On Thursday, Aug. 13, right before dinner started, over 200 campers of all ages stood outside the dining hall, waiting for the cookout to be ready. The chefs outside appeared calm, but behind the scenes was a whole different story. All of the chefs inside bustled around the cramped kitchen, throwing questions at each other, moving in and out of the dining hall, trays piled high with burgers, hotdogs and watermelon. Wanting a closer look, I decided to ask one of the Camp Danbee chefs about their job. Danbee’s iconic Head Chef Meg was away for the weekend, so Chef Michelle stepped up to give me the scoop on the kitchen.
Q: How long have you been a chef at summer camps?
A: This is my first summer at Danbee, but my second camp overall. Danbee is definitely my favorite. In total, this is my tenth year as a professional chef.
Q: What is your position in the Camp Danbee Food Staff?
A: I’m the Special Diets Lead, which means that I take care of all of the vegan, vegetarian, gluten free etc. options.
Q: What is harder to cook: The outdoor cookout or the normal meals in the dining hall?
A: Both of them are pretty much the same equivalent of difficulty. The real hard part is doing the regular food and the special diet food at the same time.
Q: What is the hardest meal to cook?
A: Definitely dinner. It has the most parts, which means the most things to make, and it can get really complicated with so many different foods that need to be made or prepared.
Q: How did you get into cooking?
A: I feel like it helps with my anxiety. Like whatever I put into my food is what I’m going to get out of it. It also helps me let go and realize that not everything can be perfect. I also went to culinary school and got a Master’s in nutrition, but my real goal is to become a registered dietitian.
Q: What things inspire all of the meals put on the table?
A: You guys! At the end of the day, all of the kids who come to camp are my biggest inspiration.
