It was 11:23 when my daughter's class arrived at the cafeteria. I stood at the back of their class line as it moved more slowly than usual. I didn't sit down to eat until 11:47. By 11:55 her class began getting up and throwing their trash away. The entire class was gone by 12:00.
Confusion and the stalled line was caused by "allowing the kids an option of fresh fruit" according to the cafeteria manager. In the past, they simply had a choice between an apple or canned fruit of the day. Beginning today, the kids had the choice of canned fruit, a banana, a plum, an orange or a choice from three
varieties of apples. WOW!! It was lovely to see all the fresh fruit and the many lunch trays with fresh fruit on it. Even better, most of the students ate the fruit or at least tasted it.It was quite chaotic in the lunch room. Our cafeteria manager had three (3) of her supervisors there. Apparently they got word that I was coming to take pictures today. They all pitched in to help get the lunch ready. Normally we have a total of three adults doing all of the lunch prep and serving. Having six must have been a breath of fresh air for the regulars.
A food delivery service showed up while I was in line. He unloaded three hand-truck loads of frozen food while I ate.
Our cafeteria manager just took it all in stride and didn't skip a beat. I on the other hand was overwhelmed by the whole experience.
As for food today? It was a pretty good day. Soft Taco w/ Lettuce, Tomatoes and Cheese OR a Chef Salad w/ Crackers was served. Beans, rice and fruit were the sides. I picked the soft taco. I couldn't stomach the idea of an iceberg "Chef" salad with beans and rice on the side.
You'll notice that the lettuce, tomato (that's that pinkish/orangey stuff there with the lettuce) and cheese were on the skimpy side. That red stuff in the middle was "salsa", looking just like ketchup. The cost: $2.60
It was suggested that I use some sort of criteria each day to make a fair assessment of the lunch. I will contemplate this idea and get some input from others and may start that tomorrow.
Thanks for joining in the adventure. Come see what we have to eat tomorrow.
Posts
I also have 2 children that attend an OKC Elementary School, plus I also Sub in the OKC Elementary and Secondary Schools. I eat in one of our school cafeterias everyday that I work and I must say that 95% of the time it taste pretty good. My children also elect to eat in the cafeteria rather than bring their lunch from home. Most of the staff where I work also eat in the cafeteria. I guess I don't understand why all the fuss if your child doesn't eat in the cafeteria. By the way, you never did say how your lunch tasted. Mine was very good and the price wasn't too bad either.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like your first day was pretty good! I LOVE the photo of the line. It looks so much more colorful and appetizing than I imagined (the breakfasts I've sat in on definitely did not look at all healthy or appealing). :-) I think your experience will be an education for all of us. Sharlene, my daughter does eat breakfast and lunch at the school profiled here, but multiple times I've tried to pull her out of it for health reasons. My limited time as a single working mom and her wishes have kept her eating there. Even if she didn't eat there, however, I would be extremely supportive of the schools' and parents' efforts to raise nutrition, fiber and freshness of lunches since so many of our kids' access to decent food is mainly through the schools.
ReplyDeleteSharlene~
ReplyDeleteGreat tasting food should certainly be a goal for school nutrition programs, but not at the expense of proper nutrition. Research shows a diet high in processed food and sugar has negative effects on behavior, test scores, and increases chances of obesity and type II diabetes.
My kids don't eat the school lunch, but I care because the 88% of kids in our district who receive free/reduced price meals rely on the district to feed their children. It is vital to their well-being and education that they be served nutritious food.
Great start to your blog! Looking forward to the posts to come
ReplyDeleteLaura, you took the words right out of my mouth! And threw in some more!! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteSharlene, the soft taco I had yesterday was no worse/no better than something I could have picked up at Taco ______ (pick which ever fast food restaurant).
I would rather children be taught that good nutrition doesn't look like fast food. The school lunch is possibly more nutritions than what you could get out, but what happens when our kids leave school?
Will they believe that all soft tacos are nutritionally the same? I bet they will. The kids can read, do math and write, but they don't know how to choose food that is good for them.
How sad it'll be that we have generations of nutritionally ignorant kids.
The rice, the beans and the meat on that tray all came from a bag that just has to be heated and then served. there really is NO actual cooking going on in the kitchens. It is all processed, heat and serve foods. . .
ReplyDelete