My name is Rosie Meyer and I am very excited to be interning this summer at UNR! I am originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin but have spent the last four years completing my Bachelors of Science Degree in Dietetics at the University of Wisconsin- Madison (GO BADGERS!). Throughout my time at UW- Madison I worked for Dining and Culinary Services in various units and have spent the last two years as a Student Supervisor. Through my work and my courses I discovered that I have an interest in school foodservice programs and knew that the NACUFS internship would be a great way for me to explore my interest and gain more management experience.
I arrived in Reno last Saturday (May 31st) with my mom, we flew from Milwaukee to Las Vegas, then Vegas to Reno. Surprisingly there are slot machines in the Las Vegas airport, that was interesting to see. When we arrived in Reno we were greeted by Russ Meyer, associate director for Housing Operations and Dining Services. I got a sign and everything! Ironically we are both R. Meyer, but that is besides the point.
We took a quick tour of places around Reno that I may be interested in, dropped my things off at my dorm, Argenta Hall, and then headed over to my mom's hotel downtown, Circus Circus. After napping and relaxing for a bit, my mom and I decided to check out the casino which was in the bottom part of the hotel. I have never been to a casino before and I did not know what I was getting myself into. The place went on and on, with restaurants, games, shows, you name it, I probably saw it! We ended up finding a sushi restaurant which we thought was a good idea, but it was also a combination mexican restaurant. Long story short, I don't feel the need to go back to a casino for a long time! The next day we spent exploring down town, looking at shops, and going to a farmers market.
Monday was my first day of the internship. I spent the day touring the various facilities, meeting everyone, and learning about their company. Unlike UW- Madison, whose Dining and Culinary Services are self- run operation, UNR runs its food service through a contracted company called Compass Group. Compass Group includes many other well known contract companies like Bon Appetit, Wolfgang Puck Catering and many more. It serves a wide range of markets from education, to vending, to healthcare, and everything in between. A division of Compass Group, called Chartwells, runs UNR's foodservice program. Because where I had worked in the past was a self-op, I have been learning a lot about how differently a foodservice operates when it is under a contract company. On the outside, the dining halls look very similar, but the inner workings are very different.
Tuesday through Thursday I spent working with the catering department, called Silver and Blue Catering. I got to know the operation by talking with Kyle, the director of catering, and Lori, the catering coordinator. We talked a lot about how they make a contract for an event, and what sort of detail they put into their events. I was surprised to find how much attention they pay to each of their clients, which I believe lends to their success on Campus. An ongoing contract that they have is with the National Judicial College located on campus where Judges from around the Nation, and globe, come to take classes on specific things. Each day they cater their meals for the judges that are in class that week. I got to work with Michael and Rod, who run the set up and service for the judges each day. Because I have worked in catering before I picked up a lot of things very quickly, but I did learn a lot about what Michael calls, "visual clues." Visual clues help you to remember what you have done and what you haven't done and give you an opportunity to succeed in busy or hectic times. I learned through my years of work in foodservice that it is easier to always train as if you are really busy so when the time comes you know what to do. Michael was very adamant about this concept. He also let me drive, and dock the delivery truck, TWICE! It was a miracle that nothing bad happened, so now I can officially say I can drive a delivery truck!
I also got to work in the catering kitchen with Doug, the head chef, SonCha, and Sandra. We worked to prepare a dinner for the Board of Regents and then a tea party for Special Events. It was great to be in the kitchen since I love cooking! I learned about how Doug runs his kitchen and the steps he takes to prepare for an event, timing wise. I also got to take a look at inventory, and spent quite a while searching around the dry storage room for various items.
Though I have worked in foodservice, I have never had the opportunity to see the billing process. Lori, the catering coordinator, showed me the ins and outs of what she does in the office. I learned how to make a contract, how to bill the proper people, how to make invoices, and many other things. Lori is very good with numbers, which I am not, so I had to concentrate pretty hard to keep up with her. But all in all I think I got a good foundation as to the inner workings of the finances behind catering.
Friday I got to get my feet wet in the retail world. I worked briefly with Chuck to do an overview of what he does and took a quick tour of the Overlook Cafe, one of UNR's retail units. I worked with other employees learning their cash register system, which is way different than the one that I was used to making me extremely slow on the register. I also learned how they make their espresso drinks and their smoothies. I will be working more with Retail over the next couple weeks where I will learn more about their operations.
Overall it was a great week getting to know everyone and working with Silver and Blue Catering!
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