BY ANDREA TORTORA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Greasy french fires, oily pizza and overcooked corn dogs are things of the past when it comes to school lunches.
In this era of counting calories, cutting the fat and eating healthily, schools are serving some surprising meals -- with salad at the forefront.
But kids eat only what they like, so food service directors are finding ways to "lighten" some of the favorites by using leaner meat and low-fat ingredients.
With National School Lunch Week starting Oct. 12, cafeterias are preparing to serve some nutrition education, too.
Students at three schools visited by the Enquirer last week are already well on their way to eating right. And they know what they like.
Johnson Elementary School, Fort Thomas
Corn. That's what Caroline Foellger likes to eat best. On the cob or off, this kindergarten student said she loves corn.
With a plate of macaroni and cheese, a fish sandwich and a carton of milk in front of her, Caroline ate fairly quickly so she could get in line to go to the playground.
"After we eat, we wait for other people to get in line and then we bring our money pouches back to class and then we go outside," she said, holding her Winnie the Pooh change purse.
Classmates Billy Huddleston and Madie Chambers said they like coneys the best. Caitlin Pendery likes her lemon ice. The lunchtime gossip among these three was Halloween. Minnie Mouse, Power Rangers and Snow White are the characters of choice this year.
Teacher's aide Barbara Biltz helps the kindergarten students eat correctly. She squirts the ketchup on their hot dogs and opens their milk cartons before they get to the table.
"I help them just because they're still learning," she said. "And to get them through the line."
The school feeds 399 students from 10:50 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
A table away, second-grader Brandon Noe wiped his place with a cloth and pushed in his chair.
Johnson students earn points (redeemable for extra recess and coupons to Frisch's) for cleaning their tables and using good manners.
"We used to be real liberal and have the custodians clean up after the kids," Principal Henry Beekley III said. "Then we decided the kids should be responsible. It's their school."
First District Elementary School, Covington Sidney Stowers' favorite school lunch is grilled cheese. Her friend Brittany Robertson rolls her eyes when she hears that.
"Grilled cheese? Pizza. I like pizza the best," Brittany said as she, Sidney, Heather Smyth and Shelby Holland ate their meal of hamburgers, lettuce, tomato and pickle, oven fries and cherry cobbler with pudding on top.
The girls like to talk about what they eat. They think the ladies who work in the cafeteria do a good job.
"Oh, oh!" Brittany said, popping up out of her seat. "I like that Jell-O they make and then put a fruit inside of it."
Sidney said she prefers pears.
Little kids, asking for fruit?
It's just what Mamie Brown and Pauline Cappel want to hear. As cafeteria manager, Mrs. Brown coordinates the serving of 220 breakfasts and nearly 500 lunches each day.
Ms. Cappel, whom the staff affectionately calls "Sarge," is in charge of food preparation. At 80, she's quicker on her feet than the grade-schoolers she feeds.
When school started this year with an extra 120 students and all of them started eating breakfast, too, the women had to figure out a way to get everyone fed.
"They've only got 30 minutes to get their food and eat it. With one line, they only had time to take a bite," Mrs. Brown said.
So they started a cold line for cereal, Pop Tarts and fruit and a hot line for eggs and bacon. The kids don't really notice the difference. They just want to know where "Grandma" is each day. That's what they call Ms. Cappel.
Sometimes Mrs. Brown jokes with the students, telling them she locked Grandma in the freezer. That usually elicits a few giggles and then the unsure question, "You're kidding, right?"
Conner Middle School, Hebron
Taco Bell pizza burritos make a pretty good meal when paired with salad, but what sixth-graders really like is the chance to catch up on who's dating whom and which friends are having a spat. The gossip really gets cooking when sixth-graders Kellie Strasser, Tasha Marrs, Ashley Crooker, Chad West, Samantha Dunn, Claude Jones, Tyler and Katie Smith, Cody Perry and Candice Solomon get together.
In a cafeteria filled with all-girl tables on one side and all-boy tables on the other, these friends formed the only group with both. "We all get along," Claude said.
Their favorite cafeteria foods are pizza, chicken nuggets and the burritos. The regular lunch costs $1.35; items on the a la carte line can add up to more.
Samantha took a salad with her burrito, but it was the last thing left on her plate. "My mom makes me eat the vegetables at home. I'll probably eat this salad, too," she said.
But lunch starts at 10:15 a.m. and sometimes the spicy food is a little too much. Tasha and Ashley usually don't eat during lunch. "It's too early," Ashley said. They grab snacks later in the day. Lunch melds into recess and students have to spend 10 minutes in the cafeteria before they go outside. What these students said they like most is the freedom they get at lunch.
In their elementary schools there were rules against talking and sharing food. There were assigned seats.
At Conner, at least among these friends, there is a lot of moving around during lunch. They switch seats around the table to talk to a friend or sit next to their latest crush.
Gossip is the conversation mainstay, but these kids also talk about careers.
Kellie wants to be a teacher. "All the teachers here are really nice and I want to set an example," she said.
With that, the friends headed outside to run around, get some fresh air and gossip some more.
