The majority of Postechians visit the student dining hall in Jigok Community Center at least once a day for lunch or dinner. Therefore, the hall is always packed with hungry students, and staffs busily run up and down to provide the students with the best food. To acknowledge the efforts put in by those who prepare meals for Postechians everyday, The Postech Times interviewed nutritionist Jo Hyun-young of the Food Services.
What do you do as a Nutritionist?
My main job is placing orders for the ingredients, inspecting them, and developing meal plans, but I also supervise personnel as well as hygiene. I write the menu plan for ‘Freedom’ and ‘Wisdom’–the dining hall for students and the dining hall for university staff members, respectively–every week, and I also manage the overall procedure of developing menus of the new corner at ‘Freedom’.
When do you feel rewarded and happy during work?
I feel rewarded and happy when people compliment me for the food. When students tell me that the food is delicious and that the menu composition is good, such comments gives me the energy to look up new menus and work on.
Are there any hardships?
Since everyone’s taste and preference is different, it is difficult to find the middle point. Some complain that the food it salty, some say is bland; some complain that the food is not tasty, some say that it is not healthy. Finding the balance that can satisfy everyone is rather difficult.
Another difficulty at work is when customers verbally assault us. There are some who talk down on us and some who even use bad language. Moreover, there are people who come up to us and criticize "Why is the menu so appalling when you don’t have anything to do apart from writing the menu?" They say such abusive comments to our faces, and it is difficult to handle such situations as we cannot respond equally emotionally to them.
Is there anything you would like to say regarding the reorganization?
The students were the first notice such changes, and they commented positively on the reorganization; I am happy that they acknowledged such changes and our efforts put into the reorganization.
However, many started writing their opinions and suggestions on the POSTECH’s online bulletin boards, ‘Postech Lounge’ and ‘Suggestions’. If you ask for anonymity, you may express your opinion by writing on these online boards, but please acknowledge that you can come in and talk to us. I believe that writing does not express everything; talking face to face allows us to understand exactly what the customer wants whilst writing can lead to misunderstandings and even hurt one’s feelings. So, please acknowledge that we are not far away and feel free to mail us, phone us, or even knock on our office to talk to us in person.
What would you like to say to POSTECH students?
The culinarians are always thinking about the students and try their best to provide students with delicious food even in poor conditions, so it would be nice if the students acknowledged their efforts. The kitchen is very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter. It would be very thankful if students would acknowledge their efforts and hardships and offer them warm words. Just a short phrase like “I’ll eat well” and “Thank you” makes both the culinarians and I happy and gives us the energy to work on.
