MIT: Week 4 Recap

Good afternoon, fellow interns!

Last week was a whirlwind, but we learned so much, and it didn't even seem like work! On Monday, we began a project with Chartwells that we would be working on all week, which is in charge of five different retail locations contracted under MIT dining. They have many different options for food, my favorite being the Stata Center, where they have a sandwich station, many hot food options ranging anywhere from Mediterranean fish and veggies, stuffed red peppers, or baked macaroni and cheese. I have always been thoroughly impressed with the quality of the food there!

Ray and Maria Stata Center-most interesting architecture I have ever seen!

The project consisted of documenting inventory of small-wear and equipment such as silverware, serving bowls, pan warmers, coffee dispensers, sheet pans, etc. We went to each Chartwells location and recorded the quantity and name of each item. It was interesting to learn the official title of each piece of equipment, rather than the generic name most of us have always known! After collecting all of the information, we used "Hubert" sales catalogs to record pricing ranges for each piece of equipment. This experience was very eye opening for us, because it shows how costly a business start up would be for even the most basic equipment, and a big reason as to why many restaurants go under. Management skills are key in this process to ensure smart buying and budgeting. 

While going through the inventory, we came across some old bikes that were used for a raffle. Don, the director of Chartwells higher education, who we were working with on this project, said that we could use the bikes this summer! They are definitely different, but hey, it's free transportation!

Susan and I with our new wheels

We also stopped by the MIT farmers market to choose the fruits and vegetables we would be highlighting in our piece for promoting fresh produce! This week will consist of selecting and storing produce: basic tips for shopping at the farmers market. Next week, we will begin highlighting the foods, by providing recipe cards and health information about the specific fruit or veggie! I am so excited for this project, and I am thankful for my HNF 353 class at WVU, because we did something very similar to this for a grade! 

The best part of the week was our "field trip" to Russo's. This is the store that provides all the produce for the MIT farmers market. The business was started 75 years ago by Antonio Russo, which is the current owner's father. The family is immersed in helping farmers all over the world. It was literally the biggest produce market I have ever seen. We got the grand tour from Victor Moreira, the office manager. They have 40 food trucks that go around Massachusetts every day, delivering to restaurants, schools, hospitals, etc. They have items other than produce, however, the marketing strategy they use keeps fresh foods at eye level, and packaged merchandise from other vendors on the bottom of the shelves. There is also a bakery in which most breads and desserts are made on site daily! 

Notice the placement of the merchandise!

The warehouse size cooler that stores all fresh produce!

We got to meet the owner, Michael Anthony Russo (Tony), and he gave us a bouquet of Peonies! Left to right: Kelsea Gusk (the RD for MIT Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center), Susan Ledgister, Tony Russo, myself, Michael Myers, and Victor Moreira (office manager at Russo's)

For more info, check out the website: http://russos.com/

Thanks for reading! More posts to come!