Judges' Room at meets

[Marge Simpson]

When you go to a meet and there is a judges' room for meals, what food items do you hope to see or dread seeing when you walk in? I've been asked to oversee the judges' room at our next home meet, so I thought I'd ask the experts!

The question also applies to coaches' rooms.

Thanks!

 

[emandelsmom]

I am not a judge, but have overseen a judges room. LOTS of FOOD! Man could they eat. Table after table of food. We did breakfast, lunch and dinner plus snacks. Lots of bottle water, canned drinks, candy, homemade candy, neat little pens they could keep. Some different little odds and ends like items related to the meet we were hosting. Particular foods-muffins, doughnuts, Chick Fil let tray, McAllisters tray, pizza, homemade soups, salads, some catered foods. Lots of desserts, plates, cups, napkins, kleenex, hand sanitizer, just a general cute items. Oh, and coffee. Lots of coffee. We gave goodie bags to the judges as well. I also made homemade gym suckers out of chocolate and they each got some of those.

Hope that helps.

 

[CreateMagic]

I have not been a judge or a coach for a gymnastics meet, but I have been both for cheerleading competitions. I've always appreciated healthy food--fruit, veggies, bottles of water, individual salads (make a big one and separate into smaller to-go type containers), wraps or small subs without cheese (could be a side option) or make your own sandwiches, pasta. Sometimes these events are very long, as you know, and I know that I feel pretty ill after too much pizza, candy, and soda. People will eat it if its there, but many people I know would prefer not to weekend after weekend.

Coffee, tea, juice. Wet-wipes of some sort are a great idea. Assorted hard candy. Yogurt, cereal and milk, bagels and jelly or cream cheese for the morning at least, if not all day.

Good luck!

 

[Pineapple_Lump]

Lots of healthy options!
* Mini filled rolls/buns
* Sushi, love this when it is fresh
* Don't forget the vegetarians
* Mints on the judging tables, lollies are nice but make you feel awful by the end of the day.
* Lasagne (Vege?)
* Soup is always popular in winter (with bread and butter)
* Wraps
* Some savouries, mini pies, sausage rolls, quiches etc...
* Some chips you could substitute with pita chips
* Cheese, crackers and fruit platter
* Some sweets
* Grapes, Strawberries and watermelon are always quick to disappear.
* Juice, tea, coffee and cold water
* A pasta dish
* Chicken drumsticks (messy, provide lots of serviettes)

 

[emandelsmom]

Good idea on the to go boxes. We had fruit and yogurt too.! It was a huge selection of it all. The way we got so much was to divide the mothers into groups, then give each one a meal to provide the food for. We also had some businesses donate food trays. We also kept coolers filled with ice cold drinks on hand=water, canned drinks. Then we had gallon containers of McAllisters sweet tea. We kept hard candy on the actual judges tables.

 

[gymch34]

Lots of water & caffeine (choice of GOOD hot coffee or soda in the afternoon.) Also, hot food is lovely, but not messy hot food, (meatball subs, spaghetti, etc. is not good as someone always spills on white shi rt!) Healthy is best, lots of salads, fruits, etc.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

we and they eat everything. no holds barred!

 

[gymkat]

As a vegetarian with food allergies, I really appreciate lunches where you can make your own sandwich or wrap, or choose a sauce to put on your pasta. (Of course, I always bring food to meets just in case, so don't worry about contacting the judges in advance). Most of us love salads and fruit. For the judging tables, I like salty food-- pretzels, goldfish, stuff like that-- and I'm not a huge fan of having to unwrap every piece of candy or every mint while judging. Others like that, though-- it discourages them from munching.

 

[gympanda]

I always appreciate a wide selection of caffeine (diet and regular), anything HOT to eat (soups, chili) and a lot of protein. We tend to get a lot of pasta and mac n' cheese, which always make you a little drowsy. So, I LOVE when I get a chicken soup or a meaty chili...less carbs = me more awake in afternoon sessions.

Also, in our area we have quite a few gyms who take this very easy and AWESOME way out. When we come in the morning, there is a menu to a local restaurant (Applebees, Chilis, Macaroni Grill, etc.) at each chair. We just write our name on the front of the menu and circle what we want. Those places have carside to go and someone orders during the first session and picks up during the last rotation of the first session. So, each judge gets what she wants and no parent has to cook. This is what we do for all of our big invitiations or championships at our gym. The typical meal that a judge would order for one of these places is usually around $10, so it doesn't even break the bank, considering if you don't feed the judges our food diem is $15.

 

[bookworm]

I agree with all of the above but from stocking these rooms in the past I would add that a lot of judges/coaches appreciate a decaf choice for coffee, and also some tea.

We generally get donations for the breakfast (Dunkin Donuts will usually give you a big urn of coffee and throw in some donuts and muffins) and lunches are usually something like cold cut tray, salads, soups, ...and dinners are usually a pasta type dish (chicken/broccoli/ziti) and definitely on the Sunday nite session , I always did lots of pizzas (usually different gourmet types like a white Alfredo pizza, buffalo chicken pizzas as well as pepperoni and cheese)...I liked to do pizza for the last session so that I would have extra for the crew that came to break down the equipment. Hope this helps...

 

[Flippers Mom]

Flippers gym hosts a large meet each year. The coaches and judges rooms are stocked with homemade breads, cookies, lots of fruits, veggies, cheeses and chips throughout the day. Groups of parents provide homemade meals - chicken noodle soup, bierocks, spaghetti - all of it homemade. Judges tell us that they look forward to the meet all year because of the good food. Of course, along with the main choice, there are always other options - sandwiches and other simply choices (such as salad) along with choice of beverages and desserts. It is a lot of work, but it encourages coaches to bring their teams year after year and we never have trouble finding enough judges.

 

[gym law mom]

Our judge's hospitality room sounds much like Flipper's Mom. The moms in charge try to get most of the food homemade---soups, stews, chili. Our gym is also known for the good food and several judges have suggested we do a cookbook. The moms that have run the coach and judge hospitality have kept recipes of dishes that get the best reviews. Of course, they always have some snacks available and keep the coach's area supplied with snacks, cold water and coffee in between meals.

We find that bringing in more homemade food goes over better with the judges, coaches(they really seem to appreciate it), keeps our budget for food down and if we have leftovers, sell it in concessions. Found a bowl of homemade soup was very popular!

Dunno is so right about feeding coaches---just throw the food in and back away!

 

[Marge Simpson]

Many thanks to all of you for your suggestions. Hot, healthy, and lots of options seem to be the theme here. I appreciate your thoughts, and no doubt the judges at our meet will as well!