Food is everywhere, but everyone likes something different. Ever wonder why there are SO many different restaurants? We are ALL different! In America, we have the luxury to dive into a different food category every single day. This creates a fun challenge for us at Refreshing Mountain when attempting to satisfy the food preferences of up to 500 people from every ethnic category you can think of.
Our solution is this. Here at Refreshing Mountain, we attempt to satisfy diverse taste preferences by creating variety in our meals. Even the most finicky of eaters should be able to find something delicious at every meal!
Our Dining Hall Layout
This is the foodservice experience you can expect during a retreat at Refreshing Mountain. Upon arriving in the dining hall, at the main entrance, you will see a Buffet sign in the waiting area. If you missed it, there is a sign in the seating area directing you to go back into the lobby where you can enter the front of the food lines. (Pro Tip: Donât buck the traffic of the food lines! It might cause a landslide of epic proportions!)
Many guests like to come into the seating area first to put their personal items at their table, which is fine. YES, everyone has a reserved table for your group; just look for the table signs. (Pro Tip: your group name may be on the reverse side of a table card, as multiple groups use the same tables at different meal times. Also, occasionally your tables may need to move from meal to meal, so keep a lookout in case your spot gets changed!)
When you go through the buffet bar entrance, you will see a fridge and microwave on the right. This is a self-service area for guests who have special needs or dietary concerns and have brought some of their own food. We post our daily menu to our website several weeks in advance, so that you can see the planned menu ahead of time. While we have variety at each meal, some guests still opt to bring along supplemental food as well, and so, the self-service area is specifically to meet that need.
When going through the food lines, always feel free to ask the chef about the ingredients of any particular item, to determine what you can and cannot eat on our buffet bars. Guests with severe allergies do need to be aware that our kitchen and buffet bars cannot guarantee that there will be no cross-contact amongst food types.
Our Breakfast Assortment
Here is the type of menu you can expect for breakfast:
- Baked goods, with a selection of danishes, Amish donuts, banana bread, coffee cake OR a grilled or fried seasoned potato
- Pancakes, waffles, or french toast
- Some sort of egg dish: scrambled eggs, cheese omelets, egg patties, and/or chef-created breakfast bakes
- Two meat selections, usually with a typical pork item and turkey sausages
- A bowl of hot cereal with either oatmeal, grits, or hot maple cereal
- A toast bar (Remember! Donât butter the bagel or bread until AFTER the bread comes out; we donât like FIRES!)
- A cold cereal bar (Also open for lunches and dinners, for those that like cereal all 3 meals a day!)
- A full beverage bar, consisting of coffee, teas, and juices
- Pictures of water on each table
The items are all buffet style, and sometimes our eyes are bigger than our stomachs. We recommend that you take a little to start, and then go back for more, especially if are trying something new. Our food motto is, âtake what you want, but eat what you take!â This helps us to be good stewards of the food God has blessed us with.
Once you are done with your meal, we ask that you take all your plates, silverware, trash, and cups up to the dish window. Place the silverware in the gray tub and push your plates, cups, and trash as far in as you can on the dish return counter. We will come by later to clean and sanitize the tables and sweep the floors.
Once your allotted meal time has ended, you will need to exit the dining hall so we can prepare for the next group to arrive! We serve 6 times per day (each meal twice) with specific times that are set up by your leader. Being prompt for the start of your mealtime will ensure that you have plenty of time to go through the lines, get seconds, have fun with friends, and get cleaned up before the close of your meal shift.
Come happy and come HUNGRY!