Lunch for the public is on the menu again at the Jackson County Hospital District.
The hospital has completed its cafeteria expansion project and is celebrating its grand re-opening this week. The cafeteria dining room reopened to the public on Monday, the new drivethrough window is scheduled to open on March 10, and an open house will be held sometime during the last week of March.
From design to completion, the roughly $3.6 million project has taken about 18 months. The hospital received about $600,000 in grants and used some of its reserves to cover the remaining $3 million, Jackson County Hospital District CEO Lance Smiga said.
“It’s taken a little longer than we wanted, but I’d rather take it slow and do it right,” he said. “I think, for the most part, we did.”
The project included adding the drive-through window accessible from Frederick Drive, expanding the kitchen by 3,150 square feet and the dining room to 1,090 square feet, large enough now for 10 square tables. The food services are also now equipped with emergency power in the event of a hurricane or significant power loss.
The food services are now under the direction of Unidine, a Boston-based company which provides food and dining management services to hospitals, senior living facilities, and behavorial health facilities, according to the company’s website.
One major difference diners will notice is a menu with 30 days’ worth of meals and not just seven, Smiga said, noting that patients and staff have been fed throughout the process.
“It’s been a huge success so far,” Smiga said. “Patients are happy, staff are happy. It’s been a really good response so far.”
Another difference is an emphasis on fresh ingredients over packaged, he said.
“I was marveled when I walked in on a Friday and they were frying fish,” Smiga said. “It’s not just filets out of a bag that you drop in the (fryer). They were sitting here breading them, dropping them, cutting up the okra and tomatoes. It’s just, like, this really is all fresh, and I think you taste the difference.”
Those wishing to order a meal should call the Dietary Department at 361-7827811 to place their order early in the day, so that the cooks prepare enough food.
“Once they get up and going a little longer, we’ll have options,” Smiga said. “You’ll be able to walk in and order a salad or a hamburger or some other things. The screens in the dining room will have what the daily choices are.”
The new drive-through window offers expanded ways to feed the public, Smiga said.
“You can call it in the morning, drive through at lunch and pick it up,” he said. “The reason for it was, during Covid, we had to shut down and not allow visitors in and out of the hospital. Whatever the next bug is, and there will be one eventually, I can hand food through the window.
“It was shocking how many citizens depend on us daily for food. We have a big following of people who are here every day.”
The hospital doesn’t see itself in competition with local restaurants, he added.
“We’re not wanting to compete with all the restaurants in town,” Smiga said. “They have their job. We’re looking more for the people who are just looking for a hot, nutritious meal at a relatively inexpensive cost.”
