Chase Strupp, Reporter
@cstruppcourant
In the past, New Canaan High School has gained state and nationwide recognition for exceptional teachers, high-achieving students, and outstanding athletics. However, much less appreciated is the quality of the cafeteria and the food offered to students. The cafeteria’s attention to detail and the variety of healthy options has earned it recognition for being best in state and 22nd best in the country.
Principal Bill Egan is very proud of having a top-ranked cafeteria, but is not surprised considering the reputation of our school and all those who work to make it possible. “New Canaan High School is one of the best high schools in the country by all standards, however, there is a certain pride that comes with knowing that we also have one of the best places for students to eat,” Principal Egan said. “This community takes tremendous pride in everything that it does, so why not have one of the best cafeterias.
Unlike many school cafeterias that offer more fried food than nutritious options, Principal Egan believes that what separates New Canaan from others is the wide variety of meals to choose from. “The amazing array of quality food choices sets our cafeteria apart from other cafeterias,” Principal Egan said. “If you do not like the daily hot selection we have a wonderful deli with quality meat that is comparable to any deli in any town in America. Our cafeteria staff truly cares about giving our students and staff excellent meals.”
Sophomore Jackson Douglas, who recently attended from Coe-Brown Northwood Academy in New Hampshire, agrees that the New Canaan High School cafeteria offers better lunch options than other schools he has attended. “The food here is much better and the kitchen space is about four times as large as it was at my old school,” Jackson said.
Jackson has found that the typical lunch at NCHS is higher quality than in New Hampshire. “Here you can make your own sandwich, pick from a selection of pre-made sandwiches, have the meal of the day, go to the salad bar, or pick from chicken nuggets or grilled cheeses,” Jackson said. “You cannot believe what a drastic change this is from my previous cafeteria. The typical lunch was a selection from rather unhealthy choices, like fried chicken, pizza from the local Papa Gino’s Pizzeria, cheeseburgers, with the best option maybe being a bacon cheddar panini; none of which seeming to have very fresh ingredients.”
Meanwhile, senior Will Hooks attended the private college-preparatory Salisbury School last year, which offered gourmet meals, but realizes that New Canaan provides very good food for a public school. “The food at prep school was vastly better than the food at NCHS for the obvious reason that it is prepared by a chef and they are serving smaller amounts of people,” Will said. “But I really like the range of food that you can choose from here at NCHS, especially the salad bar because it is the most consistently healthy choice.”
Aside from the food, Jackson likes the convenience and flexibility that the cafeteria allows by serving food all day. “In New Hampshire, the cafeteria was only open during lunch, while NCHS’ is open from the morning until beyond school hours,” Jackson said. “This is awesome because it allows me to choose from a range of breakfast options when I do not have time to eat at home, and I can buy a snack before sports.”
