Simple Truth - Quest is Led by a President who Lives our Values Daily

Sharing who we are is as simple as sharing this internal email Quest employees received this beautiful Fall 2020 (yes it is still 2020) morning! A corporate update was delivered to our inboxes - which is pure, honest and worthy enough to share on our Blog page. We are inspired daily by each other and led with strength and confidence by our President, Nick Saccaro. Thanks Nick!

Hello Everyone: 

In 2019, and probably even in March 2020, when our schools and corporate dining customers shut down, no one could have predicted a scene that would unfold where so many of our students, customers, and clients still would not be open as of the end of September.  And yet, here we are, with so much uncertainty still ahead of us…and here we are, still surviving, forging new relationships with new clients, building greater trust with existing partners, and planning for the future.

We have been working diligently since March to try to ensure we have the right menus, products, marketing collateral, safety precautions, and agreements with our clients to survive – and thrive!  We have had over 35 people in the company supporting us on these planning efforts for the past six months, and it’s truly paid dividends.  While the start of the school year has been unpredictable, challenging and ever changing, the planning we’ve done and relationships we’ve built have inspired the confidence of our clients and customers and has truly strengthened the partnerships we have in place.  We have also sold seven new accounts for the 20-21 academic year!

Currently, we are operating at about 25% - 30% of “normal” revenue, which is certainly presenting its source of challenges for our organization.  However, we are doing what we need to do, making the decisions each day as needed, to make sure we can manage through this.  We are also hearing more and more of our schools planning to bring students back in October and beyond, which is of course a positive trend.  We remain hopeful and cautiously optimistic.

What can you do to help?  What can you do to make sure we survive and thrive through this?

-       Remember why we are here.  We are here to build the most enduring relationships – in a word, we are here to build trust.  Challenge yourself each day, with each decision you’re making, to question if you’re building trust with your clients, customers, team members and vendors.  Are we being as safe as possible?  Are we ensuring the guest experience is as positive as possible?  Are we ensuring our customers, clients, and team members know what’s happening and are well communicated with?

-      Remember the need, now more than ever, to operate with the highest level of stewardship possible. What does stewardship mean?  It means to take care of something – to care for it like it was your own.  Are you taking care of the resources – ours and our clients – as though they were your own?  Are we managing waste, labor, production, supplies as efficiently as we can?  We don’t have much margin for error, our clients are depending on us more than ever to manage resources.  Treat it like it’s your own, like this is your business, and we’ll be great!

-      Remember that the uncertainty and ambiguity of today is something we are all feeling, and something we will all get through together.  Life will continue to be stressful and uncertain for days, weeks and months to come with COVID-19…and when that’s gone, something else will present challenges for us.  BREATHE.  Reach out to your supervisor for support.  Share what’s on your mind.  Take a deep breath.  The sun will keep coming up, our kids will get back to school, we will find some sense of normalcy at some point. 

I’m very grateful for the contributions, patience, and support each of you have provided and ask that you continue to be patient with yourself, with one another, with our organization, and with your clients.  We will survive, we will thrive again, and we will do it together.

Your Best is Our Quest

Nicholas Saccaro | President

Living the Quest Values

SMART COOKING WITH REGISTERED DIETITIAN, ROSE PENCAK (BONUS RECIPE INCLUDED!)

How has your grocery list changed since COVID-19? Have you been able to get everything on your list on your weekly shopping trips? I’m sure you’ve noticed the lack of options on the pasta shelves and produce aisles, but even more narrow are your choices in the meat sections.

Local restaurants - limited to takeout and delivery - will continue to work diligently to safely serve food during the crisis. But for many people, playing it safe through social distancing may mean limiting going out.  That inevitably means many people will cook more meals at home, either for financial reasons or because it makes them feel safer.

So, what can you do if you’re noticing your go-to grocery options have become a little too pricey to “stomach” and/or are not in stock?

Tips to Save Money on Groceries:

1. Make a list:  Before heading out, walk through your kitchen and look at what you are running low on and what you need for the week. Also, consider how much space you have. Organize the list by area of store.

2.  Shop coupons and deals: Look at your local grocery store’s weekly sales paper; either on-line or paper ads.  Look at if your local grocer has rewards programs.  Also, earn cash back on rebate apps like Checkout 51 and Ibotta.

3. Plan out your dinners for the week. This will help determine exactly what is needed at the store, and on your list. This will help reduce buying food that may go bad.

4.  Use what you have first: Check your refrigerator and pantry frequently for items that are about to go bad. This is the time to use those products. Let’s get creative!

5.  Do not buy prepared food. These types of foods go bad faster and cost more than if you made them yourself.

You can find more money-saving tips here: https://www.eatright.org/food/planning-and-prep/eat-right-on-a-budget/20-money-saving-grocery-shopping-tips

Food Substitutions

Below are some food substitutions for some common foods in your pantry.

Pasta: 

Keep a few different types of pastas in your pantry to keep things from getting boring! Consider adding some rice noodles to the mix, especially for Asian-inspired dishes.  Choosing pasta with protein is a great option for a meatless meal.

Rice: 

The store is full of options. As with pasta, it’s nice to have a couple types around, including basmati for Indian food or Arborio for risotto, but if all you have is the store-bought long-grain, that works just fine for most recipes.

Stocks and Canned Tomatoes: 

With some broth and canned tomatoes, you can create tons of different sauces, soups, stews or braised dishes. Look for no added salt or low-sodium broths.

Beans: 

Dried or canned, beans are both nutritious and a good value. Eaten together with rice, they form a complete protein.

Seafood: 

Fresh fish also can be frozen. Shrimp freezes especially well. Do not forget canned seafood. Aim for canned seafood in water.  Clams for pasta and marinara, tuna for sandwiches or salmon for sautéed patties or burgers all are great pantry items to have on hand.

Frozen fruits and vegetables:

With a few exceptions, most fruits and vegetables are going to deteriorate or rot after a week. Frozen fruit is great in smoothies. Frozen vegetables often are almost as good as fresh in soups, stews and stir-fries.

Shelf-Stable Milk: 

Look for Ultra High Temperature pasteurization milk down the aisles instead of in the dairy section. You can also try non-dairy beverage options as well. For example, soy milk, almond milk, oat milk, coconut milk, etc. Be sure to stick with unsweetened varieties and avoid added sugars. In addition, make sure the non-dairy milk is fortified with calcium and vitamin B12.

Meats:

Just about any meat you buy out of the fresh meat case can be successfully frozen. It might need a rewrap to remove oxygen and prevent freezer burn, but it will keep just fine in your freezer. Check the package dates, but in most cases fresh meats will keep in your fridge for three days. Also note that such cured meats as ham, salami and bacon keep well in the fridge. That’s also true of many other lunch meats — but check the labels, because some of them are loaded with preservatives.

Try meatless entrees instead!  Umami (o͞oˈmämē) or savory is our fifth basic taste.  Many foods consumed daily are rich in umami.  Notably in fish, shellfish, cured meats, meat extracts, mushrooms, vegetables (e.g., ripe tomatoes, cabbage, spinach, celery, etc.) and fermented/aged products such as cheeses, fish sauce, soy sauce and nutritional yeast.

We wanted to leave you with a quick recipe that may change your pasta game! Rose Pencak, Registered Dietitian, shared her meatless marinara recipe with us!