New menu items at Powell River Recreation Complex concession will provide food for those frequenting the facility.
In addition to the standard hockey game fare of hamburgers and hot dogs, the operators of the kitchen will be serving foods that will also appeal to theatre-goers and the workout crowd.
Ray Boogaards, director of parks, recreation and culture, said that when a new contract for food services was let, the goal was for a variety of different foods providing some healthy choices.
“That was in the request for proposals (RFP) because we want to give parents and adults those choices, whether they want a healthier meal or the traditional for themselves or their children,” he said. “If you look at their menu there’s all kinds of things.”
Lesley Lasure, who is supervising the kitchen, was most recently involved in food service at Saltery Bay Snack Shack. Her objective was to serve fast, wholesome and tasty meals.
“I discovered I had customers coming who were not just travelling by ferry,” she said. “I started to create a social opportunity so people would enjoy the drive, the scenery and the social interaction.”
To expand that opportunity, she made a bid for the recreation complex. “My goal is to recreate the Snack Shack’s principles.”
The city used to run the food services area in the recreation complex. It was closed for more than a year and then it was outsourced last year.
Lasure said her primary concern in operating the kitchen over and above great food is to support the local economy.
“This is a facility funded by taxpayers and people work very hard for their money,” she said. “I believe it is paramount that the money stays within Powell River. I have a problem receiving money and then giving it to outside of the community. There is no Costco in my organization, I don’t purchase anything online and I don’t purchase anything that has to be shipped in.”
Also partnered in the enterprise is Kate Wetherell, with a background in business and finance, who worked on the bid process. She was interested in the opportunity to operate the concession but does not have a food or beverage service background.
“An opportunity came up to bring Lesley in as a partner,” Wetherell said. “The goal is to use the skills that both of us have.”
Boogaards is impressed with the ethic of new contractors. In the RFP, the request was only for the food service provider to be open evenings and weekends, but the partners are evaluating where the service level should be, which Boogaards really appreciates.
“Is it financially viable for them to offer these services during the day? They’ve stepped up to the plate and said they are going to try it,” he said.
Boogaards said the social aspect is so important when it comes to recreation, along with begin healthy and fit. The prospect of having some food or a drink while meeting with friends enhances the experience.
The fact that the proponents are interested in serving food beyond the traditional arena fare of hot dogs and hamburgers was also a strong selling point in awarding the contract.
“Let’s make sure there are healthy wraps, or bowls of fruit on the counter,” he said. “Everything is fresh.”
Lasure seeks quality in her foods and ingredients. She hand-cuts her French fries. She hand-makes the patties for her burgers. They are not frozen patties from a supplier.
“I watch the butcher churn up that big piece of beef,” she said. “It’s not hamburger. It’s ground beef—there’s no filler or egg in there. I pick the highest quality ingredients I can. I have a mission statement: Each ingredient chosen with care and purpose. I even laboured over which mustard to use.”
For sandwich ingredients, Lasure uses organic beef from cows in Wildwood, eggs from free-range chickens and the mayonnaise is real, not some kind of chemical and oil blend. She purchases old cheddar cheese, not processed. She also incorporates specialty bread items.
The menu is fluid and will undergo change. “Hopefully it will always stay fluid and dynamic,” Lasure said. “Needs and demands change and I want to move with those fluctuations.”
Boogaards said the objective is for the recreation complex to be a real hub of community activity.
Lasure said the recreation complex is looking after the kinetics—the body and its motion—and their job will be looking after the nutrition.
“We are hoping the reputation of the food will draw people in,” Wetherell said.
