Do your residents ever see the chef in your community dining room?
My friend’s brother returned home to the States after 50 years of living abroad. “Nearly all of those years were in Puerto Rico where he owned a very successful business. Now his health was failing and he yearned for the land of his youth. Our family was a multi-generation of chefs and cooks. Our other brother also owned a restaurant at one time. Our father was a chef and during the depression he cooked in an institution as did my mother’s mother. My mother did a lot of volunteer cooking for fund raisers.”
She continued, “During a brief stay in the hospital, the first time since his youth, my brother was quite surprised at the food menu offered. He was equally surprised that he had a choice and the actual meals served were far superior than he expected. Critical comments were all he had heard from others who did have the experience of hospital stays.
“He was so pleased that he wrote on his menu, Thank you for the delicious food you presented. I
am very impressed.
“One of the food servers must have shown it to the chef. The chef came up to my brother’s room to spend a few minutes with the only patient who had ever sent a note to the kitchen. And it was complimentary besides! The visit impressed my brother even more.”
I mention this because a connection was made that is meaningful to any community dining room. Chefs cook because they love what they do. The connection from chef to resident is the connection between selecting and preparing fresh, carefully cooked, appetizing meals to the residents. It is essential for the chef to occasionally step into the dining room to say hello, I hope you enjoyed your meal today. It isn’t necessary to do this every day but it does make a difference. It forms a crucial connection. It brings a personal touch to both the kitchen staff and the residents.
Kind Dining® training encourages forming these connections within the food service team to the residents. Personal appearances by the chef create a sense of trust. The residents will know this chef and his kitchen staff truly care about how his efforts in creating tempting meals are received. Each one matters.
Our B♥ Kind ® Tip: Building connections between your food serving team and your residents is
crucial.