Dining.tamu.edu
October 2016 Edi7on
An Inside Look: April
• Letter from the VP of Operations • Workplace Safety Tips • Tailgating recipe & much more!
Howdy Chartwells @ TAMU Team,
1st
April
5th
• Learn How to boost your immune system • Tips about working successfully as a team Birthday Breakfast! Cleaning • Spring HR reminders Help us celebrate all Company wide cleaning
event. Bring in any dona<ons (cans, clothes, shoes, electronics, etc.) Bring all items to HR.
First of all, thank you all, for an exciting and well executed opening. The last six weeks have been action packed with the previous year’s transaction count records falling to the wayside. In fact, every operation is running higher counts over the previous year which none of us thought would be possible.
April
11th
birthdays for the month of April with a birthday breakfast! 9am-‐10am
April
15th
per day and our little Aggie Express-Pavilion
Friday Fanday Monday Kickstart breaking 2,000 transaction count already. Wear a t-‐shirt from your All employees join the in the favorite s ports t eam! Great Food Special shout outs must go to the following operations: conference room for and an service leading the charge You might have more in acrossgoal-‐seOng all of the operations inspira<onal • MSC & Rev’s: Their newly refreshed operations look terrific, the new common with your lecture. 10am-‐11am menus and the food being served has been outstanding and the coworkers than you think!
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staff executing at a very high level. Congrats to the team for In addition, let us all congratulate our newest currently serving 20% more guests than last year in MSC upper level. operations, Starbucks-Corps LLC and Smoothie King (MSC Lower) for a successful opening. Underground Food Court: Wow!! Chick-fil-A , Houston Street Subs, The Starbucks operation is beautiful and the Papa John’s and Smoothie King all firing on all cylinders, shattering staff is doing a great job. Sincere thanks to last year’s record opening. Newly extended days and hours of Heather and her team. operation are surely meeting the needs of this neighborhood. Ag Café: Rev’s Express, Chick-fil-A and Which Wich have experienced As I close out this brief recap, let me again a large jump in volume, making for a very busy and cramped space, thank you for all of your support. Your yet the team has stepped up and made it happen for our students. commitment to serving the students is Thank you team Ag Café, you are greatly appreciated. applauded and your dedication to the campus Duncan & Sbisa: have shattered old records, with some meal April Luncheon periods at Sbisa serving over 2,000 meals and Duncan hitting the short of amazing. Looking forward to Earth Dnothing ay Join us in the break area ALernoon company a great October and hopefully cooler weather. 2,500 mark nightly. You all are nothing short of Amazing. You should for a catered luncheon. mee<ng held outside! be proud of your accomplishments, I know we are. Our thank you to all Games and snacks employees for your hard-‐ Most Sincerely, Satellite Retail Operations: Every café, Starbucks and Aggie Express provided. 3pm-‐4:30pm work! Noon-‐1pm has witnessed great results. Small units such as Pavilion Grill and Leland Rapport Azimuth handling 600-800 guests Vice President of Operations
April Events
April
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youfirst NewsleKer / October 2016
22nd
April
27th
Fall HR Reminders
By: Scott Bauer, Human Resources Manager We are deep into the semester and our days have been filled with football and many weekend guests. All of us have been working hard to ensure we provide the best experience possible to our guests. With that in mind, we need to be mindful of our own needs. Many of you have served years on this campus and some of us just a few short weeks. No matter our job title, our unit or the number of years we have worked in Dining Services, we continue to be one family, dedicated to the same purpose: to be the place where hungry minds gather and to feed the aggie spirit. We are making changes in Dining Services to improve how we relate to our guests and to each other. YouFirst has been re-created to focus on each of us as we go about our day, looking for opportunities to encourage, engage, and celebrate our individual and collective successes. The AMP (Associate Mentor Program) pilot is gaining momentum in the units as we strive to help our new associates feel welcome and confident in their new roles. As each of you continue to work hard, remember to celebrate along the way. Focusing a little more attention on each other will ensure that we are equipped to take care for the needs
When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going By: Don Koshis, Director of Operations
Welcome
to October! Too often when things get tough, people tend to find someone to blame for the situation. Remind yourself not to blame anyone for your situation or your problems Don’t blame anyone for your situation or your problems. An empowering step to reclaiming your life is taking responsibility. Which brings us to the phrase “when the going gets tough, the tough get going”. You are all tough and you can all make a difference. However, it starts with you and taking responsibility for your actions. The start to taking responsibility is proper planning. How many days is it to Christmas? How many paychecks until Christmas? Take a couple minutes and plan your needs for the upcoming, gift-giving season.
youfirst NewsleKer / October 2016
October is Here!
