Bon Appétit Management Company

From a young age, food was my source of joy and creativity. As I got older, that fascination with food only grew. What was once a childhood pastime evolved into an obsession. I devoured cookbooks, immersed myself in documentaries, and cooked meal after meal for anyone willing to eat my food.  Through cooking, I discovered that food has a unique power to foster connections. Sharing meals and recipes helps build relationships and create lasting bonds, a lesson I learned early on and one that continues to inspire my work today. 

Throughout Central and South America, we can find corn as a foundational food in many diverse cuisines, revealing its impressive versatility and cross-cultural importance over time.  Here are eight different traditional dishes showing the breadth of corn, from a savory staple to a sweet treat!  

For Native Peoples in Mesoamerica, corn was considered a sacred grain, a gift from the gods, and a source of life. Maize was more than just a staple food but helped inform a rich spiritual and cultural identity that lives on to this day.

Every October, Bon Appétit Management Company recognizes Fair Trade Month by educating our guests about the importance of the internationally recognized certification for ethically made products, which supports equitable global supply chains.  

Telling the stories behind the food really resonates with me. Every plate holds layers of history, culture, and effort that’s often unseen until you dig deeper. I find inspiration in these stories—whether they come from local farmers discussing sustainable agricultural practices, or seeing firsthand how small, conscious changes from the consumer in a food system can ripple out to make a huge difference.

For our Eat Local Challenge’s 20th anniversary, accounts across the country Bon Appetit teams brought their A-game to the fun and delicious celebration of the program, the partnerships, and of course, the food. Teams kept things fresh this year by adding pre-promotional activities, trivia, raffles, and giveaways to engage our guests. Read on to hear about all the friends and flavors that came together for the 20th anniversary of ELC!  

Each year, Bon Appétit Management Company takes advantage of the opportunity to honor and celebrate the cultural heritage of our team members and guests who identify with the Hispanic and Latinx community. Hispanic Heritage Month takes place from September 15th to October 15th, and we are thrilled for the chance to recognize and uplift the voices of our culinarians through their recipes and food traditions.  

There wasn’t just one thing that drew me into food systems work, it was a culmination of all my previous passions, starting with horses. For almost two decades, my grandparents owned a 50-acre farm in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. The land had open pasture, dense woods, and manicured gardens that my grandmother dutifully maintained. I adored every part of that farm, especially the herd of horses my grandparents cared for. They were untrained and dirty, but during twice-annual visits, I spent all my time in the pasture. I grew up alongside them.

Here at Bon Appétit, we’re fortunate to be surrounded by talented people every day: baristas who wield a mean cappuccino and a knack for event planning; cooks who prepare delicious meals at scale and inspire their peers; cashiers who consistently brighten our guests’ days.   

Maybe YOU have a mind for numbers or a penchant for eye-catching merchandising. As busy operators, many of us wish we could devote more time to strengthening our skills and growing our careers at Bon Appétit.  

In honor of the 25th anniversary of Farm to Fork, our groundbreaking local sourcing program, we’ve synthesized our many lessons learned into a white paper, Sowing Success: Local Food Purchasing Insights from 25 Years of the Farm to Fork Program.