Re-do gets Nutritional Sciences cooking
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| A renovation of Nutritional Sciences' kitchens includes high tech touches such as an electronic screen that floats down from the ceiling for the occasional PowerPoint presentation and desktop computers with Internet access |
Fort Worth, TX
11/5/2009
By Kathryn Hopper, TCU MagazineA renovation of Nutritional Sciences' kitchens includes high tech touches such as an electronic screen that floats down from the ceiling for the occasional PowerPoint presentation and desktop computers with Internet access
Gone are the laminate counters and Nixon-era white stoves, replaced with granite-like countertops and stainless steel.
“What we had before was built in the ‘70s,” said Nutritional Sciences department chair Anne VanBeber. “Before it looked like the old ‘Leave It To Beaver’ set, everything was old and everything looked old. Now everything is new.”
The re-do includes high tech touches such as an electronic screen that floats down from the ceiling for the occasional PowerPoint presentation and desktop computers with Internet access.
Located on the first floor of the Anne Richardson Bass building, the renovated space includes two kitchens, also called food preparation labs, with a pantry, laundry room complete with fold-down ironing board and office for the department’s lab assistant, Sarah Hernandez.
One kitchen has six food preparation stations with a small lecture area for those PowerPoint lectures plus a demonstration gas griddle with a state-of-the-art fire suppression system. The second kitchen underwent a more radical renovation, allowing for four food preparation stations plus a central space that can accommodate a class of 18 – providing much-needed additional space for the department, VanBeber added.
Larger industrial freezers and a pantry with open steel shelves make it easier to find ingredients used to prepare dishes during classes.
The renovation added shelves for backpack storage, a separate laundry room complete with fold-down ironing board and an office for lab assistant Sarah Hernandez.
The second lab area added tables, which enables the space to double as a classroom for the first time.
The renovation also included spiffing up two patios adjacent to the building, adding pavers and improving access with additional doors.
The improvements also brought the space into accordance with the Americans With Disabilities Act including lowering kitchen countertop heights for those in wheelchairs and doing away with steps down to the patio areas.
So far, the new space has gotten rave reviews from alumni and current students.
Kelcey Albrecht, a junior nutritional sciences major, said the new kitchens are better organized and easier to navigate.
“They offer two different types of stoves, gas and electric, so you can chose which one to use so that’s really nice,” said Albrecht, who was busy cutting up sweet potatoes in VanBeber’s “Meal Management” class.
“It’s absolutely incredible,” said Aaron Mullenix, a senior criminal justice major minoring in nutritional sciences who was sautéing pork medallions in a cherry sauce. “Everything’s brand new and so clean and nice. It’s really been really great so far.”
Read more in a TCU Daily Skiff story.