One
of
my
simple
pleasures
in
life
is
when
I
am
able
to
score
a
free
meal.
When
I
was
in
college,
I
subscribed
to
an
email
list
that
broadcast
all
of
the
events
on
campus
that
had
free
food,
and
I
made
sure
to
attend
those
events
to
score
free
grub.
In
law
school,
I
remember
once
attending
five
free
food
events
in
one
day!
Given
how
broke
I
was
as
a
student,
the
free
food
I
was
able
to
score
really
helped
preserve
my
bottom
line
and
let
me
devote
money
toward
other
purposes.
When
I
started
working
at
law
firms,
I
was
happy
that
many
of
the
shops
at
which
I
worked
also
offered
free
food
for
training
sessions,
team
meetings,
and
other
firm
events.
However,
based
on
conversations
I
had
with
individuals
within
the
legal
profession
over
the
years,
even
if
people
generally
appreciate
the
free
food,
more
shops
should
offer
healthier
food
options
for
attorneys
and
staff.
I
worked
at
four
different
law
firms
before
opening
my
own
practice
around
five
years
ago.
Each
firm
I
worked
at
offered
different
free
food
options
to
attorneys
and
staff.
One
offered
free
pizza
at
pretty
much
every
event,
and
the
pizza
was
almost
always
plain
or
pepperoni.
Another
shop
at
which
I
worked
offered
deli
sandwiches
like
turkey,
pastrami,
roast
beef,
and
the
like.
A
different
firm
usually
only
offered
really
good
New
York
bagels
and
cream
cheese
one
morning
each
week,
and
the
only
time
I
ever
considered
filing
a
worker’s
compensation
claim
was
when
I
sliced
my
hand
one
morning
cutting
a
bagel.
I
made
sure
to
eat
as
much
free
food
as
I
could
while
employed
at
these
shops
as
I
did
when
I
was
a
student.
Most
of
the
time
I
was
working
as
an
associate
attorney
at
various
shops,
I
tried
to
save
money
so
that
I
could
pay
off
my
student
loans
earlier.
Any
money
I
could
save
on
food
was
money
that
I
could
use
to
pay
down
my
student
debt.
Moreover,
I
generally
like
eating
copious
amounts
of
food
(and
I
even
participated
in
a
bunch
of
competitive
eating
events
in
my
younger
years)
so
any
type
of
free
food
is
a
serious
windfall
for
me.
I
am
a
huge
fan
of
deli
sandwiches
and
pizza,
so
when
the
law
firms
at
which
I
worked
offered
these
foods,
I
was
delighted.
However,
people
with
whom
I
worked
complained
about
the
food
offerings
of
some
law
firms.
Some
individuals
tried
to
eat
healthier,
and
other
people
with
whom
I
worked
were
on
various
diets.
They
said
it
was
difficult
to
stick
to
their
eating
goals
when
the
law
firm
only
offered
unhealthy
food
to
attorneys
and
staff.
Some
of
my
colleagues
also
said
it
was
difficult
for
attorneys
and
staff
to
interact
with
others
socially
since
only
unhealthy
food
was
offered
by
law
firms.
Eating
is
often
a
substantial
part
of
social
occasions,
and
attorneys
and
staff
did
not
want
to
seem
like
poor
sports
for
refusing
to
eat
at
various
firm
events.
Some
attorneys
I
spoke
with
said
that
this
even
made
it
more
difficult
for
them
to
interact
with
important
partners
and
be
assigned
to
favorable
teams.
I
am
no
expert,
but
law
firms
can
provide
healthier
food
options
without
too
many
issues.
For
instance,
ordering
a
large
assortment
of
sushi
could
be
good
to
offer
a
group
of
people,
and
although
I
am
no
nutritionist,
this
could
be
healthier
than
pizza
or
other
similar
food.
Moreover,
offering
more
salads
to
attorneys
and
staff
can
also
help
employees
meet
their
eating
goals
while
socializing
with
other
people
at
a
law
firm
event.
To
be
clear,
I
am
extremely
grateful
for
all
of
the
law
firms
at
which
I
worked
that
offered
free
food
to
attorneys
and
staff
during
events.
This
helped
people
interact
with
coworkers,
and
offering
food
can
make
it
more
likely
that
people
will
attend
an
event
that
is
merely
optional.
However,
some
people
have
complained
to
me
over
the
years
that
they
wished
law
firms
offered
healthier
food
at
events,
and
with
some
planning,
law
firms
can
make
events
more
accessible
to
people
who
eat
different
kinds
of
food.
Jordan
Rothman
is
a
partner
of
The
Rothman
Law
Firm,
a
full-service
New
York
and
New
Jersey
law
firm.
He
is
also
the
founder
of
Student
Debt
Diaries,
a
website
discussing
how
he
paid
off
his
student
loans.
You
can
reach
Jordan
through
email
at
jordan@rothman.law.