Your lunch break should be sacred ‘me time’. It’s an opportunity to take a breather, process the day so far, and refuel to go again for the second half of the workday. But the sad truth is many UK workers have been increasingly neglecting their lunch break.
The average employee takes just 28 minutes for their lunch break, according to new research. That’s six minutes less than when the survey was carried out four years earlier.
So we at FigFlex are now on something of a mission to help our members make better use of their midday downtime and we’re starting by pointing out five of the best places to spend your lunch hour in Coventry - home to Friars House where FigFlex offers a range of flexible office solutions over two floors.
Park: Greyfriars Green
Situated directly behind FigFlex Coventry, Greyfriars Green is perfect for grabbing some fresh air and gaining some headspace for the afternoon.
This quiet triangular greenspace is a designated conservation area and contains a statue of inventor James Starley who helped make Coventry the centre of the British cycle industry after perfecting the bicycle chain drive.
Cafe: The Warwick Row Espresso
There’s no shortage of amazing cafes in Coventry city centre, and one of the finest - The Warwick Row Espresso - isn’t too far from the FigFlex front door.
Found at 25 Warwick Row just through Greyfriars Green, this independent coffee shop serves up delicious speciality coffee and freshly baked pastries, cakes and toasties. Their iced teas and doughnuts taste as great as they look too.
Another worth mentioning is Fratelli. Spread over two floors, it brews amazing coffee downstairs, whilst the newly renovated bar and grill on the upper level mixes up two-for-one cocktails.
At FigFlex, you don’t necessarily need to venture outside for your caffeine kick - we’ve got complimentary tea and coffee in our communal kitchen area any time you want.
Retail: West Orchard Shopping Centre & Coventry Market
Coventry city centre is rife with shops and some opportunities for retail therapy. You’ll find many of them in the West Orchard Shopping Centre, which contains a wealth of well-known high street names.
For a more independent offering, there’s the vibrant, award-winning Coventry Market, open every weekday with a wide range of traders selling all kinds of everything.
Attraction: Coventry Cathedral
Coventry Cathedral has been attracting thousands of visitors every year since it opened in 1962. Tourists and pilgrims come from all over the world to experience this extraordinary Grade I-listed modernist building, but you can do it in your lunch break.
If you’re fine with heights, climb all 180 of the cathedral tower’s steps for the best view in Coventry. Our FigFlex members can gain a similarly spectacular view across the city from their serviced office window up on the fourth floor.
Bar: Dhillons Brewery Spire Bar
Situated on New Union Street in the heart of Coventry city centre, this brilliantly atmospheric and conspiratorially cosy space is an ideal lunchtime watering hole.
It’s an historic one too, sitting beneath one of the spires that dominate Coventry’s skyline. Water down some honey chilli chips with one of their exclusively brewed ales. Other pubs in the area worth shouting out include The Squirrel, The Old Crown and The Greyhound Inn.
Category: Community & Culture