I did things a little differently today. Instead of waking up early and rushing off to work, I woke up early, got ready and cooked breakfast for myself and Harvey. It was his first day back at school so I wanted him to have a good start to the day. We each had a mashed baked sweet potato with an egg on top. It was great but I was struck by how sweet it tasted. I did miss the butter I would usually have added but this was much healthier without any and the sweet potato made a good alternative to the more traditional toast.
I never go to work this late. To be clear, I was not late to work as I was in the office before 9am but I was travelling at least an hour later then usual. 
The early morning trains are quiet (very few people chat, many sleep), they are on time and not crowded. The later trains are crowded and noisy and the school children chat non stop and simultaneously. But it was great to have breakfast with Harvey and take him to his school bus and then to arrive in London in daylight instead of the dark. It was sunny this morning which was a bonus.
At lunch time I went for a walk and decided what to eat. I had made a salmon salad the night before but had left it at home. I chose Leon and then made a spur of the moment decision to eat in which I very rarely do. I never eat in on my own, only ever if I am with a friend or colleague.
I chose the Chicken Superfood Salad.
I should have checked the ingredients because unfortunately it contained sugar in the mayonnaise and some dairy. It can’t have been much though as this lunch had 435 calories and the chicken and seeds must have contributed a lot of that. I am very puzzled as to why they would add yogurt or double cream to something called a ‘Superfood Salad’.
Having checked on their excellent website, I will in future look up what I want to eat in advance. Look at all this information Leon provides online:
LUNCH – CHARGRILLED CHICKEN SUPERFOOD SALAD
Ingredients: Superfood Salad Base (Cos, Spinach, Rocket, Peas, Broccoli, Quinoa, Semi-dried Tomatoes (Tomatoes, Sunflower Oil, Garlic Flakes, Salt, Cirtric Acid, Oregano, Ascorbic Acid)), Vinaigrette (Sunflower oil, White wine vinegar, Dijon mustard (Water, Mustard seeds, Spirit vinegar, Salt, Acidity regulator: citric acid), Water, Salt, White ground pepper), Chicken (Red Tractor Chicken Thigh, Water, Salt), Aioli (Mayonnaise (Rapeseed Oil, Water, Sugar, Modified Maize starch, Acetic Acid, Egg Yolk Powder, Xanthan Gum, Salt), Yoghurt (Skimmed Milk, Cream, Skimmed Milk Powder, Starter Culture), Double cream, Garlic puree, Lemon juice, Sea Salt), Topper (Parsley, Mint, Toasted Seeds (Sesame, Linseed and Sunflower)), Lemons
| Energy (kcal) Per portion | 435 | |
| Protein (Grams) per portion | 37 | |
| Carbohydrate | 18 | |
| Carbs (Grams) per portion | 18 | |
| Carbs of which sugar (Grams) per portion | 6 | |
| Glycemic index | 12 | |
| Glycemic loading | 2 | |
| Fat | 23 | |
| Fat (Grams) per portion | 23 | |
| Saturated fat (Grams) per portion | 4 | |
| Mono-unsaturated fat(Grams) per portion | 9 | |
| Poly-unsaturated (Grams) per portion | 9 | |
| Salt (Grams) per portion | 0.6 | |
| Total portion weight (Grams) | 287 | |
| Allergens | ||
| Mustard |  |
|
| Gluten | ||
| Crustacean | ||
| Fish | ||
| Molluscs | ||
| Soya | ||
| Sesame | |
|
| Nuts | ||
| Peanuts | ||
| Eggs | |
|
| Milk/Lactose | |
|
| Celery | ||
| Lupin | ||
| Sulphur Dioxide | ||
10 out of 10 to Leon for providing such detailed nutritional information about their meals.
The Leon near the office is in a huge building but it is set out in a way that doesn’t make it seem too cavernous and noisy.
It has quirky touches such as this bread tin quite randomly place on a shelf on a high column.
I enjoyed the salad but did not love it. I doubt I would order it again.
I enjoyed sitting at this little table today, having the solitude to look around and eat slowly, chewing carefully.
I sat on the bench seat, looking out at the restaurant.
I am discovering that if I eat something with sugar in it, I want to eat more food than if I do not have any sugar. I actually looked up the ingredients of this meal because I wanted more to eat when my salad was finished so I was suspicious it contained sugar. It was not huge and when I make a salad I include far more vegetables and some more carbs so I feel full and remain sated.
I wandered to M&S thinking I would buy some lean meat – all their pre cooked meat has sugar in it, even roast chicken. M&S, what are you thinking of? I left empty handed.
I popped in to a Japanese take away thinking a small sushi box would do the trick but having checked with the staff (and had an argument with them as they insisted eggs were dairy – grrrr), I was told all Japanese sushi rice has sugar added.
So I went to Starbucks and bought a 75 g packet of almonds and a very large Spearmint Green Tea. That did the trick!
When I got home, supper was ready. I took my ‘lunch’ out of the fridge and made a dressing with Za’tar, lime and olive oil. It needs tweaking so I won’t share the recipe until it is improved.
Hot smoked salmon, pea shoots, spinach, celery, red pepper and cherry tomatoes. I had also added the other half of the baked potato I ate last night which I ate, skin and all.
I enjoyed it very much.
I think I will take myself out for lunch more often.
Lose Weight and Gain Health 