Evening meal allowance - London

[Sporky]

loskie said:

all this talk saying it should only cost what it does to feed yourself at home is crazy.

I'm not sure anyone said that.

As I read it, it was "the cost of an equivalent meal", not the same cost. As you say, if you eat out the same thing will be more expensive.

I read it as more like "if you eat spag bol at home with a Ribena, maybe don't expect to eat foie gras and lobster with champagne on expenses". Which seems very reasonable.

[Slowboathome]

loskie said:

all this talk saying it should only cost what it does to feed yourself at home is crazy. You can cook a roast chicken dinner at home for around £2 per person. A ribeye steak at home (not an everyday meal for most) would cost around £8 per head yet in an average restaurant be what £30 to£35.

Can of coke at home 40p from a multipack, £3 when out.

My point is that the equivalent of a week night home meal when I'm working away is Deliveroo or an M&S salad, crisps, sandwich. With a bottle of beer.

I don't at dine in a restaurant when I'm at home, so I don't expect to when working away.

But I'm self employed so I'm the one paying.

[Slowboathome]

Type R Tom said:

Copied from our policy

Breakfast - £4.48
Lunch - £6.17
Tea - £2.43
Evening meal - £7.64

I used to get around it by getting admin to book me dinner bed and breakfast hotels.

Whoever wrote that policy had the Wetherspoon's menu on their desk at the time.

[Sporky]

I like that you're allowed tea. Not much of it, but still. When that policy was written in 1973 it was very generous.

[LukeyP_]

Type R Tom said:

Copied from our policy

Breakfast - £4.48
Lunch - £6.17
Tea - £2.43
Evening meal - £7.64

I used to get around it by getting admin to book me dinner bed and breakfast hotels.

What kind of industry do you work in with that policy?

[Pit Pony]

Slowboathome said:

loskie said:

all this talk saying it should only cost what it does to feed yourself at home is crazy. You can cook a roast chicken dinner at home for around £2 per person. A ribeye steak at home (not an everyday meal for most) would cost around £8 per head yet in an average restaurant be what £30 to£35.

Can of coke at home 40p from a multipack, £3 when out.

My point is that the equivalent of a week night home meal when I'm working away is Deliveroo or an M&S salad, crisps, sandwich. With a bottle of beer.

I don't at dine in a restaurant when I'm at home, so I don't expect to when working away.

But I'm self employed so I'm the one paying.

You make the policy. If i were paying, and I had to stay in a hotel and breakfast was extra, I'd pack cereals and uht milk and a bowl and spoon.
If breakfast was in with the price, I'd fill my pockets to make a packed lunch....(Have a full English and make a sausage sandwich for later, and take a piece of fruit...occassional take a hard boiled egg)


How much do you expense as miscellaneous none receipted spend ?

[Blown2CV]

you might say a self employed person 'makes the policy' but they can only do that in what is reasonable and justifiable, because otherwise it can be seen as tax fraud.

[Slowboathome]

It's a funny think but the following are are all true.

- £15 per night is fine if I'm paying for my dinner.
- I'd regard £15 per night as very stingy if the employer was paying
- I wouldn't dream of buying anything other than the absolute cheapest rail ticket when I'm doing work for the NHS.

[ATG]

Blown2CV said:

you might say a self employed person 'makes the policy' but they can only do that in what is reasonable and justifiable, because otherwise it can be seen as tax fraud.

I reckon spending too little on breakfast is OK with HMRC

[ATG]

Slowboathome said:

It's a funny think but the following are are all true.

- £15 per night is fine if I'm paying for my dinner.
- I'd regard £15 per night as very stingy if the employer was paying
- I wouldn't dream of buying anything other than the absolute cheapest rail ticket when I'm doing work for the NHS.

Yeah, that paradoxical but entirely normal reaction makes all of this a bit of a lose-lose situation for employers. If you pay objectively reasonable amounts your employees will tend to resent it. I have no idea what the solution is. Well, maybe it's trying to make the whole enterprise feel like a team effort and genuinely share the rewards by giving staff equity, but that still just shifts the unfulfilled expectations problems into another area.

[Blown2CV]

ATG said:

Blown2CV said:

you might say a self employed person 'makes the policy' but they can only do that in what is reasonable and justifiable, because otherwise it can be seen as tax fraud.

I reckon spending too little on breakfast is OK with HMRC

any policy obviously exists to constrain a maximum not mandate a minimum... or were you taking the piss?

[ATG]

As a fairly regular traveller (equivalent of one night a week in London), paying from my own pocket, what I really want is a reasonably priced HEALTHY option, without having to wander around until I find some hipster-run draughty shed selling overpriced bean sprouts and fermented goat's piss.

