By trainee solicitor Alex Garner
Tell people you’re a trainee solicitor at a commercial law firm and the first panel of 2012’s most popular meme, 'what people think I do / what I really do' Lawyer Meals edition would be a towering stack of takeaway containers piling up next to permanently illuminated computer screen.
The pressures of being a trainee can mean that busy work and social lives force you towards living this cliché. However, the catering facilities at Burges Salmon HQ, One Glass Wharf, mean it's entirely possible to have your cake and eat it.
This is a taste of how the week pans out...
Monday
I start the day by meeting a colleague at the coffee bar to debrief on the weekend’s events and how I’m climbing up the Burges Salmon fantasy football league. He feigns interest and orders a skinny caramel latte and a pain au raisin and we sit down on the sofas while I polish off a fruit salad pot.
On Monday nights I join in the Burges Salmon football team's seven-a-side kickabout so I’m eating healthily. This also includes a lunchtime trip to the salad bar to take advantage of the creative combinations of pulses, leaves and protein.
Tuesday
My calendar reminds me that I’ve signed up to a talk from an external speaker at lunch on how the value of intellectual property is determined. For lunch time training sessions the firm provides food and today it's sandwiches – I go for a selection of offerings featuring crayfish, hummus and pepper and my personal favourite, the caesar salad wrap.
After work I meet a couple of friends who work nearby in the wine bar on the corner, Veeno. My Burges Salmon social membership card allows me to upgrade my small glass of wine into a big one at no extra cost.
Wednesday
I get in early on Wednesday and to reward myself I get breakfast at work. I shun the toast station, porridge and several cereal options and go straight to the cooked food, salivating at the sight of creamy scrambled eggs, golden hash browns and juicy vegetarian and meat sausages. My healthy intentions from Monday are forgotten and the detox can start next week. Luckily I get all my tasks for the day done early enough to get to the gym after work.
Thursday
The morning flies by with my head deep in a contract review. At 1pm my phone rings and a few of the other trainees invite me to walk across to the food market by the station. Although tempted by the Sri Lankan street food and the Jamaican patties, I opt for some calamari stir fry and we sit down to eat in the sunshine by the river.
Friday
The end of the week means one thing: cake trolley day. Burges Salmon's in house pastry chef puts together a heaving trolley of sweet treats and visits each department. Nothing welcomes in the weekend better than a mid-afternoon cup of tea and hefty slab of millionaire's shortbread.