The cafeteria food that we eat every day, prepared by Quest Food Services, is amazing.  And yet, most often, when I hear students talking about the cafeteria, they are complaining.  I am not here to say that our cafeteria is perfect, just that it makes some pretty fantastic food for us on the daily, and that I am grateful for it.

I started eating school lunches when I was in the third grade. Dining in the Sheridan Café, I was brought the daily hot lunch on a rectangular red tray, because students of my age were not allowed in the cafeteria for another year.  Mostly, I remember eating hot dogs. They weren’t very good.

In the following years, our cafeteria transitioned into a contract with Quest Food Services, which has undoubtedly raised the caliber of our lunch food to high above the standard.  And yet, students still complain.

In fact, I rarely hear anything about the cafeteria except complaints.  Mostly, I hear students gripe that the bagels are stale, that the sandwiches aren’t varied enough, or the salad bar was missing chicken today.  Not only are these complaints often unfounded, but they neglect to notice how wonderful our cafeteria actually is.

Personally, I cannot recall a time when the my bagel was stale.  Perhaps these students are confusing stale with what an actual bagel should taste like, as opposed to a Sara-Lee facsimile.  Even if someone does get a stale bagel once in a while, the general caliber of bread at the cafeteria is fantastic. I cannot think of many restaurants, let alone other school cafeterias, which have their own yeast cultivation. On top of that, we consistently get fresh and delicious baked goods, from zucchini muffins to gluten-free brownies.

The alternate meal options for students who are unconvinced by the daily hot lunches are impressive.  There are two secondary hot lunch sandwiches that vary consistently. I have had many delicious paninis that were made right in front of my eyes.  

Besides, what other school offers fresh sushi every day?  Our fridge is replenished daily with food that requires careful storage and preparation, yet another testament to the quality of our cafeteria.  The employees have to take very particular measures to ensure the safety of their students in order to serve us foods like sushi, and they put in that effort just to make us happy.

For students that are still unsatisfied, the cafeteria continues to test out new options all the time.  Recently, they introduced tuna salad sandwiches and BLTs, as well as fruit cups with pineapple and cantaloupe.  I have loved both of these options, and get them both for lunch almost daily.

I’m not here to say that the cafeteria never gets things wrong.  Personally, I was disappointed by the removal of the keypads for entering account codes when paying.  Typing in my code while the person ahead of me was still paying was far more efficient than reciting my four-digit code to another person in a bustling and noisy room.  Things like this can still stand to be improved, but I am happy to put up with minor inconveniences in exchange for delicious food.

If you still feel the need to complain about the cafeteria, I would recommend utilizing the Food Council which can actually affect our daily lunches.  If you actually want something to change, your best bet is to send your recommendation through a formal channel so that your message will be ensured to reach the right people.  For those who doubt bureaucracy, you can also always talk to the cafeteria staff yourself, who I’m sure would love to hear what they students have to say, as long as we say it respectively.  

The cafeteria we have at Parker is truly fantastic, and I think we tend to forget it.  Without question, the cafeteria is where I get some of the most delicious and thoughtfully prepared lunches, and the entire cafeteria staff deserves praise for them.