Smoothie Wishes and Sushi Dreams: Meet the Experts that Can Make it Happen

Have you ever wondered how the folks that manage the dining halls serve three meals with such variety a day? How do they ensure the food is appropriately steaming hot or chilled? Where do they source their ingredients? General Manager Robert Freeman and Executive Chef Charles Wooding manage a team of over 50 staff members with one goal: to feed all 1,500 Lawrenceville students, faculty, and staff three times a day.

 Wooding starts his day at 8:00 AM and leaves at 7:30 PM when the dining hall closes for the evening. The menu, partially inspired by Wooding’s family traditions, is planned a month in advance on a four-week cycle with local, seasonal ingredients incorporated when possible. The staff utilizes “batch cooking,” a method where items are cooked at the moment they are needed to maximize efficiency and limit food waste. “This keeps fresh food on the line at all times,” says Wooding. He also tastes the dishes before they are served “to make sure the flavors are correct,” and ensures that all students get the valuable nutrients they need from each meal.

The dining staff manages a yearly budget for the meals, and adjusts it based on student dining preferences. Each week the facility uses 60 lbs of butter, 450 lbs of pasta, 125 gallons of milk, 160 slices of bread, 18 flats of strawberries, and 140 dozen eggs! Freeman stresses that the staff tries to “source as many local products as possible” in accordance with Lawrenceville’s sustainability initiatives. Excess food is often donated to local pantries such as Share My Meals, Trenton Food Bank, or is composted.

Aside from cooking, Wooding and Freeman have enjoyed getting to know the student body and their dining preferences. Wooding actively solicits feedback; if he ever sees a student walk away with a less-than-full plate, he wants to know what went wrong, and how to create dishes that are more appetizing for the student. Additionally, Freeman and Wooding are eager to continuously improve Lawrenceville’s dining experience. In an ongoing initiative, the team collaborates with the Sustainability Council to implement wok bar stations, panini presses, dairy alternatives, “healthy” preparation methods, and vegan/vegetarian/gluten-free stations, in response to community feedback. During Dinner in the Dark, the annual Valentine’s Day collaboration with Sustainability Council where the lights in the dining hall are dimmed to set a festive vibe and reduce energy usage, students were surprised by a root beer keg with vanilla ice cream, a chocolate fountain, and a unique “cup-of-dirt” dessert concoction of chocolate mousse, gummy worms, and crushed Oreos. These fun enhancements to the dining experience are just a taste of what is to come.

Freeman, Wooding, and the entire dining staff look forward to indulging students with their culinary expertise and giving them a chance to make their own creations. The next time you walk into Tsai Commons, you may be delighted to see a pizza oven for your custom pie!  Keep sharing your ideas and comments: the culinary team aims to please and our taste buds are hungry for a scrumptious adventure.