A "How to" demo for all LODGE MEALS at Camp Winacka and Camp Whispering Oaks- Girl Scouts San Diego-Imperial Council

1. Meal-time 101
A how-to for breakfast,
lunch, and dinner at camp

2. Does this stuff really matter???
• YES!!!!
This is pretty important stuff.
• Hopefully this guide will help
you feel more confident during
camp mealtimes.
• Watch this presentation and
next time you go to Winacka or
Whispering Oaks you’ll
practically be an expert. 

3. How does the meal-time routine work?
• 1st: Hoppers arrive 30 minutes early to set
the tables.
• 2nd: When Staff gives the “OK”, Adults enter
lodge BEFORE girls, spreading out among
tables.
• 3rd: Campers enter lodge and sit at tables.
• 4th: Everyone sings a “greeting”.
• 5th: Eat…YUM! 
• 6th: Everybody joins in singing a closing song.
• 7th: CLEAN-UP!!!

4. Table Etiquette 
Meals at camp are usually served “Family Style”.
• Pass food around the table….not across.
• Remember that there are 8 people at each
table. Make sure everyone gets the same
amount of food.
• FEED YOUR HOPPER!!!
Don’t forget about her!
She needs food too.

5. • You can get seconds when the Rusty/Chewy sign is
turned around so you can see their face.
• When getting seconds, the hopper needs to take the
serving dish with them, but not the serving spoon.
They also need to know how many servings they need.
• Remember: BRING ONLY 1 DISH BACK AT A TIME!!!

6. Hopping
• Each Table has only 1 hopper. But if
a table has “Buddy Hoppers” only 1
can be up at a time.
• Hoppers are the people who get
food for their table.
• Hoppers come in 30 minutes early
to help set up the tables.
• Please, carry the food with two
hands!!!
BUDDY HOPPERS: Sometimes there are more hoppers than
tables, so extra girls will be assigned as “Buddy Hoppers”

7. Just a note….
• When you are
hopping, it isn’t
necessary for you to
actually hop to the
kitchen.
• Remember, you are
not a bunny rabbit.

8. • The hopper will go up to the big window on
the left to get the food, carrying it with both
hands.
• Hoppers must walk through the center aisle of
the lodge to get to the big window.
• Be sure to form a single file line when you get
there!

9. • Always enter behind the right of the stage.
• There are red raccoon footsteps for you to
follow. Please, follow them!
• The food will be found at the second window.
• Once you get the food, keep following the
footsteps.

10. Follow the It’s not that
Rusty hard…..
footprints you’ll get it.
from the 
right side
of the
stage.

11. This is the window at
Whispering Oaks that the
mugs and pitchers are
returned to.
This is the window at Whispering
Oaks where you get your food. The
serving dishes also come back to
this window.

12. This is the window at
Winacka where you get
the food. The serving
dishes also come back to
this window.
This is the window at
Winacka that the
racked dishes are
returned to.

13. Where do the hoppers sit?
Stage/ front of room
At Whispering
The hopper Oaks, the right
sits here side of the room
may have to sit a
little differently
The adult (flip-flop version),
sits here depending on how
crowded the lodge
is, so please listen
The hopper for instructions at
mealtime!!!!
sits here
The adult sits
here

15. Setting the table:
Start with the plate on the table…

16. Setting the table:
The bowl goes upside-down on top of the plate…

17. Setting the table:
The cup goes on the top right corner of the
plate, also upside-down…

18. Setting the table:
A napkin goes to the left…

19. Setting the table:
A fork goes on top of the napkin…

20. Setting the table:
A knife goes to the right of the plate…

21. Setting the table:
A spoon goes to the right of the knife.

22. If you can’t remember which silverware goes on
which side of the plate….this may help:
• LEFT & FORK have the same amount of letters.
• RIGHT, KNIFE, & SPOON all have the same
amount of letters.

23. DISHES
Before taking your table’s dishes back,
every person at the table needs to:
• Separate their trash
• Clean off their silverware, and
• SCRAPE THEIR PLATE AND BOWL
WITH THE RUBBER SCRAPER!

24. DISHES (cont.)
• If the dishes aren’t properly cleaned, you
WILL be eating sanitized bits of food from
your last meal…So, make sure you clean
every piece of food off of your dishes!
• The dishwashers aren’t like the ones at
home, they just sanitize the dishes.

25. Another note…
• If you have something sticky, like
syrup, on your plate, try using a
leftover orange peel to help get it
off…just make sure nobody wants the
orange first. 
• Banana peels also work.

26. In order to
get your
dishes clean,
they have to
be racked
the right
way so they
fit in the
machine.

27. Dish Racks:
This is what
a PROPERLY
racked rack
of dishes
looks like:
It has
8 plates,
8 bowls, and
8 cups.

28. Here’s what it looks like from another
angle:
8
7
8
6 8
7
7
5 6
6
4 5
5
3 4
4
3
2
2 3
1 2
1
1

29. What’s wrong with this picture???

30. That’s Right!!!
There 7 6
are 5
only 7 4
of each 3 6 7 7
thing… 2 5 6
5
4 4 There
1
3 3 should
2 be 8 of
2
each.
1
1

31. What’s wrong here???

32. Wow…that was easy.
There
should
be one
one
row of
row of
plates…
cups,
one
row of
bowls.

33. Silverware
• The silverware needs to be cleaned off VERY
well.
• On the table there will be a round white
basket with small holes in it.
• Place your silverware into this basket with the
handles up (this allows the sanitizer to come
in contact with the silverware).
• Just remember: eating side down!

