Lunch Poems is a collection of poetry mostly written or occurring during the poet's lunch hour. Some of the poems begin with a current event, such as Billie Holiday's death or the actress Lana Turner collapsing. Some poems also mention many of O'Hara's friends or acquaintances or outline conversations had between them on topics such as painting and jazz. Overall, the poems in the collection are light-hearted while capturing a feeling of aloneness in a big world.