NACUFS Internship - Summer 2016: Week 3 - Michigan State University

Wow, week 3 already!? Here are the highlights from this week:

Monday, June 13th
To start our week, we worked at the "Boiling Point" venue in Brody Dining Hall. This station is a made-to-order pasta station, in which customers choose among various vegetables, proteins, and sauces to add to their pasta. I (Dana) was on veggie duty, while Jen heated all the ingredients together. Although somewhat stressful during the lunchtime rush, it was one of our favorite dining stations to work in thus far.

Jen flipping some pasta at Boiling Point

Tuesday, June 14th
Following suit, we worked in another of Brody Dining Hall's venues. This venue, "Dolce," is the desserts section of the dining hall. We began by baking cookies, cutting various cakes, and then plating them for serving. Unlike the other venues which require more cooking, the challenge at "Dolce" is mostly just keeping all the desserts well stocked. While that may seem simple, we were running around quite a bit.

Wednesday, June 15th
We were scheduled to work on the Food Truck; however, the truck was in for maintenance. Instead, we followed the Operations Coordinator, Ryan, through his daily operations in Landon Dining Hall. As the Operations Coordinator, Ryan is responsible for the efficiency of three areas. These areas consist of the operation of the Food Truck, the production/sale of commissary items, and keeping logs of work done in the test kitchen. While in Landon Dining Hall, we observed how commissary items such as prepackaged salads and sandwiches are prepared and delivered, and discussed how the Food Truck would be stocked if it were going out for service.

Ryan then took us to the test kitchen, where some of the culinary interns taught us various cooking skills. In particular, they sharpened our knife skills by teaching us various ways to cut peppers and celery. Additionally, Jen and I also made some roasted tomatoes by baking them and pulling their skin off. It was incredible to see how seriously the culinary staff takes generating new recipes, as they are constantly making and testing them until they get them right.

To learn more of the financial side, we then met with the manager of these accounts, Jay. He showed us how they keep track of all their expenses. It was very interesting to see how since the test kitchen generates no profit, the expenses are made up via other accounts.

Jen sharpening her knife skills!

One of the culinary interns preparing a beet pasta

Thursday, June 16th
The staff at Brody Dining Hall was bustling around as we arrived, as their health inspection was planned for 9am. Upon arrival of the health inspector, Betty, we were told to follow Brody's Executive Chef, Eric. Alongside Betty, Eric guided the health inspection. Eric was responsible for answering any questions Betty had regarding health concerns, and showing/explaining the HAACP procedures in place. Betty would even ask student employees questions such as "What are the five big symptoms of food borne illness?" as we toured, ensuring the dining hall had a prepared and well informed staff.

Unfortunately, we could not see the entire health inspection, as we had plans to meet with the Sports Dietitian, Jessica. Jessica began by explaining how her role as the campus' only Sports Dietitian has grown and changed from mainly being a management role to more of a clinical role, and her current day to day activities. Then, she took us to tour some of the facilities. We saw the athletic training room, the weight room, and the football lounge. In the football lounge, Jessica's interns stock and maintain a "fueling station," where the athletes come to refuel before and after practices. We saw Jessica in action, quizzing an athlete on his intake in regards to their recent consolation, as well as preparing a custom shake for another athlete.

One of Jessica's interns, Michelle, preparing the fueling station

The Football Lounge

Friday, June 17th
Our first field trip! We headed to University of Michigan, the home of one of our football rivals. Of course, we wore all of our Michigan State green Spartan gear, and were teased by some of U of M's students along our tour. However, we learned quickly that nearly everybody at U of M was friendly and welcoming.

We began by touring U of M's newest dining hall in the South Quad. This dining hall was incredible. With 10 different venues, the dining hall serves cuisines ranging from gourmet grilled cheese to crepes. We were able to see both the front and back of house operations, both being extremely expansive and grandiose. While all venues were impressive, I was particularly in awe of the dining hall's gluten free room. Upon checking off "gluten free" on a questionnaire during enrollment, students gain access to the isolated room, where they can enjoy a wide array of gluten free products without fear of contamination. Given how impressed we all were, it was extremely flattering when the manager told us the dining hall was modeled off Brody Dining Hall at MSU!

We were then handed off to U of M's Registered Dietitian, Lindsay. Lindsay walked us over the Mosher-Jordan dining hall, being sure to show us key sights of the campus on the way. Although much smaller, this dining hall was equally as impressive. After touring the front and back of house operations of this dining hall as well, we sat down for lunch. The food was delicious and beautifully plated. I could barely stop eating!

It was obvious that despite being our football rivals, U of M is our culinary ally. It was so nice to have a day to chat and exchange ideas with another successful university dining facility.