“I have the opportunity for lots of training
and unlimited knowledge. There are so
many benefits.” —Marina Gonzales
the top of the 11-story Sony building and
two other buildings the company operates
from. The facility is the only Compass
Group account in San Diego that operates
as a Center for Excellence.
Gonzales views her role as a team player
with Sony, helping executives pinpoint
the different needs and desires of
employees. “That could be a lower price
for those requesting it, or a different
range of food, like Indian or Jamaican.
We want to grab workers with a theme
they can be excited about, never
allowing them to get bored,” she says.
collateral, including signs, stickers
and order forms for guests to order
whole pies for their holiday dinners.
“The Managers Guide also includes an
overview of where the pies come from,
product specs, where to get boxes, quality
assurance and ideas of how and where to
market them,” Gonzales says.
When she first joined the company,
receiving the promotional menus and
being told what was to be on the menu at
least once a month was startling, Gonzales
says. “Then, I realized it was great.”
Gonzales oversees 15 cooks and
some front-of-the-house staff. “I was in
catering, so the landslide of different food
I had to know about helped me learn this
job fast,” she says.
The other startling part, having come
from operations where she was allowed
to select her own suppliers, was the
limited list of preferred vendors, which
meant those were to be the only vendors.
Now she has become used to the
different buying practice and understands
that it is for product consistency, quality
control and food safety. “The company is
too big to go willy-nilly,” she says.
Getting to know the patrons personally
and striving to exceed their expectations
is what drives Marina Gonzales, executive
chef for Eurest Dining Services at the
headquarters of Sony Electronics Inc. in
San Diego, for Compass Group. “I’m on
the floor a lot. People know me by name,
as I’m meeting people for catering and
special events. People say, ‘Hi, Chef. I
love this. Can you do this?’ I’m more than
happy to exceed their expectations.”
When it comes to menuing, Compass
Group allows her the freedom to run
specials and serve seasonal items,
balanced with the help it offers with its
promotional plans, point-of-sale material
and online Managers Guide. For example,
in November 2010, Eurest offered its
operators a Sizzling Skewer promotion,
with pictures to display at the point of
sale, where to purchase the ingredients, a
menu suggestion with recipes and all the
marketing materials a manager could need.
She adds that B&I is more structured
than other culinary jobs, which she
felt was a plus for her. “When you
come here, you learn to run your own
business—financials, purchasing,
running production, being multifaceted,
creating menus, being on the floor,
getting the inventory done, managing
proposals, meeting with clients.”
For the holidays, the company had a
Holiday Pie special with marketing
As part of a large Compass Group whole,
Gonzales sees even more opportunities
for personal fulfillment. Because her
operation is part of the Center for
Excellence program, she has had the
opportunity to travel for additional
training, and hopes to become part of
the overall menu-building team. “I have
the opportunity for lots of training and
unlimited knowledge. There are so many
benefits,” she says.
Jody Shee, an Olathe, Kan.-based
freelance writer and editor, previously was
editor of a foodservice magazine. She has
20 years of food-writing experience and
writes the blog www.sheefood.com.
www.acfchefs.org
