Broward students help pick new school meals. Here’s what they prefer.
South Florida Sun Sentinel | By Lauren Brensel |
Broward schools again are jazzing up the cafeteria menu, and it’s the students picking the greatest hits.
Some boring biscuit? These food connoisseurs say nay.
A delectable Philly cheesesteak? Yay.
The new school year starts Aug. 11, and the Broward school district on Wednesday gave a sneak peek of the new options coming up for breakfast and lunch.
The students’ choices were clear: They “wanted more pasta dishes. They wanted more culturally diverse options,” said Elizabeth Seeley, a registered dietitian with the district. “And they wanted meals that they enjoy when they’re out at fast-casual dining restaurants. So we are going to provide those options for them.”
In addition to the Philly cheesesteak, the lunch menu will include: Chicken Caesar salad, beef and broccoli, tortellini, a taco crisp and a gluten-free chicken enchilada empanada. There’s also a “Broward Bowl,” which features mashed potatoes and gravy, macaroni and cheese and either a spicy or regular chicken tender.
A pretzel dog also will be available at the schools that participate in the district’s after-school supper program.
And for vegetarian students? Plant-based buffalo ranch fava bean crisps will be offered as a salad topper.
On the breakfast menu will be tacos with bacon, egg and cheese, and guava pastelitos with pandebono bites, sourced from a Miami-based bakery, Bread and Bread.
Such options were newly added after the district’s food and nutritional services department conducted focus groups with high school students last year, surveying them on the food they wanted to see offered in schools.
The resulting menu will be the first to be offered in Broward County schools that doesn’t include artificial dyes, according to members of the department.
Cathleen Brennan, with public affairs and community relations for Broward County Schools, gives a sneak peek of new food items that students will be served for the 2025-26 school year at Coral Glades High School in Coral Springs on Wednesday, July 30, 2025.
Casie Maggio, a menu coordinator for the district, said students tried samples of the meals during their lunch breaks at school and reported their opinions on a survey form.
“They can put yay or nay, like or dislike, and they let us know,” she said. “Trust me, they definitely let us know.”
One of the items the students didn’t approve of was a biscuit, while others couldn’t make it to the final menu because of a lack of nutritional value, Maggio said.
The district department must follow the guidelines set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which required this year for students to consume less sodium and added sugars than what was previously permitted.
Limits on sodium and sugars are recommended in a phased approach, and some restrictions must be fully implemented by July 2027.
Older students are allowed a higher level of sodium, so some menu items, such as a Philly cheesesteak, will be first offered to the high schoolers for now.
Chef Andre Palmer, with Broward County Schools, readies some food for a preview of the new lunch menu for the 2025-26 school year. The menu was presented at Coral Glades High School in Coral Springs on Wednesday, July 30, 2025.
Andre Palmer, a quality assurance specialist with the department, said part of his work is finding ways to combine the food young people like with the nutritional guidelines that are recommended.
“I personally love it when the kids tell me what they want. It takes a lot of the guesswork out,” Palmer said. “You tell me what you want, and I’ll try my best to recreate it within the school system.”
The students are big on spicy food, and can find that on items such as beef and broccoli, he added.
Kristina Ramirez, program coordinator for the meal benefits department at the district, said the lunches will be offered for free to all students for the first 30 days of school, regardless of application status for the free or reduced lunch program. After that time, students are expected to pay if they aren’t eligible for the program.
Previously, the district offered free lunches to all students, using federal grant money that has now been depleted.
Breakfast will still be free for all Broward County Public Schools students.
The district has now returned to its application to determine eligibility for the free lunch program. Visit https://www.myschoolapps.com/ for more information.
