Consumerism
The patient today demands that hot food be hot and that cold food be cold. Furthermore, they demand choice and comfort in the dining experience. New meal delivery equipment available to operators today help support this mandate and allow for greater flexibility in meal delivery formats. For example, the Burlodge Bulk Meal System, the Multigen, will rethermalize foods from the chilled state and also keep foods that are to be kept cold in the same piece of equipment. The Multigen is fully mobile, allowing it to travel from the kitchen to the patient bedside or dining area. The Multigen has a serving top for the foods to be presented and served from. The equipment allows the operator to rethermalize bulk foods or plated foods. This means that the operator has so many options for meal service. With this equipment and its flexibility we are seeing a new trend evolve. The new trend is called ‘Room Service’.

In Room Service or as Burlodge calls it ‘Client Focused Dining’, the patient is actually asked just before meal service what they want. They are given a choice at the bedside and the meal is then prepared from the bulk mobile trolley and presented to the patient on a homestyle tray just like they would have at home if they were sick in bed. They were able to choose portion size. They were able to choose the entrée they wanted. They were able to select gravy on their mashed potatoes if they wanted it. They may even be offered a second cup of coffee. In many cases, the foods prepared came from an outside manufacturer and were reheated in the very oven that the staff are serving from. The staff that once worked around a beltline downstairs in the kitchen are now upstairs serving patients face to face.

Another trend that comes from the consumer is the growing practice of actually branding the foods on the menu. For example, the soup on the menu may come from Campbell’s and the menu clearly states that the soup is a Campbell’s product. Consumers are familiar with this brand, accept it, and enjoy the familiar flavour and taste.