Fresh regional produce on the menu  "The way to someone's heart is through their stomach" as the old saying goes. But food also plays an important role in our health and well-being. This is why in 2016 Gira not only converted its company canteen into an attractive employee bistro, but also revised the menu and added to the dishes on offer. The company also employed a new chef, Christian Strombach. He and bistro manager Nicole Platte explain what has changed since then.

In 2016, Gira converted its canteen into a bistro. What changes have been made?
Nicole Platte:  A lot of things have changed. Our aim has been to create an attractive and welcoming environment where employees feel comfortable and want to spend time during their breaks. For this reason, the design of the new bistro uses natural materials such as wood, stone and leather, which, together with the warm colour scheme, create a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. It's almost as nice as being at home. (She laughs) We've also installed a fully equipped kitchen, so that we can cook properly.

This is because Gira now has its own chef for the employee bistro...
Nicole Platte: Exactly. We also wanted to make changes to the food available on the basis of our health management programme. The focus is on healthy and varied dishes that are freshly prepared every day. We could only achieve this with the help of an experienced professional chef like Christian Strombach.

What changes have been made to the menu since you've been in charge of the kitchen at Gira?
Christian Strombach: We aim to create menus that have something for everyone, whether they are really hungry or just want a light snack. In addition, at least one of our three dishes of the day is a vegetarian option. And everything is freshly prepared by me and my team. Fresh also means that we choose seasonal, local produce wherever possible. That applies to the fruit salad, which changes every day, and the salad bar, but also to the mandatory sausage with curry sauce, where the sauce is made in-house.