Were you allowed to take your own lunch to school?

21 comments

1. No lunch was provided at any of the schools I went to, you always were supposed to bring your own

2. For primary school (ages 5 to 12) I always took my own lunch with me. For secondary school, I bought my lunch from the school cafeteria for the first year, then for second, third and fourth years I went to nearby shops, then in fifth and sixth year I usually went home for lunch. I never had the option of free school meals and anyone could bring their own food from home if they wished.

3. In Italy in primary school, no. We were basically forced to eat the food or we were not allowed to go out to play. I think it was because vegetables was mainly what was left on the plate. In terms of dietary requirements/restriction, that was also taken into consideration. If you couldn’t eat something from the main menu you would get a different dish.

   In the UK, in secondary school. The food wasn’t free. So yes, you could bring your own lunch.

4. Lunch is not provided in Dutch schools as a rule. You are expected to bring your own or eat elsewhere.

5. During primary and secondary I always ate at home since schools at that level normally don’t have their own cafeteria.

   During my apprenticeship our school had a cafeteria but we always ate in the nearby city as we didn’t really like the foods quality.

6. I don’t remember being told that it’s forbidden, but no one ever did so there might have been some rule against it. We were allowed to have snacks though.
   If you had allergies you would get different food from the kitchen.

7. In primary school there was no lunch – everybody would bring some sandwiches. Anybody who wanted could get a cup of tea though.

   In high school you could buy lunch. Some people did, others brought sandwiches.

8. We had to bring our own lunch to school since our school had no cafeteria. At least in high school there were no restrictions in regards to the content of your lunch box. Maybe energy drinks were banned later but I’m not really sure. I guess if you had an allergic reaction to certain foods it was your responsibility to watch out. At least I couldn’t remember that certain food was banned because a student had some serious allergies.

   For some time the school hired a catering company to offer lunch to the students. It was a massive flop since the quality of the food wasn’t really good and eating lunch from a tray in the normal classroom was weird. Also you had to pay for it but I don’t remember the price for a meal.

   So nearly everyone was bringing in their own lunch or we would go to a supermarket that was close by. Going to the supermarket was forbidden but eventually it was allowed after pressure from the parents. You could also go to a small kiosk and buy some sweets or sandwiches and drinks.

   The school was eventually planning to build alcafeteria but since the space was limited the cafeteria was quite small and it was only able to serve lunch to the lower grades.

9. We didn’t have school lunch. The normal end of school is around lunch time so kids just go home for lunch. For the breaks during the morning you’d either bring something from home or buy something from the janitor’s kiosk. He sold stuff like baked goods and sausages.

   Starting in like 6th or 7th grade we’d have afternoon lessons for like 1-3 days a week (depended on how the schedule worked out). For lunch we’d either also bring something from home, buy whatever’s leftover from the kiosk or go into town to get something from a bakery/grocery store/kebab shop/restaurant.

10. Ummm, yeah, why not? In Poland school lunch definitely doesn’t look like in the USA. I never ate anything when I was at school (I could survive just on breakfast at home before school until lunch at home), but those who ate at school either had sandwiches made at and taken from home or some pastries bought in bakeries or the lunch offered at school, but never for free (unless you were really poor). Obviously people who had sandwiches or pastries ate in the corridor while sitting on the floor or the bench.

    At some point in time, a few years ago, there was a nation-wide ban on pastries in schools because the ministry of education said it’s “unhealthy” but it was honestly just ridiculous. I doubt this joke of a ban still exists in schools.

11. Where I went to school there was no lunch, so everybody brought their own from home. We also had no cafeteria and ate our lunch in the classroom.

12. I never ate lunch at school, everyone went home and had lunch there. We could take a snack to eat during break and in high school we used to go to a bar and have a coffee and maybe a pincho de tortilla during break.

13. Of course, there is no other option. School doesn’t provide food (I wouldn’t call it lunch), you have 20-minute pause to eat what you brought from home or to buy something in bakery or grocery shop or even fast food (mostly in high school) and eat it.

14. Yes, I never eaten food prepared in school, because I hated the taste.. I always brought my own food. In high school, I was less than 5 minutes walking distance from home, so I often went home for lunch.

15. In my case there was only the school canteen to eat.

16. You could if you wanted to? But literally no one did. If you had allergies or dietary restrictions the school would make other food that you could eat. Every start of the year you literally signed a paper if you had allergies or dietary restrictions so they would always know… Like for those who couldnt eat a specific meat, or were lactose intolerant or couldnt eat gluten food there were always other options. They dont just serve one single item.

17. Lunch is always brought in Norway, especially if you don’t have a canteen to buy from or don’t want to buy anything. Free school meals isn’t a thing here.

18. In the uk, yes, when we moved to France, no, and I believe it’s never been a thing in france. You can however go home for lunch.

19. (Catalonia, Spain)

    No.

    Those with dietary restrictions who have lunch at school (both elementary and high school) are given food customized to their needs.

    Others have lunch at home.

20. England: Yes, we had options, and after the Jamie Oliver effect a black market opened up where school kids sold food because it became unavailable by the school. 😆

21. In primary school (4-12) everyone took their own packed lunch. Fruit and milk were provided by the government. Some disadvantaged schools get extra packaged food I believe. I’ve never heard of any primary school having a canteen.

    In secondary school (13-18) most people also ate their own food. There was a canteen but it was pretty bad and only served deli food (rolls, wraps, toasted sandwiches). Older years could go out for lunch but it was only 30 minutes so you couldn’t go further than the local shop.
    Proper school canteens with hot meals are rare and would mainly be in boarding schools and some fee-paying schools.