Over the summer, Cathedral Catholic High School made a momentous switch in food vendors from Sodexo to CulinArt Group, hoping for better freshness, new foods, and varying menu options.

Ms. Carolyn Sturz, Business Manager at CCHS, played a large role in the transition from Sodexo to CulinArt. Ms. Sturz oversees the financial aspects of CCHS under the direction of CCHS President, Mr. Laaperi.

Ms. Sturz said that Sodexo simply wasn’t meeting CCHS’s repeated requests for better, healthier food options.

“It was just not great food for a great price,” Ms. Sturz said. “We were looking to freshen it up. We asked them to do it, and it didn’t happen to the level that we wished it to be.”

After surveying the market, CCHS found CulinArt Food Group, or rather, CulinArt chef, Ms. Linda Gallucci.

“When an opportunity came up for this school, I came by and took a look at it first and said, ‘Wow, this is a beautiful campus!’” Ms. Gallucci said. “I took the job basically because I liked what the campus looked like.”

Ms. Gallucci is no stranger to food or school campuses. After working as director of nutrition for several area hospitals, applying her skills as a certified dietary manager and trained chef, she began her work with high school food service provider CulinArt, looking for a change from the sometimes dismal hospital environment.

“I wanted to step out of the hospital environment and into an environment where there is more vitality,” Ms. Gallucci said. “I definitely see that here.”

Originally from the East Coast, CulinArt is a multi-state company familiar with higher-end institutions. In addition to providing a refreshing change in food for CCHS, Ms. Gallucci also oversees food distribution at high schools like Francis Parker School and Serra Catholic High School.

Ms. Gallucci’s goal with CulinArt is to provide menus with options and flavor, something other than chicken tenders and French fries.

“We want people to be able to grow in their tastes for other items and try new things at a very reasonable price,” Ms. Gallucci said.

One way that CulinArt hopes to do this at CCHS is through the “Pop-up Kitchen” every Thursday in the quad. Each week, something different will be served for students to sample for their lunch.

If it’s a hit, then Ms. Gallucci said, “ [CulinArt] will turn around and maybe look at doing it once a week instead of once a month.”

However, Ms. Gallucci wants to remind students that the food business is a learning process for everyone, and adaptations are being made all the time to make the entire eating experience more pleasurable, ensuring repeat customers.

“If we do some of our specials again, we may need to modify it again to better satisfy our customers,” she said.

So far, some of the most popular items have been the rice bowls, which come in three different renditions: chicken teriyaki, beef broccoli, and for those who are vegetarian or vegan, spicy tofu. Paninis are also  popular.

The CulinArt team would like to work on getting all of the students who wish to buy lunch through the lines as quickly as possible so they can eat their lunch within the lunch time CCHS provides. This presented a challenge earlier in the year for CulinArt. Wait times often extended so long that some students were unable to buy or finish their lunch.

“The lines were a bit longer in the beginning of the year, and it was hard to get through the lines in time [enough to eat lunch], but they’re getting better,” CCHS senior Sean Carr said.

After recognizing the problem and learning how to increase their efficiency, CulinArt has made it one of its highest priorities to get students in and out as quickly as possible.

“Right now we have it down to basically feeding everyone within about the first 15 minutes of lunch,” Ms. Gallucci said.

This is possible because CulinArt instituted a new line for faster purchases and so the lines to buy meals do not clog up.

“People that kept coming up after we got everyone through the line were just looking for little extras,” she said. “ At the express line, we serve cold sandwiches, drinks, and snacks. It’s where you go so you don’t have to stand in line.”

Despite problems in the beginning of the year, according to Carr, it seems that CulinArt’s dedication to its customers and commitment to freshness is paying off.

“Even since the beginning of the year, quality of the food has gotten a lot better and the variety in choices has increased,” Carr said. “So, I definitely like CulinArt a lot more than Sodexo.”

CulinArt still has eight months to prove themselves, but so far, it seems the company is here to stay by student demand.