You’re hungry for a bite and head to the cafeteria. You wonder, who makes all this food, and this much of it?! Your local cafeteria lady, Ms. Susana Zamora, is here to ensure students have hot lunches ready for you.
She has been working with the Selma High kitchen for 10 years, starting off as an on call substitute assistant, moving her way up to a cook. From 6:30 in the morning till 3:30 in the afternoon, Ms. Zamora stays on the go.
Ms. Zamora is generally responsible for the main hot dishes. Whether this be the calzones, breakfast for lunch, or your walking tacos, she is the one to ensure there are enough meals ready for students to grab.
The Selma High kitchen also prepares hot meals for Heartland, Washington, as well as Kingsburg High. A big challenge faced is working on a time crunch.
“We have until 9:30 to get the lunches for them done along with our school’s lunches. We cannot mess around,” said Zamora.
Always looking for room to improve in the kitchen, she really seeks the input of students to help improve your lunches.
“I will go the extra mile to ask students, ‘Is the meal good or not good? What’s your input?’” she asks. With this, she aims to either produce more lunches if students enjoy it, or suggest to her supervisors that students didn’t enjoy the lunches as much for that day. Letting the cafeteria ladies know your thoughts on the food allows for future student lunches to be as desirable as possible. The biggest goal is for the students to enjoy the food and not simply have it thrown away.
“We taste our food and [give the] go ahead,” she said. The cooks will usually eat the lunch made for that day. Ms. Zamora usually enjoys the calzones.
“One of the most challenging jobs we have is to execute our recipes with the correct amount of ingredients that will not overwhelm students’ taste buds,” she adds. Having to stay within the state guidelines, it can be difficult to create appetizing meals, but the cooks do their best to work within them.
“I honestly do love my job. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be here,” she laughs. Although there may be some trying days, she, along with the rest of her team, are there to help make your lunches memorable.
Outside of school Ms. Zamora enjoys spending time with her family.
“We like to go down to Baja and deep sea fish, usually over breaks.”
In addition to this, she enjoys showing school spirit by attending her daughter’s sports events.
“I take pride in my school. Selma High is my school,” she proudly shares.
