Having worked in the world of fashion for almost a decade, Yori Atira never would have guessed that she’d find her second calling in between two slices of bread. She never expected her and her husband’s brainchild, Lunch For My Husband, would reach out to so many foodies across cities since it launched in 2020. Consumers eager for a taste rushed to save their spot on every pre-order, even setting their alarms to ensure they wouldn’t miss out. Still, three years on, the enthusiasm is unwavering.
The beloved brand actually wasn’t built on purpose. Boredom at home during the pandemic, coupled with a desire to keep busy, led Yori and her husband, Abang, to clear up their garage and build a small kitchen dedicated to selling food. “We saw many people start to sell food from their homes. Why not do it too? It’d be fun, nothing to lose!” she recalled.
Once the decision was made, the question of what to sell arose. For some time, she was obsessed with the idea of bakpao, but it seemed too difficult to make. It was her husband who suggested sandwiches, the kind she used to prepare and pack for him to bring to work. At first, she doubted the idea, and the doubt wasn’t entirely unfounded. After all, sandwiches had not been the main choice of Indonesians then. “Even my friends questioned it. They would ask, ‘are you sure you want to sell sandwiches? I think people here eat rice, right?’” she laughed. Still, she persisted. “But we know we love sandwiches. So we thought we’d try to sell small quantities at first. If they didn’t sell, we’d eat them ourselves!”
Yori’s interest in food, however, didn’t just appear out of thin air. Her own peculiar relationship with food began in childhood, thanks to her father who refused to have picky eaters in his family. “Maybe the curiosity subconsciously came from that upbringing,” she said with a smile, recalling how her dad used to feed her unfamiliar foods and introduced her to all kinds of flavors.
Once she grew up, Yori started exploring on her own. She began to eat out a lot and take the inspiration back to her kitchen, cooking up inventions for her husband to enjoy. “Cooking for my family is one of my favorite pastimes,” It’s a form of love language, a way of conveying how much she cares about her loved ones. “If someone took time from their day to prepare something special for me, I would be so happy. I think that’s why cooking for my family is important for me; it represents the love and warmth I want to give them.”
However, with Lunch for My Husband, she quickly realized that preparing food for loved ones is one thing; doing it for thousands of customers is another. With her sandwiches being vastly different every time, Yori learned to accept that she couldn’t please everyone with every release. “That’s my biggest takeaway: the flavor notes can be completely different from one sandwich to another; some are generally liked, some don’t quite fit. It’s normal. It’s just a matter of keeping on creating so people can continue discovering different flavors with me.”
The shifts also affected her personally. When the brand growth started to spike rapidly, she understandably tried to do more. More gourmet, more trendy, everything. She then realized that competing with trends is a never-ending, and most often fruitless, battle. Her feeling overwhelmed got her to reflect, and she decided to return to what drove her in the first place. “I’m now focusing on creating what I like to eat and move forward from there. I just want to do [Lunch for My Husband] purely out of my love of cooking,”
That’s also part of why Yori and Abang decided to create an ever-changing menu. She admits the concept is mainly to keep things exciting for them. As a creative outlet for Yori as a cook and for Abang as a visual aficionado, the changing menu gives them much to explore. This turns out to be true for customers as well, since the strategy gives them something to look forward to.
Every now and then, Yori would travel to keep her bank of inspiration flowing, and wherever she went, she would stop by the local market. One trip that stood out was a trip to Yogyakarta she took long ago. Though she first didn’t understand why her friend dragged her to be in line for Gudeg at 5 am, the experience that came afterward imprinted on her. She named the woman who sold the Gudeg that morning as a lady figure who inspired her culinary dream. “Mbah Lindu had fully dedicated her life to nothing but Gudeg, and she seemed to take great pleasure in what she did. It’s like the Gudeg and her soul were already one.”
Just like Mbah Lindu, Yori wants to continue nourishing her relationship with food and encourages others to do the same thing. She’s determined to nudge people to step out of their palate’s comfort zone by wrapping different flavors in something homemade and familiar. Is it her way of continuing her father’s mission? “Now that I think about it, yes. I want everyone to eat everything!”
After nearly half a year of building the team for Lunch For My Husband, Yori is not planning to stop anytime soon. She still has many more plans for the future. “Actually, the dream is to eventually make some sort of a deli where we can sell ingredients like jarred sauces and pickles along with the sandwiches. It would be exciting to invite friends and other small businesses to come along and sell their products there as well.”
With her giving birth soon, she also dreams of creating a sub-line for children, with the witty title, Soup For My Children. “I’ve always wanted to do it once I had children of my own. So maybe it will be in the works soon. Maybe!”
Her grin might imply the soup brand will come eventually, but what’s for sure, Yori doesn’t want to put her journey in a hurry. She doesn’t want to take the fun out of her process. “I want us to still have fun doing it. It may sound cliche, but for me, it’s very important to stick true to yourself and what you want to do. I think if you sincerely love what you do, it will eventually grow towards whichever direction that was meant for you.”
