Is This The Mug That Will Save Your Kid's Lunch?

Need a mug for your kid's lunch?  Read on...

Early in September, my son announced that he will be bringing his lunch to high school every day. Apparently, the cafeteria is too far from where the freshmen eat and, knowing his school, I believe him.  I want to give him hot lunches some days and he (gasp!) will not use the thermos I've been using for his sister (What? A 14-year old is too cool for a Dora mug? Unreasonable!). What to do?

So I purchased a Sistema To-Go Soup Mug from my local grocery store.  This 22.1 ounce plastic mug:

• Is BPA free.
• Has a large handle, so it's easy to grasp.
• Holds a whole can of soup (it's really big).
• Has easy-open clasps around the top (as opposed to my daughter's thermos where she has to get some help from a teacher).
• Has a vented lid so you can heat up food in the microwave.
• Is freezer and dishwasher safe.

All of those are wonderful features. I heated up some soup, sealed the mug, and turned it upside down – no leaks. Of course, when my son took it to school, it had somehow leaked all over his lunch bag. Yuck! I've read other reviews of this product and many people found the same thing. Also, food does not stay hot for very long, which is fine because my son has an early lunch period and, honestly, the thing is plastic so it's not meant to keep food hot. 

Soup in this mug may not be a good idea for your kid's lunch.

So is the Sistema To-Go Soup Mug a waste of money? If you plan on sending your kid to school with soup, yes, unless you place plastic wrap or foil under the cover so the soup stays inside. I also place the item in a Ziploc bag, just in case it does leak, and send my child with extra napkins. 

What the mug is REALLY good for, however, are non-liquidy things like mac and cheese, a thick chili, salads, mushy cake, and macaroni dishes. As long as the food doesn't ooze, you're good.

Does this replace a costly metal mug? No, but it's handy for, again, non-soup lunches. And with a price point of about $6 at my supermarket, it was worth a try. Find more about Sistema products on their website, http://sistemaplastics.com.

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Thanks for reading....check back in later this week for some free, Halloween printables!