‘TRAY’ BON: Kids get veggie-and-fruit trays at PS 244 in Queens yesterday. The school menu (above) has ditched all meat. (
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Say so long to sloppy Joes and chicken fingers!
A Queens elementary school has become the first traditional public school in the country to serve all vegetarian all the time, replacing lunchroom legends like meatloaf with organic tofu, spinach wraps and couscous.
Education officials say PS 244 in Flushing was the natural choice to pioneer a meat- and fish-free menu because it has incorporated healthy living and eating into its academics for years.
And with much of its population hailing from East Asian countries, the diverse elementary school is home to plenty of already-committed vegetarians.
“My favorite food has to be rice and beans with mashed potatoes — but not the ones with a lot of salt. The ones with a lot of protein and nutrition,” said third-grader Simran Puri, a 9-year-old who welcomed the menu modifications.
“It’s much more healthier,” she added. “It helps to make our bodies stronger.”
Yesterday’s inaugural meal — which schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott sampled alongside dozens of kids — consisted of black bean and cheddar quesadillas served with salsa, red roasted potatoes and steamed broccoli.
Students were also given a choice of an orange or a banana.
While the food was well received, not all the kids were wild about having their meat consumption restricted to grandpa’s chicken wings or mom’s home-cooked fish.
“The beef and meat is pretty good [at school],” said 9-year-old Mavis Li, a third-grader. “I already miss the meat we had a few months ago.”
School officials said that parents have been consulted every step of the way and that the school began by piloting an all-vegetarian menu three days of the week.
Parents still have the option of packing meaty offerings into their kids’ lunch boxes.
“It’s been received very well; that’s why there’s so much excitement about it,” said Amie Hamlin, director of the school’s partner, the NY Coalition for Healthy School Food.
She said a handful of private schools and public charter schools in the country have all vegetarian menus, but this is the first known foray by a traditional public school.
“We’ve already been approached by other [interested] schools,” said Hamlin.
To make sure kids aren’t scared off by bland, plant-based cafeteria entrees, PS 244 has been serving as a test-kitchen for the school system to help spice things up.
The pint-sized food critics convinced school chefs to ditch the big, square block of unseasoned tofu and instead serve smaller cubes seasoned with jerk sauce and paired with noodles.
“Sometimes, they make something I don’t like, like carrots. I don’t like tomato,” said 6-year-old first-grader Diego Figueroa. “[But] it’s good. I don’t like to eat meat a lot.”
For kids who object to the daintier dishes, childhood staples such as PB&J sandwiches or the simple but sturdy cheese sandwich are offered as daily alternatives.
Additionally, Fridays are now a weekly pizza party at PS 244, which will serve New York-style pizza slices, pizza bagels and French-bread pizza.