A new food truck and other additions will be expected throughout the school year

As the seasons changes, perhaps Perry Pumas can give thanks to the new food truck that will be implemented into school lunches. Finally, students can feast on an array of foods that deter away from the stereotypes of typical school lunches.

“Nosh + Nomad” (to eat and to roam) is the name of the new food truck proposed by Aramark. Being a fully licensed food truck, it will be arranged to visit all five major high schools by the end of this month, once a week!

Director of food and nutrition, Jenny Bracamonte, said her goal is to provide more variety to students. “We specifically made it not dedicated to any specific cuisine, because we know it’s going to the same venues all the time. So, we wanted to change up that menu.”

With that being said, Aramark is looking to work with up to 12 different menus, meaning that the options available will change each week.

The Chandler Unified School District spends nearly $150 thousand on food each week for its 46 schools, this includes boys and girls clubs, along with the ICAN positive youth program; all profits go back to the district School Food Fund, Bracamonte said. This fund is crucial for the innovation of these new additions: they pave the way for advancements, options, and higher quality foods for students.

The food truck’s purpose is to provide more effective services and to give students a retail experience that will give them options to choose what they want.

“Lunch is like the one time you get a day to really just relax and be yourselves and hang out with your friends, and I want to enhance that,” Bracamonte says.

While this new service’s timeline is vastly approaching, other new changes will be taking place among campus. Bracamonte will be working to create aesthetic changes to the cafeteria and to introduce the new “Java City Coffee,” which will be constructed within the cafeteria.

All of these services must meet the Smart Snack guideline, which has created certain specifications regarding a la carte food options for students and the health regulations put upon them.

Although specific health guidelines must be appeased, its purpose is to give students a more convenient way to receive a quality coffee, rather than obligating students to go off-campus. Java City Coffee is currently experiencing some delays among construction plans, so students can plan on its opening later in the school year.

Also, a grab-and-go option has been presented through a product on demand service and will be constructed later within the school year. While there is no specific date on its construction, Bracamonte explains how she would be interested in working with CTE classes through the development of the POD system and Java City Coffee.

“I’d really love to partner in some way with the CTE classes because I don’t want to pull from their sales at all, I want to be a good partner to them,” Bracamonte elaborates.

With these advancements, Aramark is not looking to take away from any programs on school. Bracamonte explained how she would be open to any partnerships to further the high school experience for each student on campus.

The goal of each of these innovations is to help enhance the student body’s lunch experience. Students will be able to push away their chicken patties and turn their hungry eyes towards more appetizing option