Weeks 1-3: The Shaky Beginning

HOW'S IT GOING Y'ALL? Kevin Huang here, new dietetic intern/CPMA student from the OUHSC. Why is this a shaky beginning? Well, because this post is covering 3 weeks! Geez that's a long time to wait to post, but I have an excuse... I'm a terrible person and have the memory of a goldfish. Also, I was getting sick, moving apartments, going to weddings—cut me some slack! Luckily, I've been working with one of the most accommodating preceptors there is... Ms. Dot Flowers! She started off my first week busy, with a rotation at Couch Restaurants. Under the guidance of General Manager Sam Ford and Operations Manager Marcia Musser, I did my best at making stir-fries and taco bowls. However, the supervisors could only do so much, but I think the end result was alright... nobody threw up (at least that I saw) and I got some repeat customers the next day! Week 1 also included heading to the kitchen side of operations and prepping the meat and vegetables for Casa del Sol. My years in food service and the restaurant business definitely paid off these first two days and we got done with most of the prep work early. My last 2 days in the Couch Restaurants consisted of helping Executive Chef Nathan Eckert, also the Production Manager, finalize, standardize, and input Couch's delicious top secret recipes into his filing system.

Week 2 was a surprise. I was transported to Hogwarts where my next rotations would begin. Well... I was sent to the Residential Colleges, but these beautiful buildings were so reminiscent of the halls of Hogwarts, and they even had a sorting system with 2 houses: Dunham College and Headington College. These were NOT here when I left OU as an undergraduate and I am so disappointed! According to General Manager Chase Wiens, the two houses are Gryffindor and Ravenclaw (his words were social and studious). Here I inherited opening duties like restocking the breakfast supplies, overseeing and helping the opening staff, and shadowing the Operations Manager, Doug Milliken, who taught me the responsibilities of running a new operation like the Residential Colleges dining hall. This week ended with a return to the Couch Restaurants under Kevin Barker for a safety and sanitation inspection and wouldn't you know it... Sam, Nathan, and Marcia run a tight, clean ship. Any and all inadequacies were promptly dealt with and amended.

The hectic rotating finally settled on week 3. This week saw me helping Dot with her Allergy Awareness at the Oklahoma Memorial Union. While setting up, Dot taught me that these events were imperative due to many students/faculty not knowing about the services OU offers concerning specialty diets. Dot and others in her department help students/faculty with Celiac disease, allergies, and other dietary requirements, providing on-campus dining locations to restaurants that meet their specific diets. This specific events focused on vegan, gluten-free foods free of the top 8 allergens. There were also free samples of olive oil brownies, a vegetable agrodolce, and italian sweet-and-sour sauce, and a one-pot spaghetti that were surprisingly delicious!

Dot Flowers, Ingredient Specialist, and her agrodolce.