Focus on the Guest, Get the Goldie
Last week, several of us traveled to the Big Easy for Menu Directions, a national conference on food trends for foodservice operators. We were excited to glean new menu tips and techniques, but we were also eager for the Goldies awards presentation. A new award in the industry, the Goldies are given to operators that demonstrates excellence in key elements of foodservice. And we knew we were in the running.
It was not my first time in New Orleans, but it was my first time back since Katrina. The city has maintained its reputation for fun, and when we arrived, Mardi Gras was only a week away. At the airport, our cab driver warned us that the pre-Mardi Gras parade was taking place from noon to 4:00 pm. He might not be able to drive up to our hotel, he warned. Sure enough, we had to hop out early and lug our luggage a half block. As we made our way to hotel, the parade was, indeed, on. We even caught several flying beads (better to catch them than to be hit in the head with them). Things were definitely looking up.
The conference put on several great workshops on menu topics ranging from barbecue to South Asian fare. Chef Ida Shen from UC Berkeley did a wonderful job presenting her workshop on South American street food. The one that I was most interested in attending was on Cajun cuisine. The speaker, Marseille Bienvenu, was an excellent storyteller. Cajun cuisine is country cooking, she told us. It uses locally available ingredients, and preparations are simple. An authentic Cajun meal is usually a three-pot affair, with one pot dedicated to the main dish, one dedicated to steamed rice, skillet cornbread, or some other grain dish, and the third containing whatever vegetable happens to be plentiful. In Cajun cooking, onions, celery, okra, and peppers are prominent. So are pork and crawfish. And rice is used everywhere. Later on, we tasted gumbo and jambalaya at Mrs. B, a local restaurant where President Clinton has dined. The food was flavorful but not too spicy.
Back to the conference: The Goldies were presented at the last event on the last day. Sponsored by Food Service Director magazines and The Culinary Institute of America, they are designed to give foodservice operators and their teams the opportunity to showcase the many ways in which they achieve gold-standard quality within their establishments. We had submitted several entries with great confidence, but one never knows.
At the beginning of the presentation, the host admitted that there were several great entries for the awards’ inaugural year. He began announcing the winners, and we all leaned in to listen for UMass. Finally, our name was announced for the Focusing on the Guest award. I jumped for joy. We won for “putting students first and committing to service excellence.” The judges cited our efforts, including a student ambassador program, a family dining program, weekly specials, cooking/baking 101 education, and welcome bags, which we issued to 4,500 freshmen on move-in day. Whew!
Here’s a link to the video presented at the awards. http://www.foodservicedirector.com/video-library.html#/gold-3/
Oh, I almost forgot to mention: we are offering our own version of Mardi Gras on Tuesday March 8th. I wonder how our Cajun cuisine will compare to New Orleans’. But this time, it isn’t about competition. Let’s just celebrate by enjoying delicious food and having fun. Bon appetit!
This is Ken Toong. Thank you for keeping UMass Dining at the top.
Contact Ken at ktoong@mail.aux.umass.edu
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