[Photograph: Life's Ambrosia] School cafeteria fare is right up there in the inedible Pantheon with hospital food and airline meals. But there's a great Chowhound thread where people are chiming in with their fond memories of cafeteria food. It's not all bad. While I endured my share of rubbery hot dogs and greyish, sugary "ribs" in grammar school, my California high school cafeteria had a few hits on its menu—like the red-sauced enchiladas that disappeared, inevitably, fifteen minutes after the lunch bell. I witnessed all-girl stampedes over these enchiladas. Stampedes that resulted in disciplinary assemblies. The grilled cheese was great, too (I once witnessed the head cook pouring an entire ladle of butter over three or four sandwiches on...
Continue reading »
Photograph from erinlanigan on Flickr Cafeteria lunches are almost universally horrible. In elementary school, I went home sick a few times after "Breakfast for Lunch" day. In high school, the only non-fried options were wilted salads and half-baked cookies. I am certainly not alone in having traumatic school cafeteria memories. The blog School Lunch Talk has been investigating how other countries feed their children. In French schools, lunchtime is a time to teach students healthful eating habits. A recent lunch consisted of Basque chicken thigh with herbs, red and green bell peppers and olive oil, organic yogurt and an apple. Most interestingly, the meals only cost 6.17 euro per student, but the families pay for, at most, about half...
Continue reading »
Honor thy lunch lady. Photograph from ricko on Flickr Despite the stomach-churning memories you might have of elementary school lunches, The Healthy School Lunch Campaign is around to make sure that mystery meat is healthy, safe, and hopefully edible. The organization formed in 1946 as a response to Harry Truman signing the National School Lunch Act. They've decided this week is National School Lunch Week, which means anthropomorphized mascots like Petunia Pita Pocket and Gloria Grilled Cheese, but also means awareness about what goes onto the little munchkins' plastic trays. (I'll always remember the pizza served in rectangular boxes.) What's your favorite school lunch or lunch lady memory? Bonus: After the jump, an ode to the lunch lady, which...
Continue reading »
Think your school lunches growing up were pretty bad? Check out these questionably edible school lunches from Harrison City Public Schools in Virginia, then decide. Such nutritional delights as Italian Dunkers, Chicken Fryz, and Taco Patties will make your eyes and stomachs bleed. View more of the lunches if you think you can handle it. Some of my favorites are the Taco Tub and the Ham and Cheese Pita. What were your most disgusting school lunches growing up?...
Continue reading »
