Fully stocked salad bars, themed meal stations and lunches modeled after trending restaurant dishes with flavors like hot honey and Sriracha are making their way onto school lunch menus. Students can nosh on sides like hummus and quinoa, build healthy bowls and choose “clean” options without allergens.
“School lunch has come a long way from mystery meat covered in gravy,” says Tina Wasserbauer, manager of nutrition services for Rocky River schools. “Our food is amazing and it’s healthy — we are using the same brand-name products you would get at a restaurant.”
Let’s face it. What’s for lunch is a big deal.
Here’s a taste of modern school dining menus and updated cafeteria settings.
Rivaling Local Restaurants
Rocky River High School opened its brand-new kitchen and expanded dining space last year with reconfigured seating — round table, high-tops, benches — a bright atmosphere and a food station serving concept. Upping the mealtime game is key. After all, the cafeteria basically competes with local restaurants within walking distance since an open campus for upperclassmen means older students can duck out for lunch.
“Our biggest thing is keeping our finger on the pulse of what is going on in restaurants around us and looking at food trends every couple of months to see what students are eating when they are out with their families,” says Wasserbauer.
At $3.55 per lunch, meals include an entree, a choice of side dishes, fresh fruit and salads with milk. “It’s the best deal in town,” she says.
Like many schools, Rocky River is part of the National School Lunch Program, which requires meeting nutritional and cost guidelines. There’s a strict budget, and introducing new dishes takes creativity.
“We are helping kids see the value and make meals interesting for them,” Wasserbauer says. For instance, walking tacos are a fan favorite: snack-sized bags of whole grain tortilla chips for students to add ground beef, salsa, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes and black beans.
One station is stocked with grab-and-go prepackaged entree salads including grilled chicken and a hardboiled egg, or just the veggies. Students can always buy a la carte burgers, side dishes, yogurt parfaits and snacks like pretzels and popcorn.
And on Fridays, it’s breakfast for lunch. Wasserbauer is excited to soon introduce a slush puppy machine with 100% juice treats in flavors like apple and pear.
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A Student Union Vibe
The new Howley Commons at Gilmour Academy feels more like a student union for middle and high schoolers — an open concept with a range of themed food stations to suit every taste. “We were trying for more of a college feel along with providing healthy food options and variety to meet students’ nutritional needs,” says Ryan Ryzner, chief advancement and operating officer.
The Smoke and Fire station is stocked with grilled favorites like pulled pork, turkey breast and burgers on a rotating schedule. Home Styles serves up comfort foods like breaded walleye or an elevated mac and cheese with fresh sides. Trattoria offers pizzas daily with basic cheese and flavorful options like buffalo chicken, meat lovers and vegetarian.
Gallery is a trendier station with customizable bowls, and NutriBar is packed with salads and toppers. For those with allergy concerns, Clarity includes foods that are free of the top nine allergens along with vegan-friendly dishes.
Ryzner reports long lines on taco bar day, and echoing students’ appetite for the KFC Famous Bowl-inspired mashed potatoes and poppers combo. While the favorite is hearty, he also reports students’ growing interest in nutritional information that they learn about on flat screens at each station. “Students are more conscious of calories, fat and the choices they are making,” he says.
Scratch-Made Served Fresh
An expansive salad bar at University School is stocked daily with hydroponically grown lettuces, fresh veggie toppings, a variety of proteins including plant-based options and 20 different specialty salads — wheatberry, salmon, quinoa, whatever’s trending. Students can select from eight different dressings and sauces like Sriracha.
“It’s not just salad. Students can make a whole meal,” says Valerie Scruggs, food service director at University School, noting that students are much more interested in trying different flavors and foods than even five years ago.
Scruggs collects ideas from menus when she travels and follows dozens of foodie blogs. And she also listens to students’ suggestions, walking the dining room during mealtimes.
“Food is love made visible” is an example of a quote that Scruggs types at the bottom of monthly lunch menus that include dishes like Mediterranean bowls, pulled pork and oven-roasted chicken cacciatore.
University School offers a plant-based protein alternative every day, such as a Beyond Burger or vegetarian paneer, a soft Indian cheese.
The Twelve Days of Hummus during the holidays is a hit, with flavors spanning from beet to sweet potato and garlic lemon.
“Sure, we have popcorn chicken,” says Scruggs. Kids asked for Philly cheesesteak, too. “But we have days with Blue Ribbon Meats chicken cut to a half-inch size that we roast and serve with Vindaloo (curry) sauce on basmati rice.”
Introducing International Flavors
The student population is increasingly diverse and so are flavors coming out of kitchens in Lakewood City Schools, which is also part of the National School Lunch Program. Jacob Green, dietitian and supervisor of nutrition services, has been on a mission to roll out new, appealing dishes while balancing cost and labor.
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A couple of big wins include chicken tikka masala, a curried dish with chicken, spices, onions, tomatoes and herbs. A premade sauce makes assembling the meal a realistic feat, and long lunch lines show Green that it’s a keeper. He also introduced General Tso’s chicken and a baked chicken drumstick with three-cheese cavatappi, two more favorites.
Green is spreading the word about what’s cooking in Lakewood on a nutrition services Instagram page, and he implemented a new online menu system that allows families to set filters for allergens and other ingredients.
A hydroponic growing station has been added, thanks to a Grow Ohio Grant. “Students will have an opportunity to learn about the growing process with the eventual goal of incorporating some of the produce into school meals,” Green says.
Good For U
On Mondays after class, Carter Loeser sets up his Good for U Smoothies and Milkshakes stand in the cafe at University School. The venture is part of The Anderson Scholars Program, which helps students explore business.
Loeser, 16, an athlete, wanted to offer a nutritious avenue for students to fuel up before practices or other extracurriculars. He settled on smoothies and launched with his parents’ Kitchen-Aid and Vitamix blenders and two flavors: strawberry peanut butter and strawberry banana.
He tracked students’ tastes and swapped out the PB for a tropical option, eventually landing on a chunky monkey with chocolate, peanut butter and banana.
Social media marketing teasers have grown the business, and now Loeser offers Not So Good For U shakes like mint chocolate chip and Oreo.
“It adds a layer of convenience for students,” Loeser says.
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