My work (building of ~1500 people) is based down the back-end of the Docklands, so we have to have a canteen. Generally it’s pretty good, provided/maintained by the BaxterStorey company. Generally speaking, there would be hot breakfast/fresh smoothies/porridge in the morning, coffee and bites throughout the day, and for lunch a different selection of 3/4 hot mains each day, a “live cooking”/stir fry noodle counter, and a well stocked salad bar. You generally wouldn’t spend more than €6 or €7 a day, and that’s if you bought breakfast and dinner. Coffee for €1, jitters!
My water cooler ‘conversations’ usually consist of silently standing behind people at water coolers, waiting for them to finish so that I can get a cup of water. Some people fill bottles, introducing a slightly frustrating delay to proceedings.
Yeah, you’re missing out on a real experience there, Peter.
The Google canteen really is something very impressive, not to mention the bazillion fridges full of treats all around the building. One thing about their canteen that I’ve found slightly odd though is that their hot food menu items, while all delicious, don’t really complement each other very well. French-style asparagus with bearnaise sauce served with teriyaki salmon, that kind of thing. Not that I’m complaining or being ungrateful. Please let me go back there again some day 😉
The one consolation about not working for Google and availing of the free food is the ‘Google stone’ – ie, the excess bodyweight that new employees all somehow mysteriously acquire.
University canteens are generally unimpressive. You can generally get decent sandwiches, but dinnery shaped meals can be a very mixed bag. Coffee is another thing that can be terrible on campus. Prices are not generally student friendly (though I’m sure if you got a decent wage you’d find them to be ok priced). Even the opening hours of the eateries on campuses can be a bit useless (especially in the summer, even though researchers and staff are still working).
A long time ago, I worked at a large corporate bank in the IFSC. The job was awful but the canteen was great. They had a coffee place with fresh scones, cappuccino, etc… The prices were very keen.
My new office doesn’t have a canteen as such, we have a room with a fridge, a microwave and free tea and coffee (instant, yuck). The room is nice enough, but too small and most people end up eating sandwiches at their desk. I do miss the bank’s canteen, it was as cheap as bringing your own meal from home and at least you had a decent home cooked meal a day
Wednesday 18 April, 2012 at 11:33 am
McCabe’s (no relation) is still there!
Wednesday 18 April, 2012 at 11:36 am
My work (building of ~1500 people) is based down the back-end of the Docklands, so we have to have a canteen. Generally it’s pretty good, provided/maintained by the BaxterStorey company. Generally speaking, there would be hot breakfast/fresh smoothies/porridge in the morning, coffee and bites throughout the day, and for lunch a different selection of 3/4 hot mains each day, a “live cooking”/stir fry noodle counter, and a well stocked salad bar. You generally wouldn’t spend more than €6 or €7 a day, and that’s if you bought breakfast and dinner. Coffee for €1, jitters!
Wednesday 18 April, 2012 at 11:56 am
My water cooler ‘conversations’ usually consist of silently standing behind people at water coolers, waiting for them to finish so that I can get a cup of water. Some people fill bottles, introducing a slightly frustrating delay to proceedings.
Yeah, you’re missing out on a real experience there, Peter.
Wednesday 18 April, 2012 at 1:10 pm
The Google canteen really is something very impressive, not to mention the bazillion fridges full of treats all around the building. One thing about their canteen that I’ve found slightly odd though is that their hot food menu items, while all delicious, don’t really complement each other very well. French-style asparagus with bearnaise sauce served with teriyaki salmon, that kind of thing. Not that I’m complaining or being ungrateful. Please let me go back there again some day 😉
The one consolation about not working for Google and availing of the free food is the ‘Google stone’ – ie, the excess bodyweight that new employees all somehow mysteriously acquire.
Wednesday 18 April, 2012 at 9:44 pm
University canteens are generally unimpressive. You can generally get decent sandwiches, but dinnery shaped meals can be a very mixed bag. Coffee is another thing that can be terrible on campus. Prices are not generally student friendly (though I’m sure if you got a decent wage you’d find them to be ok priced). Even the opening hours of the eateries on campuses can be a bit useless (especially in the summer, even though researchers and staff are still working).
Thursday 19 April, 2012 at 12:55 am
@Triona: “Dinnery shaped meals” – ha ha! Brilliant! And as a part-time university lecturer, I very much agree 🙂
Thursday 19 April, 2012 at 11:22 am
How do you aplpy for a job at Google?
A long time ago, I worked at a large corporate bank in the IFSC. The job was awful but the canteen was great. They had a coffee place with fresh scones, cappuccino, etc… The prices were very keen.
My new office doesn’t have a canteen as such, we have a room with a fridge, a microwave and free tea and coffee (instant, yuck). The room is nice enough, but too small and most people end up eating sandwiches at their desk. I do miss the bank’s canteen, it was as cheap as bringing your own meal from home and at least you had a decent home cooked meal a day
Wednesday 25 April, 2012 at 5:17 pm
You can find the Google jobs listing here:
http://www.google.ie/about/jobs/