When I stop to think about it, the Green School lunch program is kinda mind blowing. Not only do they grow the majority of the food themselves, it's 100% plant based, prepared on campus by teams of students, served in banana leaves, left overs composted, and it's eaten family style in the heart of school along side teachers. And it's so good that my kids haven't complained once. Seriously.
Before we moved to Bali and changed school, my kids wanted to know what to expect for lunch. At our schools in California, they also had a hot lunch program but most kids didn't use it. It was bland, served in individual servings, packaged with a lot of plastic and my kids only ate the fruit and goldfish crackers.
At Green School, the lunches are really good! Even though there is no mac & cheese, chicken fingers, ketchup or ranch, my crew has no complaints. They eat the full buffet. My oldest likes the jackfruit curry and my preschoolers like the pizza with coconut crust and the crunchy tempe with peppers.
I'd estimate that 90% of kids eat the school lunch program. It's that good.
Lunch takes a village
Different teams of students head over to the kitchen daily to cook up the daily lunch for the school. Serving organic veggie based lunch to 500 people daily is a masterclass in catering. The kitchen is very "open floor plan" and the staff is always happy to show visitor what they are making. The GS lunch ladies are friendly!
Parents on campus can dig in and eat the school lunch after the kids are done.