Every morning at 6:30 A.M.,the IHS chefs come in, unlock their equipment, prep their stations, and begin the work of cooking for 1,500 high schoolers. Behind the cafeteria line, the salad bar, and the hot food is the true behind-the-scenes look that few get to experience.
The kitchen is around a fourth of the size of the indoor cafeteria and features large tables for food preparation. Working in front of them are the incredibly talented chefs Dottie, Linda, Nicole, and Sue. The room is like our small, home kitchens, if you were to triple the size of the ovens, tables, and even mixers. Dottie tells the story of a giant four-foot tall mixer stationed in the corner of the main room being turned up a bit too high: “Flour, everything went all over,” she recounts, “which covered the whole side of the floor and myself.”
Dottie and at least three other chefs arrive to school early to prep everything for the day, cooking fresh food in between lunch periods so everything we eat is guaranteed to be straight from the oven. But their lives aren’t always at work.
Sitting down with Dottie, Linda, Sue, and Nicole, I questioned them about their own personal interests, favorite music, and hobbies, to which Sue replied “golfing, gardening, and swimming.” Linda laughed, yelling, “I love everything!” Dottie shared her love of dance, country, and rock music, while Nicole loves her kids, a sentiment shared by all of the IHS chefs. “That’s really what I focus on when I get to spend all my time with them,” says Nicole on her kids.
Next time you go through the lunch line, make sure to say thank you to the servers and chefs of IHS who make your lunch every day. A few tips for getting on well with the staff: know how the system works, always look at the menu beforehand, and never get caught wearing your headphones in line. Take a bit of effort to make their jobs easier and remember to always appreciate them for their work, because we’re so lucky to have such talented people feeding us every day.