The DePaul Prep cafeteria has a variety of lunch options ranging from popcorn chicken to mac and cheese to build your own sandwiches. Although many meat based options are favorites, students and faculty need to adjust because of Lent.

During Lent, members of the Catholic Church don’t eat meat on Fridays, so Quest had to come up with an alternative menu for Lent. Quest also wants to see what foods students like and dislike in order to potentially serve after Lent.

It is Parker Kokowicz’s first year as the food service director at DePaul Prep. He works with head chef, Chef Romel, as well as the Quest Corporation to help decide the meals at DePaul Prep. The workers at Quest also meet with the food committee, students, and faculty for feedback. By serving on the food committee, students are able to talk to Mr. Kokowicz and Chef Romeo about current food options and potential menu choices.

“The corporation gives us recipes to choose from that meets the industry standard of all their locations,” said Kokowicz. “A lot of our meals are high protein based and chicken or beef based, so we have to look at recipes that can intrigue students.”

One new addition to the menu during Lent was the ice cream bar every Friday. The student body really enjoyed it, including junior Caitlin Torio. “The ice cream makes me feel happy and simply eating ice cream after a test makes my day,” Torio says.

Sophomore Kiki Novakovic would agree. “Ice cream brings a lot of joy to a lot of people. It means a lot to the student body because the ice cream serves as a reward for all the hard work that we do,” said Novakovic.

The ice cream rose in popularity, but unfortunately, for those who enjoy the ice cream, Quest has decided to no longer serve it every Friday anymore.

If the ice cream is served every Friday, then it won’t be seen as much of a treat as it would when served less frequently. Kokowicz says that the ice cream will come back once the weather gets warmer, but until then, the ice cream will most likely appear in the cafeteria about once a month.

“I would like to keep it to a once a month thing just because it is sweet and we’re trying to keep a healthy variety and healthier options. This will give students something to look forward to,” said Kokowicz.

Torio would agree to Kokowicz’s comment when she said, “I like the balance between the healthy and sweet foods.”

On top of that, it takes Quest a long time to prepare the ice cream as well as serve it on top of normal lunch. They must also account for the fact that there are two dining halls, do they have to prepare double.

When hearing about this decision, Novakovic added, “I understand that it’s a strenuous task, but for what it’s worth, the ice cream impacts the student body in such a positive way.”