Skip the thermos, get a compartment bento box.

For room-temperature meals, a compartment bento box beats an insulated thermos every time.

You don’t need to keep things hot. You need to keep things separate. French-style picnic food — bread, cheese, cured meat, raw veggies, olives — is perfectly happy sitting in a box for a few hours. The real enemy is soggy bread and mustard-flavored grapes. A bento with tight-sealing compartments solves that.

Look for something with removable sections and a leakproof lid. Monbento and Bentgo make solid ones, but you can find cheaper versions that do the same job. If you want to be extra French about it, get a stackable stainless steel tiffin. Just make sure whatever you pick actually seals, because vinaigrette will find any gap.

One honest warning: don’t leave anything that spoils fast (like chicken salad) out all day unless you add a small ice pack. Pack it in the same box, no reheating required. And if you’re carrying cheese, let it breathe a little — you want it at room temperature when you eat it anyway.

Your coworkers will be jealous, and that’s fine.