I never realized how much thought and planning went into feeding the college students here at Cornell University but this was emphasized after Chef Daniel and Paul Muscente explained some of the initiatives and day-to-day efforts that go into Cornell Dining’s program.
One thing that really impressed me was the fact that they were actively seeking any input from the students, and that they were extremely receptive to prior suggestions. One student thought it would be advantageous to put the cookies far away from the fruits because they were easy to grab on the way out. I immediately saw Chef Daniel write down the suggestion. This past week, I noticed that the cookie plate moved. It was clear that Chef Daniel and Mr. Muscante are invested in the students. Moreover, it was important to me to hear how willing they were to work with students with allergies, given that I have several.
I am happy to know that I am in good hands when it comes to my food. These two people made it obvious that the food is high quality, fresh, and tasting good.
I too never realized how much planning went into the dining service and how receptive they were to student input. Usually I would expect a big organization, such as dining program at a large university, would have very standardized ways of doing things that would be difficult to change. However, Chef Daniel and Paul Muscente made it clear that they are reaching out for feedback and demonstrated that with the changes they made immediately following the discussion!
The Chef’s are also extremely receptive to allergies. I suffer from Celiac Disease, which prevents me from eating anything with wheat or gluten. It’s always refreshing to be able to go into the dining hall and see Chef Daniel perfectly happy with boiling gluten-free pasta, rather than be annoyed with the extra burden of having to prepare something else.