By: Courtney Hill, District Marketing & Guest Experience Director This year we have more meal plan holders than ever! We are serving thousands of meals each week and the Aggies keep coming back for more. THANK YOU! Each of you plays a key part in making sure that every meal is special, and for that you are appreciated. Despite serving a record number of customers, our team members are still smiling! Working as a team is the first step towards providing great customer service. Being willing to help others, despite having your own checklist, is a feat that all of our team members take on every day. It is always encouraging to see our managers and their team working side by side to accomplish our goal of serving every Aggie in a timely manner, providing quality meals and giving top-notch customer service; That is a recipe for a stellar experience! Keep going! October is upon us and as the air turns cool and holidays approach, keep doing what you do, because you are doing something right! Maybe you can pick up an extra shift at work and use that money to save. Proper planning will be a start in the right direction to be prepared because “when the going gets tough, you will be the tough that got going.”
Focus on Workplace Safety
By: Karen D. Tomas, Director Quality Assurance and Safety
I would like us all to take a moment to STOP, THINK, and ACT. This is the root of our associate and manager safety training. These days, it seems our accidents are compiling, instead of declining. The beginning of each new school year we add several hundred new associates in our dining units. Most are new to their positions and surroundings. We all need to work together to help keep the workplace safe for all. This is why all associates will receive the Passport 9 Workplace Orientation training provided at each unit.
Do you know who your Safety Champions are in your unit? Have they been introduced to you, through a weekly training, or maybe a pre-shift meeting? Do you know where all the required protective personal equipment is located? If not, please request the information. Get to know who your Safety Champion is, as they are there to help YOU and keep the work place safe. That’s right, it is everyone’s responsibility to ensure every day that we all use safe work practices. I thought we all could be reminded of the GOLDEN RULES of SAFETY and help each other out daily. Do you remember what we need to practice each day? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
LIFTING - Never lift more than you can comfortably handle, ask for assistance SHOES - Slip resistant shoes ARE MANDATORY CUTTING – Cut resistant gloves ARE MANDATORY CLEANING – Clean up spills and hazards immediately, use the wet floor signs HEAT – Use only oven mitts to grasp hot items, not towels or other articles GEAR – Wearing protective equipment isprequired around all schemicals, orlemon hazards. • 1 pound eeled/seeded buQernut quash, • equipment 1/4 cup fresh juice TAKE 5 – 5 minutes to stop and clean up 1debris in4 your cut into /2-‐inch cand ubes spill (about cups) location• regularly. 3 tablespoons flaxseed oil
Recipe of The Month:
Lacinato Kale Salad With Roasted Squash • • • •
3 tablespoons extra-‐virgin olive oil Sea salt Freshly ground black pepper 4 large shallots, thinly sliced (1 1/2 cups)
Lessons from Successful Teams By: Cody Begg, Director of Operations
• 1 1/2 bunches Lacinato kale, washed and paQed dry • 4 ounces aged goat cheese, shaved or crumbled • 1/3 cup toasted hazelnuts (1 1/2 ounces), roughly chopped
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place squash on a parchment-‐lined baking sheet. Fall is officially underway in Aggieland! Thousands and Drizzle with 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, and sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt and pepper; thousands of fans will flock to our community for a toss well. Roast un<l golden brown, tossing halfway through, about 45 minutes. chance to see our football team compete to win! Watching the Aggies can be exciting and fun or can be 2. Meanwhile, place shallots on a parchment-‐lined baking sheet, and drizzle with painful if they decide to not operate as a team. remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper. Individual performance get the Aggies a victory. It Roast un<l brown, tossing halfway through, about 30 mdoes inutes. takes the entire team to do their jobs for success. 3. In a large salad bowl, combine lemon juice, flaxseed oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a Our are different a csports team. job is pinch of pepper. Cut 2 inches off bunits oQom of kno ale, and slice than leaves rosswise into 3No /4-‐inch more important than the next and we certainly could ribbons (you should have 12 cups loosely packed kale); add to salad bowl. Toss kale not afford not fdo jobs expect to be with dressing, squeezing un<l leaves are someone soL. Let stand or atheir t least 30 mand inutes. successful. Our unit’s success and the pride in our 4. Add vegetables, cheese, and nuts comes to kale. from Toss wevery ell to csingle ombine. facility person on the team caring about the success of the team and contributing in a positive way! Whether you are a sports fan or not, we can all learn and understand from one of the greatest leaders in the game….We are all better off as a team!
