I know you're a prolific poster on here, and you often provide valuable contributions, so it's disheartening to see how full of misinformation this comment is. I've worked at many tech companies, and Google has among the best work-life balance I've encountered. Work hours vary by team and by role, but on a whole, it's very reasonable.

They serve three meals, but you're not expected to eat all three meals. Some people like to get in early and leave early, others like to get in late and stay late. The food is just a perk, there if you want it.

Also, you're not obligated or expected to work longer if you eat dinner. Not sure where you heard that one. If you're at the office when dinner is served, it's considered that you've already stayed late.

And many companies unlike Google don't let you take food home. Or serve it very late, so you are working late. This is not the case at Google at all. The parent comment is so off the mark. These kind of posters have an image in their head from HN threads and keep propagating it in their comments.

To be fair to OP, I had the same image in my head before I joined. I probably wrote a similar comment at some point in the past, and propagated the misinformation myself. I worked for many years at an aerospace company, where we put in long hours for relatively little pay. I convinced myself that if a company offered its employees good perks, it must have a sinister motive.

Of course, now there are constant stories of tech employees griping about how evil they think their employers are, how unfairly they're being treated, how little freedom they have to express their opinions. It's hard not to roll my eyes sometimes.

I spent some time at the Mountain View campus and it was cut throat. I suppose it depends on who your manager is but I didn’t like the vibe. It was novel but once that wears off - reality sets in.

I found a good litmus test with how courteous people are, or aren’t, in the gym.

Well, that's simply not how it works. Sure, pretty much everyone has lunch in the cafes. Breakfast is popular too but you can get it until 9:30 or 10:00, so you don't even have to show up early. Dinner attendance is significantly lower, and pretty much everyone I know who regularly has dinner at work goes home right afterwards.

Personally I probably manage to get breakfast once a week on average and stay late enough for dinner 2 or 3 times a year.