Particularly in the evening, most places are positioning their food offering, regardless of price, as being some sort of treat. And at the cheaper end, that means greasy and salty, focused on meat, accompanied almost invariably by chips and maybe with a token side salad or coleslaw that is 50% oil. It is not pitched as an alternative to cooking at home. As always, compare and contrast with countries that have a proper food culture like France or Italy or Greece or Spain, etc, etc, etc and look at the levels of obesity and diabetes, blah, blah, blah.

Funnily enough, I've found Glasgow a good alternative to London, (a) because there's been a real food revival there and (b) a Glaswegian mid-market restaurant is about the same price as a boggo London pub/restaurant. Not reflected in the average health of the locals.

[ATG]

Blown2CV said:

ATG said:

Blown2CV said:

you might say a self employed person 'makes the policy' but they can only do that in what is reasonable and justifiable, because otherwise it can be seen as tax fraud.

I reckon spending too little on breakfast is OK with HMRC

any policy obviously exists to constrain a maximum not mandate a minimum... or were you taking the piss?

The context of "I set the policy" was clearly "I spend as little as possible", so, yes, I was making a joke.

[Blown2CV]

ATG said:

Blown2CV said:

ATG said:

Blown2CV said:

you might say a self employed person 'makes the policy' but they can only do that in what is reasonable and justifiable, because otherwise it can be seen as tax fraud.

I reckon spending too little on breakfast is OK with HMRC

any policy obviously exists to constrain a maximum not mandate a minimum... or were you taking the piss?

The context of "I set the policy" was clearly "I spend as little as possible", so, yes, I was making a joke.

OK. Well the use of smilies to frame your post is more of a guideline rather than a policy i guess.

[jonsp]

Countdown said:

If you're staying overnight in London what does your Company allow you to claim for an evening meal?

Our limit is £35 but we've had quite a few people suggesting it's out of date and should be nearer to £60 per person. In my experience, whilst you may not get a 3 course meal with drinks for £35 it's perfectly possible to get a decent meal for that amount.

Just curious as to what other companies are paying.

My employer pays different hotel rates in London - for obvious reasons. But the meal rate is a flat £25 + 10% tip wherever works takes you. The £25 can include 1 alcoholic drink, which you'd obviously struggle to do in London. We are not allowed to accept any hospitality from suppliers etc.

[Type R Tom]

ATG said:

As a fairly regular traveller (equivalent of one night a week in London), paying from my own pocket, what I really want is a reasonably priced HEALTHY option, without having to wander around until I find some hipster-run draughty shed selling overpriced bean sprouts and fermented goat's piss.

Particularly in the evening, most places are positioning their food offering, regardless of price, as being some treat. And at the cheaper end, that means greasy and salty, focused on meat, accompanied almost invariably by chips and maybe with a token side salad or coleslaw that is 50% oil. It is not pitched as an alternative to cooking at home. As always, compare and contrast with countries that have a proper food culture like France or Italy or Greece or Spain, etc, etc, etc and look at the levels of obesity and diabetes, blah, blah, blah.

Funnily enough, I've found Glasgow a good alternative to London, (a) because there's been a real food revival there and (b) a Glaswegian mid-market restaurant is about the same price as a boggo London pub/restaurant. Not reflected in the average health of the locals.

Following the explosion of Turkish restaurants in recent years is this still the case? I don't think you can get much healthier that a chicken shish, bread and salad and the lower end of the market.

[ATG]

Type R Tom said:

Following the explosion of Turkish restaurants in recent years is this still the case? I don't think you can get much healthier that a chicken shish, bread and salad and the lower end of the market.

That's a good shout. The explosion doesn't seem to have happened in Canary Wharf/ Isle of Dogs yet, but there is one place near the office and I haven't tried it. I should give it a go. Thai can be a good option too, but also thin on the ground in that area.

[andburg]

In docklands right now, plenty of options available well within my £35 budget

[Type R Tom]

ATG said:

Type R Tom said:

Following the explosion of Turkish restaurants in recent years is this still the case? I don't think you can get much healthier that a chicken shish, bread and salad and the lower end of the market.

That's a good shout. The explosion doesn't seem to have happened in Canary Wharf/ Isle of Dogs yet, but there is one place near the office and I haven't tried it. I should give it a go. Thai can be a good option too, but also thin on the ground in that area.

You're very close; they are all over Bethnal Green, Whitechapel Road, and Commercial Road, plus many of the smaller streets in Tower Hamlets.

I've had good meals at these two

https://maps.app.goo.gl/enGRyScfm1zKNZyv8

https://maps.app.goo.gl/wuUbKAtb494oJZVC6

[ATG]

Type R Tom said:

You're very close; they are all over Bethnal Green, Whitechapel Road, and Commercial Road, plus many of the smaller streets in Tower Hamlets.

I've had good meals at these two

https://maps.app.goo.gl/enGRyScfm1zKNZyv8

https://maps.app.goo.gl/wuUbKAtb494oJZVC6