34. This area is for…..

36. Silverware basket
Side view
Side view
of basket
with
silverware
Top
view
Side view
of basket
with
silverware

37. Contents of the basket:
basket
8
8 forks 2 serving
knives 8
1 rubber spoons
spoons
scraper

38. Mugs & Pitchers
• At some point during camp, you may end up
using a mug.
• You can find the mugs at the front of the
lodge.
• At Winacka, the mugs are on the stage.
At Whispering Oaks, the mugs are underneath
the coffee maker.
• BUT, DON’T CARRY MORE THAN 4 EMPTY
MUGS AT A TIME!!!

39. Mugs & Pitchers (cont.)
• Once you have finished, take the used mugs to the
smaller window( at Whispering Oaks) or up to the
stage (at Winacka), but make sure that there is
nothing in them first.
• Pitchers (with leftover liquids) go back to the smaller
window (Whispering Oaks) or to the cart (Winacka)…
• Chunky soup gets sent back to the kitchen
Water pitcher Mugs Punch pitcher

40. • Take your pitchers
to the smaller This is what
the sink looks
window like. Staff will
(Whispering Oaks) be putting
or the first leftover drinks
here.
window (Winacka)
• Leftover drinks
should be poured
back into the
pitcher (to be
dumped down the
sink by the kitchen
staff.)

41. • The chunks from
the soup can go
into the trashcan.
• The liquids can go
back to the
These are
the soup
kitchen to be
pitchers dumped in the
sink.
*Usually, a Staff Member will explain
this before your begin clean-up!

42. Different kinds
of pitchers
Soup/hot
chocolate Water
pitcher…. pitcher
without
lid Drink
pitchers
Soup/hot
chocolate
pitchers Punch/
Soup/ hot lemonade
chocolate pitcher
pitcher
with lid

43. Which one do you think is the Serving bowl?
How about the Regular bowl?

44. •They’re usually pink or blue & have an “S” on the bottom
•Look carefully…
Regular bowls & Serving bowls look VERY MUCH ALIKE!
Bottom view of Serving bowl…see the “S”
Top view of Serving bowl

45. • The Regular bowl is the bowl that you eat out of.
• The Regular bowl is the one on top of your plate.
• The Regular bowls also have a lip.
Bottom view of Regular bowl
Top view of Regular bowl

46. Serving bowl or Regular bowl?
SERVING BOWL!!!!

47. Which type of bowl is this?
REGULAR BOWL!!!

48. • The Salad bowls are
the ones that are
generally used for
serving salad.
• They are the
clear bowls.

49. Greetings & Closings
• Before and after every meal there is a song.
• The song before the meal is called a greeting.
(Sometimes called a Grace.)
• Don’t start eating until after the greeting.
• Some examples of greetings are:
– “Superman”
– “Neath These Tall Green Trees”
– “The Cowgirl Grace”
– Etc.

50. Greetings & Closings (cont.)
• The song after the meal is the closing song.
• After the closing song, it is time to clean up.
• Closing songs can be any short camp song.
• Some examples of closing songs are:
– “The Alligator Song”
– “Buddies and Pals”
– “The Dinosaur Song”
– Etc.

51. The kapers for clean-up are:
• Trash
• Racking(as previously discussed)
• Taking the serving dishes back to the counter
• Sweeping and
• Wiping the table and chairs
• EVERYONE must be part of the clean-up process,
but give the HOPPER a break…
she did her job already!

52. TRASH & COMPOST
• Trash (non-compost) includes: Dirty napkins, empty
packets, sausage, bacon, and cereal containers.
• Compost includes: oranges, bananas, apples,
carrots, and celery.
• If you aren’t sure if something is compost
or not, ask an adult. Non-
Compost
(trash)
Compost
*Note: it may not be compost season when you’re at camp.

53. • An important clean-up kaper is taking the
serving dishes back to the counter.
• This includes:
– Serving bowls
– Pitchers
– Salad bowls and
– Various trays

54. This tray
is often A lot of
used for the You will
veggies time,
this will This one see many
have
fruit
usually
has eggs
different
and
things
types of
This is
used for
like that serving
main dish trays,
items,
muffins, each with its
almost Baskets are used for
anything! rolls, chips. Etc. own purpose.

55. SWEEPING
Don’t forget that after every meal you must sweep the lodge.
• At Whispering Oaks go • At Winacka go through the
through the door at the back big doors leading outside
of the room and go to the and go down the ramp. At
left. There will be a closet the bottom to the right will
with brooms. be the brooms.

56. WIPING
• Go up to the front of the room and get a
sponge from the bucket.
• Once you’re done, squeeze out the sponge
and bring it back to the front.
• Keep in mind: the sponges are NOT to be
used for dishes!!!
• And don’t forget to clean the tables well,
especially in between the cracks.

57. Singing Tree
• Once you’ve finished cleaning, ask the adult
at your table if you can go to Singing Tree.
• The Singing Tree at Whispering Oaks is the
porch directly outside the lodge.
• At Winacka, the Singing Tree is at the
benches outside the big doors.
Picture: Singing Tree at
Winacka.

58. The hotter it is, the more
water you should drink.

59. • Now you know practically everything there is
to know about meal-times at Girl Scout camp.
• DON’T FORGET TO THANK YOUR COOKS!!!!
They’ll appreciate it. 
Girl Scouts are so
good that they
have an A rating!
Just like your
favorite restaurant

60. Here are some links:
These links may help you find some greeting or
closing songs:
• http://www.geocities.com/EnchantedForest/Meadow/376
3/contents.html
• http://www.scoutsongs.com/categories/girl-scout-
songs.html
• http://www.scoutsongs.com/categories/girl-scout-
songs.html
• http://www.geocities.com/nickie101/songlist1.html
• http://gsleaders.org/files/scoutsong.htm
• http://www.scoutorama.com/song/
This power point was created by Taylor Ingalls (Troop 5007)
as portion of her Silver Award Project, GSSDIC 2010.