okay, with 10 caterings under my belt this week (and some postponed due to weather), i can finally breath and prepare for the weekend. lots of fun things going on at the capitol food court..introduction to new pastry items such as cherry turnovers, creme filled long johns, and apple fritters. breakfast business picking up rapidly... about to dive into the baking business and incorporate cupcakes and sheetcakes to my menu and catering offerings. thinking the lamb gyro will be sandwich of the week starting monday and big time caterings next week which will either fatten my pockets or add more gray to my hairline, only time will tell.
anywho, bit of useless knowledge to share with you but of course, being the trivia lover that i am, i found quit interesting. if you have ever visited the wv state capitol, perhaps you have noticed the mythological figures in carved heads over the entrance doors. for those of you who have, i have identified them after many wrong guesses with coworkers. if you haven't seen them, be sure to check it out. dynamic beauty to show off at the state capitol....
west entrance to east wing
Juno (wife and sister of Jupiter; queen of the gods)
Prometheus (endured the symbol of suffering and strength of resisting wrong)
Perseus (son of Zeus and slayer of Medusa)
east entrance to main building (MY ENTRANCE)
Hermes (messenger of jupiter; god of commerce)
Hephaestus (celestial artist; son of Jupiter & Juno)
Pallas Atheno (goddess of wisdom)
east entrance to west wing
Fortuna (goddess of fortune or change)
Zeus (ancient god of heavens)
Hercules (son of Jupiter, considered champion of the earth)
west entrance to the main building
Hestia (goddess of the hearth, guardian of family life)
Poseidon (reigning god of the oceans and rivers)
Demeter (goddess of agriculture)
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Monday, February 7, 2011
2/7/11
well, its monday. a fantastic one. lunch went off without a hitch (bbq chicken, key west veggies and garlic toast). seeing that my team lost last night and basically HANDED the packers the game, i felt i (and all steeler fans nationwide) were worthy of a nice, happy monday.
anywho...wv tourism at the capitol today so lots of interesting people there and great displays. met some people from berkeley springs, parkersburg, logan, greenbrier co, pocahontas co. and my faves, the ladies from fayetteville (one of whom owns the ice cream store). i was telling them how much i enjoyed visiting the historic fayetteville theater.
best story of the day: some of my staff prepped yesterday afternoon and saw a ghost/dark figure walking down the backside of the kitchen. these are accounts from GROWN men...so fingers crossed, i'm going to see this ghost someday, too. peyton and i had to stay to serve the college interns dinner tonight and don't think i was trying my best to see it!
SANDWICH OF THE WEEK:
classic reuben- not a surprise but just delicious when you don't take any shortcuts...
4-5 oz corned beef, chopped fine and sauteed. top with FRESH sauerkraut (don't buy that cheapie canned funk), 1000 island dressing (a nice brand, not the cheapie), swiss cheese (again, repeat) and marbled rye bread. put in panini press for about 2 minutes. delicious! (i think we sold about 40 today and this is our most expensive item, the featured sandwich of the week.
FACT:
majority of chain restaurants (and i would guess nearly all where we live) buy all food ingredients frozen and already prepared...they simply heat them up. there are some things i will take shortcuts on, due to the high quantity being served out of the capitol, but there are many things that MUST be homemade regardless. we offer fresh fruit cobblers, egg salad, chicken salad, tuna salad, bleu cheese dressing, cocktail sauce, tartar sauce, vinaigrettes (other than balsamic in 1.5 oz portions), chili, some soups, quiche, muffins, and more. try us...fresh and delicious...and not filled with high sugar, cheap ingredients. when dining out, look for local restaurants that are willing to spend the time and money preparing your food fresh and healthy rather than just buying the cheapest and most processed products to feed you.
anywho...wv tourism at the capitol today so lots of interesting people there and great displays. met some people from berkeley springs, parkersburg, logan, greenbrier co, pocahontas co. and my faves, the ladies from fayetteville (one of whom owns the ice cream store). i was telling them how much i enjoyed visiting the historic fayetteville theater.
best story of the day: some of my staff prepped yesterday afternoon and saw a ghost/dark figure walking down the backside of the kitchen. these are accounts from GROWN men...so fingers crossed, i'm going to see this ghost someday, too. peyton and i had to stay to serve the college interns dinner tonight and don't think i was trying my best to see it!
SANDWICH OF THE WEEK:
classic reuben- not a surprise but just delicious when you don't take any shortcuts...
4-5 oz corned beef, chopped fine and sauteed. top with FRESH sauerkraut (don't buy that cheapie canned funk), 1000 island dressing (a nice brand, not the cheapie), swiss cheese (again, repeat) and marbled rye bread. put in panini press for about 2 minutes. delicious! (i think we sold about 40 today and this is our most expensive item, the featured sandwich of the week.
FACT:
majority of chain restaurants (and i would guess nearly all where we live) buy all food ingredients frozen and already prepared...they simply heat them up. there are some things i will take shortcuts on, due to the high quantity being served out of the capitol, but there are many things that MUST be homemade regardless. we offer fresh fruit cobblers, egg salad, chicken salad, tuna salad, bleu cheese dressing, cocktail sauce, tartar sauce, vinaigrettes (other than balsamic in 1.5 oz portions), chili, some soups, quiche, muffins, and more. try us...fresh and delicious...and not filled with high sugar, cheap ingredients. when dining out, look for local restaurants that are willing to spend the time and money preparing your food fresh and healthy rather than just buying the cheapest and most processed products to feed you.
