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The bite of the Hutch
Variety, flexibility, on-site preparation, encourage
repeated visits to cafeterias
By BARBARA BERG
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`The biggest request we get
from our customers is for more variety,' says Food Services Manager
Jan Oliver, overseeing the Double Helix Cafe during the weekday
lunchtime rush.
-Photo by Gordon Todd
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Crisp taco shells filled with crunchy salad greens and
slices of rich avocado, served with zesty salsa.
Hearty shepherd's pie overflowing with seasoned meat and vegetables
topped with creamy mashed potatoes.
Spicy phad thai noodles in a salty-sweet sauce sprinkled with
chopped scallions.
Are you hungry yet? Jan Oliver hopes so.
As the new manager of Hutch Food Services, Oliver and her
staff of 21 face the daily challenge of devising tempting entrées
like these to keep the patrons of the Double Helix Café
and the Club Met Café the two Center cafeterias she supervises
satisfied and coming back for more.
"Our goal is to serve the needs of the Hutch so people
don't have to go elsewhere," Oliver says.
Her arrival last April coincided with a Center-wide survey
soliciting feedback on Food Services.
An outside perspective
"We decided to look at some of the suggestions that had
been proposed and make some changes," says Oliver, who has
more than 20 years experience in food services.
"Our direction is also influenced by the fact that I
was an outsider coming in with a different perspective of what
I'd like to see in a food services operation."
Espresso bar draws 500 customers a day
Bleary-eyed in the morning or looking for a quick wake-up
in the afternoon, about 500 customers each day line up for their
double talls, short nonfats and soy chais at the Double Helix
espresso bar.
Following a taste-test this fall, the Helix last week changed
coffee vendors, making the switch from Starbucks to Torrefazione
Italia.
In addition to espresso, drip coffee and tea, the espresso
bar does a lively business selling home-baked and commercially
made pastries and bagels, virtually selling out its stock each
day.
As a start to diversifying the food options, Oliver implemented
new lunch entrées, switched coffee brands at the Day Campus
espresso bar, expanded the choices of fruits and vegetables and
soon plans to offer hot breakfast foods at the Double Helix.
The changes have prompted increased sales at both cafeterias
the last few months.
"Jan is energetic, enthusiastic and a real dynamo,"
says Linda Kleingartner, director of Operations who hired Oliver
based on her background and can-do attitude.
Each weekday, the Food Services team feeds lunch to more than
1,000 Center faculty and staff who crave variety, reasonable
prices and (sometimes) healthy choices for their noon meal.
With a scarcity of affordable nearby restaurants and on-site
options making it easy for staff to squeeze in a quick meal,
Oliver has a relatively captive audience of regular patrons.
Still, keeping the fare high-quality and appealing is a key
priority.
"The biggest request we get from our customers is for
more variety," Oliver says. "People want their standard
fare and more interesting choices."
Ethnic, rotating entrées
Oliver uses a rotating menu cycle and has added more ethnic
entrées, including Asian and Mexican choices, all well-received
by customers. She also tries to use a seasonal approach incorporating
as much local produce as possible to menu planning.
Food Services staff take notice of which entrées are
a hit with customers to ensure that popular items stay on the
rotating menu while those with low consumer appeal are dropped.
ON THE HEALTHY SIDE
A big challenge, says Jan Oliver, Food Services manager,
is keeping food options healthy. Fresh produce and low-fat entrées,
is an unwritten rule at eateries operated by an institution whose
studies have documented that healthy diets cut cancer risk.
"We've added three salad options each day in addition
to the usual salad bar," Oliver says, and vegetarian
or vegan entrées are available daily.
Her team posts the fat content of two soups offered
daily and can supply customers with the nutritional content of
about 70 percent of their prepared foods, using a computer
program that figures values based on ingredients.
"We usually plan on 100 to 125 servings of each entrée,"
Oliver says, "but some new dishes we've served have been
extremely popular. When we offer taco salad for lunch, for example,
we sold almost 200 servings."
Virtually all food hot lunch entrées as well as to-die-for
cookies is prepared on-site, keeping the mornings busy for Oliver's
staff, some of whom arrive at 5 each morning to begin baking.
Ease of new batches
Advance preparation of cold ingredients makes it easy for
Food Services staff to whip up another batch of a popular entrée
while helping to prevent waste by not cooking too many servings
in advance.
Unused ingredients that have been prepped at the Double Helix
can be used in another entrée or might be used to make
the same entrée for the Club Met Café.
Minimizing food waste is a high priority, but when there are
lots of leftovers such as after the Hutch barbecue in September
Food Services donates the surplus to a women's shelter or feeding
center for the homeless.
Keeping waste to a minimum is but one way Oliver keeps costs
down.
She belongs to a purchasing group that negotiates with vendors
for competitive prices, and by no longer publishing her menu
several weeks in advance in Center News she takes advantage of
last-minute specials. Weekly menus are listed on hotlines (see
page 7) and published on the Food Services web site.
Prices at the Hutch-operated venues are not set to make a
profit but to reflect costs of ingredients and labor. Oliver's
eventual goal is to recoup her annual operating budget of about
$1 million.
Although Hutch cafeterias are non-profit eateries, they are
subject to the same health regulations as any restaurant, and
cafeterias are inspected quarterly for cleanliness and proper
food handling.
"Our last inspection was two weeks ago, and we scored
100 percent," Oliver says.
New espresso bar, cafeteria
In addition to managing operation of two cafeterias and an
espresso bar, as well as overseeing vending machines, Oliver's
group caters breakfasts, luncheons and snacks for Center-sponsored
meetings on the Day and Met Park campuses.
Future duties will include managing an espresso bar at the
new administration building, set to open in early 2001, and a
cafeteria in the new PHS building, to open in 2004.
Despite serving hordes of hungry customers at lunch and sometimes
half a dozen catering requests each day, service at Hutch cafeterias
and the espresso bar is unflaggingly cheerful.
Several of Oliver's staff are longtime Hutch staff, and many
are quick to learn customer's names and finicky food requests.
"This is the best staff I've ever worked with,"
she says. "Our success is truly a team effort."
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