Thanks to the Affordable Care Act and an increasing emphasis on healthier eating, healthcare foodservice remains in the spotlight. These operators not only feel the need to increase the quality of the food they offer but their menus have to be healthier and more diverse than ever before.
With a unique event space situated 100 feet above and 100 yards into the Atlantic Ocean, this Atlantic City-based operation features an extensive from-scratch menu consisting mainly of locally sourced ingredients. "We're probably the only venue in South Jersey that makes all of our dishes fresh," says head chef Bill Fausey. "We are a farm-to-table establishment."
The Sodexo team at Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center in Houston wanted to provide an upscale menu rarely seen in healthcare settings. It did just that with the cuisine at Medical Plaza North Café, which serves employees working in a 27-floor office building, various medical office buildings and at the hospital.
Made-from-scratch menus featuring locally sourced ingredients prepared with mobile cooking and holding equipment continue to drive catering foodservice sales to new heights.
A T-line for tray assembly allows peak meal output for more than 1,500 meals a day with notable enhancements to food quality and a reduction in waste.
Americans must hold on to their hats to weather the wild ride the country has been taking since the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Healthcare foodservice professionals are responding to the ever-changing environment with creative solutions for containing costs; generating revenue; providing responsive, high-quality, patient-centered care; introducing wellness-focused initiatives; and applying information and machine technology to enhance efficiency and improve the quality of food and service. Add to this finding ways to work within consolidated healthcare systems and this year promises to present unprecedented challenges.
Evolving cook-chill may seem like an oxymoron to some foodservice operators whose experience with this technology hasn't been positive. But at Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus cook-chill has evolved with much success and praise.
Who says charity and philanthropic work don't have anything to do with being green or sustainable? In fact, they have everything to do with this more conscious way of running a business.
Food has always taken center stage at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, N.J. Tony Almeida, director food and nutrition, believes in raising the bar as part of the healthcare facility's culture.
From identifying new talent to dealing with shorter project lead times to managing customer and supply chain relationships, today's foodservice professionals face no shortage of challenges that can lead to many sleepless nights. So we at FE&S asked a handful of industry leaders to discuss the issues affecting their businesses and segments.
Offering patients food selections similar to the ones that appear on retail menus continues to gain popularity at hospitals across the country. Patients at the 550-bed University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Medical Center now have the opportunity to choose from menu items that are also available at the various restaurant-style concepts in the center's retail cafes.
Entrepreneur Mark Samuels of Nimbus Eco shares his thoughts on how restaurants and other commercial foodservice operators can serve their customers responsibly.
Hospitals operate 24/7, meaning there is always staff on hand and someone, either a staff member or someone visiting the facility, is usually looking for something to eat or drink. To help meet that need University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics operates a licensed Starbucks Cafe that's open 24/7.
Designing a restaurant is one thing. But developing a concept for a restaurant in a park? That's a whole other story entirely.
It isn't unusual for a restaurant concept to be reinvented. It is less common, though, for a foodservice operator to jump into an entirely different segment. This is what happened with the Raleigh, N.C.-based business now known as Rocky Top Hospitality, which has gone through many incarnations in the last 16 years.
Questions from FE&S Cook-Chill Webcast Answered by Panelist Paul Hysen, FACHE, FAAHC
President, The Hysen Group.
