Posts Tagged ‘tcu’

Sodexo Chef Turned Teacher

Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012

Quantity Food Production is a course that students at Texas Christian University in the Department of Nutritional Sciences are required to complete before graduating.  Traditionally, this class is taught in the classroom, with built-in lab time in the kitchen.  However, in 2005 the Sodexo management team came up with a great idea to deliver more value to the school, as well as the students of TCU. 

This dream to partner with the University became a reality in Fall of 2006, when Sodexo began to play a key role in the Quantity Food Production class.  The Department of Nutritional Sciences agreed that the class would continue to be run by an instructor, and that Sodexo would teach the class one day a week in the classroom, and provide the students with weekly hands-on experience in the kitchen.  By working in the kitchen with the Sodexo team, students were able to experience firsthand what it was like to prepare food for an audience of high quantity.  The students of the Quantity Food Production class worked right along our Executive Chef and employees to gain the skills and knowledge that they would one day need to work in the field of nutrition. 

Teacher & Exec Chef Charlie Guajardo shares tips with his students on cooking for large groups. For more photographs, click on the picture above.

In the classroom, students have access to Sodexo’s Food Management System (FMS), and are able to build their very own recipes that will be prepared in the school’s kitchen, and then externally, for rest of the student body to enjoy later in the semester.  The General Manager, Marketing Manager and the Executive Chef all take part in teaching the classroom portion of the class.  While in the classroom, students learn about scaling recipes, building menus, handling special diet needs and how the operation is run.

This partnership between Sodexo and the TCU Department of Nutritional Sciences has been going for five years now, and we hope that it will continue for many more.

Kelly Raw is a marketing manager for Sodexo’s Campus Services Division.

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Not Your Parent’s College Dining Experience

Tuesday, April 12th, 2011

Click the photograph for additional photographs.

Campus dining has come a long way in the past few decades however, the Sodexo-run Universities in the Dallas-Fort Worth area have gone to the extreme to provide students with more than just fun and food when they come into the dining hall. 

Chef Michael Dahl has visited several accounts in the district and served “Xtreme S’mores” to the students coming by for lunch.  What makes a s’more extreme?  Chef Michael lights a marshmallow on fire using a blow torch, sprays it down with dark chocolate using a spray gun, and then passes it to the student for them to dip it in the fresh fruit toppings of their choice, all in the middle of the dining hall. 

“‘Xtreme S’mores in the Dallas Baptist University cafeteria was a blast! It was so much fun to see the chefs at work, and get the chance to interact with them. 

“I was having a stressful day with school, so this was such a pleasant surprise, not to mention that the s’mores were delicious”, says sophomore Katie Vineyard of Dallas Baptist University.  But it doesn’t stop with flamin’ s’mores.  At Texas Christian University, Chef Charlie Guajardo has come up with “Tastes Around the World”, a series of themed weeks in the dining hall that feature different cuisines from specific regions across the globe. 

So far, Chef Charlie and his team have prepared calorie consious Mediterranean, Far East and Caribbean dishes for the students of TCU.  “Tastes Around the World gives the students an opportunity to step outside the box and try food from a region or culture that they may not have tried otherwise.  This also gives us a chance to see which dishes from these regions are most popular among students so that we can incorporate them into future menus”, says Chef Charlie. 

Having culinary experts like these make it easy to make every day a better day for students in Sodexo dining facilities.

Kelly Raw is a district marketing coordinator for the Sodexo Campus Segment.

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A Sodexo Meal Made for Steel

Saturday, February 5th, 2011

For more photographs of Sodexo's special day with the Pittsburgh Steelers, click the picture above.

In the lead up to the Super Bowl, The AFC Champion Pittsburgh Steelers practiced in Fort Worth, Texas. They utilized the Texas Christian University athletic facilities before heading over to Cowboys Stadium in Arlington to play the Super Bowl.  Sodexo had the privilege of providing catering services to the team and staff during their practice week.  

Most people would think that professional football players preparing for the Super Bowl would be loading up on heavy carbs and proteins during the days leading up to the big game.  However, the Pittsburgh Steelers surprised the TCU Sodexo catering team when they picked mostly salads, grilled chicken, hot pastas, deli meats and smoothies at their catered lunches this week. 

Players such as Troy Polamalu and Hines Ward skipped the macaroni and cheese and went straight for the broccoli, lean meats and smoothies. 

When the NFL contacted our Sodexo catering team to begin menu planning, they stressed the importance of having nutritious and well balanced meals available to the team.

The players also showed some serious interest in the cookie dessert station as well (who wouldn’t?!)  “One important thing I learned after lunch on day one was that Ben Roethlisberger likes his cookies extra chewy, we made sure to get that right on day two,” said Sodexo Catering Chef Sergio Salinas.  With practice just hours after lunch, these men of steel knew how to eat right. 

What does it take to feed lunch to the Pittsburgh Steelers?

 7   lbs of salad
54  lbs of grilled chicken breast
18  lbs of fresh, cold deli meats
12  loaves of bread
19  lbs of prime rib (carving station)
15  lbs of broccoli
13  lbs of mashed potatoes
17  lbs of macaroni and cheese
47  fresh fruit smoothies
3   gallons of chili
2   gallons of chicken tortilla soup
31  lbs of sundried tomato & pancetta pasta
3   gallons of lemonade
2   gallons of sweet tea
3   cases of water bottles
230 cookies

Wow that’s a lot of food! For a look at Sodexo’s team feeding Pittsburgh’s team, click here.

Kelly Raw is a district marketing coordinator for the Sodexo Education Segment

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