Page 11 - FIS_World_May_2015

A Delicious Assignment
Discovering the FIS Cafeteria
As a child I was never allowed school lunches. Instead, my mother sent me to school every day with a sandwich, crisps and a chocolate biscuit. But the more I watched the sour-faced dinner ladies serve colourless slop to my classmates, the less I felt that I was missing out.
So, when my son came home after his first week at FIS and said that the meals were great and his dessert was delicious, I was skeptical.
FIS’s main cafeteria caters to approximately 670 customers a day. That means a meal is served every 5.5 seconds at lunchtime! Obviously my son’s new-found school lunch enthusiasm was misguided. The meal had to be junk food, and my son brainwashed.
To see for myself, I chose to go boldly where no man – or at least a new parent on assignment – had gone before: into the cafeteria for a week’s worth of lunches. School food, hundreds of screaming youngsters and grumpy staff – it was going to be miserable, or so I thought. In fact, the staff were friendly and regularly wished me ‘Guten Appetit.’ The students were well-mannered, pleasant to talk to and helpful. It was a vibrant place to eat, but with approximately 350 people for each of its four sittings, could it be anything less?
Even though the salad was fresh every day, I felt I should sample the cooked meals. I was pleased that I did. I enjoyed all of them but the “beef strips in soy sauce” was the week’s highlight. In addition to cooked meals, the cafeteria offered fresh sandwiches, a varied and appetizing breakfast buffet, and a wide range of snacks and drinks for purchase. I was forced to concede that this was in no way “junk food,” and my son had not been brainwashed after all.
I spoke to the school’s cafeteria manager Mrs. Franzika Krüger, who explained that each day her aim was “to provide a proper, healthy, hot lunch for students, and therefore make life easier for parents.” Achieving this, however, is a balancing act as students want burgers, pasta and French fries, while their parents desire healthier choices. As a whole, the school sides with parents and strives to provide meals that conform to nutritional guidelines.
All in all I think the cafeteria achieves its aim of providing students with a variety of tasty choices, while still offering a healthy dose of nutrition. School food has improved dramatically since I was a student. Perhaps if my school had served food of a similar standard to FIS’s, I would have felt that I was missing out after all.
Tony Winch, FIS Parent
Meals eaten:
Monday: Nürnberger Sausages, mashed potato, gravy and cabbage
Tuesday: Turkey strips in creamy gravy served with rice and green beans
Wednesday: Turkey Roast with cream sauce, roasted potatoes and broccoli
Thursday: Breakfast / Beef strips in soy sauce, Asian vegetables and basmati rice
Friday: Oven baked fish fillet with white sauce, potatoes and broccoli
fis Cafeteriaby the numbers 121,270
meals are served during a school year
5 hours prepartion
2 hours lunchtime
2 hours clean-up 012345
Every
5.5 seconds a meal is served during the
two hour lunchtime period
590-750
customers daily
10 staff: six full-time and four part-time
October 2015 FIS World 9