Friday, February 4, 2011
2/4/11
Fridays are pretty calm at the capitol complex, but luckily, we were quite entertained as a group of 60 Sissonville Elem kids stopped by. We typically offer boxed lunches or some meal deals for school kids but these kids went through the regular lines and boy did they have fun! I think each kid went through my register at least 4 times. Cute as can be in their school t-shirts (they were red...perfect for WEAR RED day for Heart Association), they had desserts, desserts and more desserts.
Shortly following them, the usual House of Delegate members arrived as well as many Senators. This was the first time I had seen any Senators in our food court and was pleased to have them. A special shout out to Marty for being "most entertaining" of the day.
Nothing much else happened other than closing up a great week and then taking the leftover fresh food (wraps, salads, side items, etc) to Covenant House as a donation. That always makes one feel good, to donate something good (and healthy & fresh) to someone less fortunate. We can all make such a difference in this world....
After Wednesday and Thursday (doing the most business thus far, pulling off a 250 box luncheon, 7 other caterings, forgetting to order hamburger buns, frozen turkeys not done in time for hot lunch, and the list goes on and on), we were entitled to a slow day, don't ya think?
I am blessed to have a fantastic staff, entertaining, thorough and hard-working. Keep it up guys!
Sandwich of the Week Recipe:
Fried Green Tomato Sandwich- our way
dust sliced green tomatoes with flour, seasoned with S&P, cajun seasoning
deep fry until crispy- drain on paper towels
pile on sub bun with chipotle mayo, two crispy bacon strips, shredded lettuce, fresh sliced mozzarella and indulge!
http://thepittmangroupwv.com
Shortly following them, the usual House of Delegate members arrived as well as many Senators. This was the first time I had seen any Senators in our food court and was pleased to have them. A special shout out to Marty for being "most entertaining" of the day.
Nothing much else happened other than closing up a great week and then taking the leftover fresh food (wraps, salads, side items, etc) to Covenant House as a donation. That always makes one feel good, to donate something good (and healthy & fresh) to someone less fortunate. We can all make such a difference in this world....
After Wednesday and Thursday (doing the most business thus far, pulling off a 250 box luncheon, 7 other caterings, forgetting to order hamburger buns, frozen turkeys not done in time for hot lunch, and the list goes on and on), we were entitled to a slow day, don't ya think?
I am blessed to have a fantastic staff, entertaining, thorough and hard-working. Keep it up guys!
Sandwich of the Week Recipe:
Fried Green Tomato Sandwich- our way
dust sliced green tomatoes with flour, seasoned with S&P, cajun seasoning
deep fry until crispy- drain on paper towels
pile on sub bun with chipotle mayo, two crispy bacon strips, shredded lettuce, fresh sliced mozzarella and indulge!
http://thepittmangroupwv.com
Beginnings
Our company, The Pittman Group, opened for business at the WV State Capitol food court, in Charleston, on January 11, 2011. It has been quite a busy time, these past few weeks, getting ready for the new business plus legislative session. For the 300 seat cafeteria, recently remodeled and very state of the art, there are menu's to be made, products ordered, employees to hire and train, traffic flow to figure out, expenses, prep assembly for food items, new equipment mastered (the Rational fancy stuff), catering ideas put to paper, cash registered working and credit card readers cooperating, vendors to begin new pacts with, appointments, safety meetings, health inspections, and the list goes on and on. But did I mention EXPENSE? Starting a new business from zero product to ready for business has been a very costly endeavor as well as learning experience. My suppliers have been great to work with and I am blessed to have them looking out for me. Luckily my hubby, Eddie, has been in local business here in Charleston for 20+ years in the vending industry (Canteen Vending plus we manage cafeteria's at Directv in Huntington and BB&T in Charleston, Summers Street), so he has been around the block a time or two regarding start-up business.
I wanted to create this blog to fill you in on some of the happenings in the catering/cafeteria world here in our small town of Charleston, WV, as well as give you a laugh as someone who has changed careers at 40 years old (after a 20 year stint with Blue Cross/Blue Shield) and has had to learn things in the kitchen world "the hard way". You may get some good tips from my blog, share a good laugh, be able to advise me on things, know the latest "gossip" (sssshhhhh....), enjoy a recipe or just plain take a minute from your day to unwind.
Whatever the reason you are here, THANK you from the bottom of my heart for listening and being part of this.
Let's get started...
I wanted to create this blog to fill you in on some of the happenings in the catering/cafeteria world here in our small town of Charleston, WV, as well as give you a laugh as someone who has changed careers at 40 years old (after a 20 year stint with Blue Cross/Blue Shield) and has had to learn things in the kitchen world "the hard way". You may get some good tips from my blog, share a good laugh, be able to advise me on things, know the latest "gossip" (sssshhhhh....), enjoy a recipe or just plain take a minute from your day to unwind.
Whatever the reason you are here, THANK you from the bottom of my heart for listening and being part of this.
Let's get started...
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