Metz Chef Fresh Combos delight diners

Metz Culinary Management, Inc. has engaged a spring relaunch of its Chef Fresh Combos program, which features healthy, fast and fun combo meals that are created onsite daily and available in cold cases in client sites ranging from public and private K-12 schools, colleges and universities to healthcare locations and corporate dining sites.

“We wanted to offer fresh, healthy, complete meals with the convenience of pre-packaging,” says Adam Carlson, division chef for K-12 and corporate dining. “Metz chefs are creating student-friendly items for K-12 and more adult-oriented offerings across our other divisions.”

Reimbursable Chicken Caesar wrap designed for the K-12 market.

The K-12 Chef Fresh Combos also meet government criteria for reimbursable lunches, so students enrolled in school lunch programs can enjoy them for free or at a reduced price. Choices for this market include Bavarian roll, chicken Caesar wrap, roasted red pepper hummus with herbed flatbread, taco chicken roll, Buffalo chicken roll and turkey and spinach roll.

“Right off the bat, we combined red pepper hummus, cheese sticks, cauliflower and flatbread to provide total nutrition for students that checked off the vegetarian box while being healthier than typical pre-packaged lunch products on the market,” Carlson adds.

Taco chicken roll designed for the K-12 market.

Where school nutrition regs don’t apply, the choices were designed to satisfy general consumer preferences, he explains

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“For our other divisions, we wanted to roll out options that mirror the popular ‘Pick 2’ pairings that many fast-casual restaurants offer,” Carlson notes. “People are eating lighter for the spring, so combining a half-sandwich or wrap with a salad is hitting a sweet spot with our diners who want a healthier, lighter meal.”

Chef Fresh Combos for markets like private schools, colleges, healthcare and corporate dining include Baja wrap with Southwestern kale salad, Italian Tuscan bean wrap with orzo salad, roast beef and farmhouse salad, and turkey club with strawberry and feta salad