Adrian Gutierrez

Ivan Haro buying snacks from the Morton East school cafeteria

In an interview conducted by the Morton Pony Express newspaper, we were inspired to figure out what happens behind the scenes with the Morton foodservice and what students think about the school’s foodservice.

According to ChatGPT, “In schools like J. Sterling Morton East High School and Morton West High School, lunch menus typically rotate monthly and are planned by food service managers in collaboration with consultants, taking into account stock availability and student food preferences,” ChatGPT said.

In an interview with the food service manager, Miriam Marroquin, we learned how difficult it can be with the food services, how long it takes to prepare food, and how the food staff feel about being around Morton East students.

“Depending on the day, some days are easier than other days, but we enjoy cooking for all students and staff,” Miriam Marroquin said.

Miriam and the staff still found a way to serve meals to all the Morton students on the hard days.

“(It takes the foodservice team) 7–8 hours (to get the lunches ready for 3400 Morton students),” Miriam Marroquin said.

Behind the scenes, it takes time to prepare meals for all 6 lunches.

“Yes, we enjoy working around students, because everyone has children or grandchildren. We all do the best we can, thinking of our own families. We are part of this neighborhood,” Miriam Marroquin said.

In an interview with Morton East students, we learned how they really feel about the food services that are given in J. Sterling Morton East High School.

“School lunch is decent, but overall, it can be better,” Junior Hector Garcia-Alvarez said.

While Hector Garcia-Alvarez thinks that the school lunch can be better, others think differently.

“I think the school lunch offers a good variety of everything,” Spanish teacher Ezmeralda Ortiz said.

While Ezmeralda Ortiz thinks that the school offers a good variety, other students don’t like the school lunch.

“I don’t be eating school food because I don’t think it’s good,” Senior Juan Lopez said.

While Juan Lopez feels this way, others have a favorite food and enjoy the school lunch.

“The school lunch is decent, and my favorite meal is the chicken sandwich,” Sophomore Kaeden Ortega said.

While Kaeden Ortega thinks that school lunch is decent, others think the same way.

“Pepperoni pizza is fire, and I think the lunch is good overall,” Senior Anthony Guzman said.