youfirst NewsleKer / October 2016
Serving Others Isn’t Always Easy By: Bethany Erwin, Director of Operations for Catering
Boost Your Immune System By: Chanika Moses, Dietitian
Eating right is a major contributor to staying healthy. Here are 5 foods you can eat right now to boost your immune system. 1. Citrus Citrus fruits are packed with vitamin C. Believed to increase the production of white blood cells, C is essential for fighting off infections. The cold fighting cold standardthis powerful antioxidant helps eliminate free radicals. Best sources include citrus, peppers, tropical fruits, tomatoes and spinach. Supplementation with the vitamin may be helpful, but it’s always best to receive the vitamin from its natural source. 2. Ginger Ginger is thought to work much like vitamin C in that it can even stop a cold before it starts. That said, it’s also a great food to reach for after you’re sick. Ginger can have a little heat due to the gingerol, a cousin of sorts to capsaicin—the stuff that makes chili peppers hot. It’s the “kick” of the gingerol that can even act as a strong soothing agent. 3. Broccoli Like spinach, broccoli is another great vegetable choice packed with antioxidants and vitamins. With vitamins A, C, and E, broccoli could easily be one of the healthiest vegetables you can put on your table. Just like with spinach, cook it as little as possible to retain its nutrients. 4. Yogurt Look for versions with several strains of live active cultures. These beneficial bacteria help maintain intestinal immune function, which can reduce your risk of getting sick. Yogurt can also be a great source of vitamin D, which can also help boost the immune system. 5. Almonds When your immune system needs a boost, vitamin E sometimes loses the spotlight to vitamin C, but both are crucial for a healthy immune system. Vitamin E is fatsoluble, which means fat is needed in order for it to be absorbed properly. You can get almost all of your daily allowance of this vitamin by reaching for a half-cup of almonds. How easy is that?
youfirst NewsleKer / October 2016
We are in the service industry; here to help people with a need they have, but what happens when you aren’t in the mood, or when you’re having a hard day? How does this trickle to your guests and those around you? Think about the last <me you received good service at a restaurant or a retail loca<on. How did this effect your mood? Did it go unno<ced? Now, think about the opposite and you had a bad experience. You are responsible for so much in your day to day interac<ons and it is almost never easy! Serving others not only extends to our guests, but our team members. Extending this service can help the team become stronger. A stronger team means a stronger family and work community. One that not only goes above and beyond to give our guests a great experience, but gives our Chartwells community respect and allows us all to grow. It is not easy to always put on a smile and “fake it <ll you make it,” but the rewards of inves<ng yourself into your surroundings will reap abundant rewards.
Tailgating Time By: Marc Cruz, Senior Executive Chef
It is that time again! Load up your tents, grills, smokers and games, because football season is here. What goes along with game day? Tailgating!!!!! Unable to score those game day tickets? What better way to spend time with family and friends than creating your own. With us well into our season, our Aggies are looking tough! So, to celebrate with our team here is a great recipe to make with a Tex-Mex twist on a meatball sub, Gig ‘em!!
youfirst NewsleKer / August 2016
Tex-‐Mex Meatball Sub Ingredients • • • • • •
1 pound meatloaf mix (ground beef, pork and veal ¼ cup finely crushed tortilla chips 1 large egg, beaten ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro. Plus 3 sprigs ¼ cup finely chopped scallions, plus more for garnish (optional) 3 cloves garlic; 1 minced, 2 smashed
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3 teaspoons ancho chilli powder 2 teaspoons ground cumin Kosher Salt 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 2 cups canned fire-roasted diced tomatoes 4 crusty sub rolls, halved and split open Diced avacado and crumbled mexican cheese, for garnish (optional)
Directions • Preheat the oven to 350. Mix the meat, tortilla chips, egg, chopped cilantro, 1/4 cup scallions, minced garlic, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, and salt to taste in a bowl. Roll into 16 small meatballs. • Heat the olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the meatballs and lightly brown, turning as needed, about 5 minutes. Add the smashed garlic and the remaining 2 teaspoons chili powder and 1 teaspoon cumin; cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, cilantro sprigs and 1 1/2 cups water and season with salt. Bring to a simmer, then cover, reduce the heat to low and cook until the sauce thickens and the meatballs are tender, about 15 minutes • About 5 minutes before the meatballs are done, toast the rolls in the oven. Place 2 roll halves in each of 4 shallow bowls and top with 4 meatballs. Drizzle with sauce, then pour the remaining sauce into the bowls. Top with avocado, cheese and/or scallions, if desired.
youfirst NewsleKer / October 2016
A candlelight vigil is held every October at the Bonfire Memorial in memory of the Aggies who lost their lives in the bonfire accident that occurred in 1999.
There’s a Spirit can ne’er be told …
Remembering September 11th, 2001