Gunn High School, October 20, Chef Gerald Hirigoyen

Following the success of our first Palo Alto Tasting Week event in October 2011, a few volunteers are embarking on a project to improve the Hot Lunch program in Palo Alto.

After several meetings with PTA presidents, consultants specialized in school lunches, restaurant chefs, the California Farm to School program, the slow Food movement, the District Food Services and several friends who share the same passion for the topic, I am happy to share some positive news. Alva Spence from Sodexo and Cathy Mak from Palo Alto Food Services are willing to partner with us on this initiative but we will need significant parent, student and staff support to make it successful.

Terman, October 18, Chef Bruno Ponsot

Here are some ideas we are considering for the Palo Alto district:

• Introducing new healthy and tasty entrees twice a week starting January 2012
• Moving to seasonal fruits and vegetables through the Buy Fresh Buy Local program
• Launching a sandwich deli bar in high school
• Launching a pilot project to cook from scratch in high school
• Changing the design of the lunch queue to increase adoption of healthy and tasty items

We are looking for a group of volunteers to help us with the initiative, which I would like to call the “Palo Alto Tasty Lunch Initiative”.

Lavanda, October 22, Wine Event

If you are interested in helping with consulting on menu selection, communication within your school, student involvement, fundraising, lunch room organization, farm to school relationships, and more, please send me a quick note indicating your interest. rebecca@tastingweek.com