Almost anyone who orders lunch in at the office knows the daily discussions that go on about what to eat. The result is rarely satisfying, let alone healthy.

Scott Himmel was chatting with a friend who owns a Midtown tech company a few months ago about how unproductive the lunch ordering process can be. “By 10 a.m. the employees weren’t writing code, they were talking about what to order for lunch,” recalls Himmel. “By the time they decided on a restaurant, ordered and collected the money, they still ended up with greasy pizza or Chinese that put people in food comas by 3 p.m.”

The image gave Himmel an idea: “If your people are eating more nutritious food, they’re going to feel a whole lot better and be more productive,” he explains. With that, Himmel began Lunch Owl three months ago, a lunch delivery service that provides tasty, nutritious lunches.

Lunch Owl offers a menu that changes weekly and is designed to satisfy all tastes. The lunches are subsidized in part by the employer, while the employee pays about what he or she would pay for take-out. Employees can go on Lunch Owl’s website to choose their meals, which are then delivered fresh each day to a provided fridge. When the employees are ready for lunch, they simply go to the fridge and get their tray. When they’re finished, they put the tray, with its reusable dishware, back in the fridge for pickup.

Himmel explains Lunch Owl costs employers about $18 per employee per month, if they order the service twice a week. “What excites people about our model is there are two main barriers to getting a healthy lunch at work,” he explains. “One is not having access, and the other is an affordable price point. Lunch Owl breaks down both those barriers.”

“No one is going to join a company because of Lunch Owl,” Himmel concedes. “But it shows the company cares about its employees. And employees tend to stay in the office, eat together and talk. And it helps create a culture that promotes health and wellness.”

One of the more popular choices on Lunch Owl’s menu is the basil pesto turkey sandwich or the adobo grilled steak salad. Meals also come with soup or side dish. Other options include snacks like housemade hummus or black bean salsa, and two-bite deserts like the flourless dark chocolate cake bite.

Calling it “Pandora for lunch,” Himmel explains that once employees pick their initial likes and dislikes, their personal menus are sent to them each week. If they don’t like the choices, they can simply go on the Lunch Owl menu and change them.

Himmel and his staff of five create the lunches at Park Lane Villa in University Circle, during the week when the facility’s kitchen isn’t being used. Himmel is constantly tweaking his model as Lunch Owl grows. He began the company with four customers, now has 11 and is growing. Himmel cites  Embrace Pet Insurance, SS&G, OnShift and Marcus Thomas as examples of the progressive companies who use Lunch Owl. He serves downtown midtown, Beachwood and Solon and is about to phase in Independence and Mayfield Heights.

“Our mission is to bring delight and good health to office workers across the country,” Himmel says of his long term goals. “We plan to spend a few years systematizing our model here in Cleveland and envision operating in 25 markets in the next 10 years.”