half‑decent takeaway sandwich is £5–6. Add a bag of crisps and a coffee and you’re creeping towards £10. Do that five times a week and you’ve spent £50 — on food you barely tasted.
Now imagine walking into a local bistro or wine bar at lunchtime. For £15–20, you can get a proper sit‑down meal — fresh, cooked, and served to you — and often with bread and a smile thrown in. Many offer set lunch menus where two courses cost less than the daily cycle of grab‑and‑go cardboard.
I once spent £18 on a lunch in a tiny place in Beaune: a warm goat’s cheese salad to start, duck confit with potatoes, and a glass of the local red. It took an hour. It felt like a small holiday. And I didn’t need a 4 p.m. snack the size of my head to get through the day.
Why Slowing Down Pays Off
A long lunch changes the shape of the day. It gives you a pause, a chance to notice the food, the company, and the conversation. You come back with more energy, less of that grey fog that follows a desk sandwich. And when you take the time to enjoy it, the food doesn’t just feed you — it restores you.
The Wine Argument
And here’s the part most “working lunches” miss: wine.
A long lunch deserves a glass — even a bottle if there are two of you and the afternoon allows. A crisp white like our Réve de la Sirène ‘Pegasus’ Vermentino is perfect with grilled fish or a simple Niçoise salad. It’s bright, fresh, and just a little bit transportive — the sort of wine that makes an ordinary Tuesday feel like a Provençal holiday.
In Conclusion
A long lunch is not a waste of time. It’s a reclaiming of it. For the same money as a sad sandwich and a latte, you can have a meal that feels like a life upgrade — especially if it comes with the clink of a wine glass.
So next week, step away from the desk. Find a table, order something proper, pour a glass of Pegasus, and make it a lunch worth remembering.
✨ Featured Wine: Réve de la Sirène ‘Pegasus’
A crisp, bright Vermentino from Provence, full of citrus and gentle floral notes — made for seafood, summer salads, and long lunches that stretch into the afternoon.