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If your weekday lunch routine is a rotating cast of limp salads, desk-drawer granola bars and the ubiquitous “slop bowls,” New York has a small but satisfying fix this week.
Ahead of National Quitter’s Day (that’s the moment in January when resolutions famously start to unravel), meal service Factor is opening a two-day pop-up in midtown that lets commuters trade in their “sad desk lunches” for something far more exciting: free, chef-prepared, protein-packed meals.
It’s called the Protein Power-Up Shop and the premise is simple: bring along whatever you were planning to eat (or admit you were going to skip lunch entirely), then take a quick on-site “protein personality quiz” and walk out with a freshly-made, ready-to-eat meal that’s much more grown-up than your usual noon-hour scramble. There will be truffle butter filet mignon, peanut Buddha bowls, parmesan and sun-dried tomato chicken penne, plus vegan options for plant-based lunchers.
By mid-January, most people have already ditched their New Year’s health goals, often because they’re busy, underfed and running on caffeine. Factor’s pop-up embraces that reality, meeting commuters where their habits typically apart: at lunch. Along with free meals, the setup includes quick nutrition check-ins, registered dietitians on hand to answer protein questions and interactive tools showing how much protein you think you’re eating versus how much you actually are.
Even if you’re not tracking macros or chasing resolutions, there’s something deeply appealing about the idea of walking into your afternoon meeting having eaten a real meal instead of a fast-food compromise.
The Protein Power-Up Shop runs Thursday and Friday, January 8–9, from 11am to 4pm at 15 East 40th Street in midtown. It’s first-come, first-served, so lunchtime strategists may want to swing by early, especially if your current lunch plan needs serious help.