Topic: Good food in the Army??

[GO!!!]

Sig Op = Signals Operator MOC 215, an amalgamation of the former 211 (radio operator) and 212, (telphone operator).

Basically, the guy that sets up and uses the radio.

[Daidalous]

I will say one thing.  Imp's are a  bit better than they used to be, but after a week or two of them, there just fuel for the body

[loyalist]

Lol I remember back in the day when I was a young army cadet I was in summer training camp. We had a night out in the field and we got to eat IMPs (individual meal packages, for those of you who probably know them as something else). It was the highlight of summer camp and we got to sleep in hootchies! 

Wait until you get to eat IMPs to the point that you get some very, very weird digestive problems. Still, I've heard that they're better than MREs and are quite good for field rations. nevertheless, I find it hilarious when cadets shout their praises. Wait for the post-field bathroom adventure as all the chemicals they put in those to help keep you "operation" catch up with you.

[AoD71]

LOL Thats funny cuz I remember my WO at the time telling me a story. Now, I didn't have a problem that, but he said thay they indeed keep you from going so you dont have to worry about it in the field. He said that after a week it just hit him right out of the blue. I didn't envy him, but you have to admit, it IS a nice little feature they have in there.

[GO!!!]

I don't consider getting constipated a good feature, its unhealthy and uncomfortable.

You should be 'going' at least once a day, you don't do it as often eating IMP's because you are in the field and using up almost everything you eat. Sit at home and eat IMP's for a while, you'll probably find the effects to be the same as eating normal food.

Nope.

When you eat hayboxes in the field you will find that you are indeed quite regular, sometimes even disturbingly so. The feature you are speaking of is a lack of fibre, which hayboxes generally have in abundance, and IMPs/MREs don't have at all.

[Kendrick]

Hmmm good old IMP constipation bread.

[RangerRay]

It's amazing how after week's worth of IMPs, they sense a flush toilet in the near vicinity of your body...

[Kinote]

A friend of mine gave me some of his spare field rations one day and is there ever some good stuff in there! ...Got me addicted to Mirage bars too, although I haven't seen those in a few months.

[Spectrum]

Or better yet, start out at the begining, and refuse to ever look at those things as anything but privelages, and then you'll always love your job

But yeah, to echo what everyone else has already said several times, Canadian mess food is generally great (I've had a few bad meals, but really, it's only been a few)

Most messes (Actually, saying most, only because I haven't been in every mess in existence, but yeah, every mess I've been in) offers two main courses, two starches, and an vegetable (For example, the steam trays might include pork chops, chicken wraps, baked potatoes, rice, and mixed vegetables, another day it might include poached fish, burgers, rice, fries, and green beans). You pick a main course, a starch, and vegetable.

There's always variety, the mess may repeat itself on a weekly schedule, but certainly don't expect to get the same thing two days in a row (Most messes also have a "steak night", depending on the mess, this may be a thing to look foreward to or dread, no mess names no pack drill ). Every once in a while you might get a "theme meal" of sorts (Always loved when they put out a "chinese food" spread... I think one of the best meals I've ever had was at a small airforce mess on an evening when they put out chinese food, can you say home made egg rolls? Mmmm...)

The messes also generally include a salad bar (The size and variety of which depends on the mess, but at minimum, there'll be a green salad, some sort of macaroni or potatoe salad, a good selection of fruit... that's for a small mess, the salad bar in kingston was probably 20+ feet long, all sorts of goodies, used to love the cheeses)

Most of the bigger messes also offer option of a sandwhich bar during the weekdays at lunchtime (A half dozen different options of meat, and a selection of sandwhiches, just walk and up and tell them what you'd like).

As far as the IMPs go, they're rations with a self life of what? 4 years? 5 years? Either way, that being considered, they're delicious. I mean, in comparison to say, mess food or a home cooked meal, they're not so great, but really, as far as rations go, they're delicious, I get irritated to no end by people who complain about them, I've never had a problem eating an IMP (Particularly because I'm usually hungry in the field). Lots of food, reasonable variety, even vegetarian alternatives (If you can get your hands on some veggie IMPs for a couple of meals, go for it, they're great)

Beyond the rats (rations), you'll get the LMCs (Light Meal, Combat) once in a while, also known as patrol rations, basically quick snack food (Beef Jerky, Pepperoni Snacks, chocolate bars, granola bars, hot chocolate, all sorts of goodies that you can cram in your webbing for later consumption), issued for various reasons, dependent on your supply chain and the nature of the exercise.

Hay boxes in the field can't be beaten either, always sucks for those of us on shift work (Read: Siggies doing rad shifts) though, because it means either wake up half way through your off time for a delicious hay box meal, or scavenge under the seat in the pod for left over rations when you get up for your crap later (Most people have the sense to leave instructions with their fellow det members before they go to sleep if they want to be woken up for meals or not, as nothing feels worse then deciding whether or not to go poke your buddy before you go to breakfest to ask him if the wants some or not, when he's got three hours of sleep left).

But seriously, in reference to hay boxes, generally, it's whatever the nearest mess happens to be serving that evening, but you only get one each of main course, starch, and veg, still delicious. They always send out some fresh fruit, some juice, probably a bit of desert, some milk, coffee, lots of nice stuff.

Field Kitchens also rock, basically, a mess in the field, anything a small mess can offer you, only in the field, including the salad bar (Nothing like a big slice of water melon in the field on a hot summer day, yummy...)

End result, I just spent a good chunk of time writing probably two pages on food in the CF... as Napoleon said, an army marches on it's stomach, and apparently, our army took that to heart.

P.S. Box Lunches... what the heck is up with the butter on the Sandwhiches? I'd take soggy bread over butter on a sandwhich any day, or at least give me an extra mustard packet to cover up that magarine taste

Damn!

This information should be on the recruiting site..I'm sold! I think I wanna be a cook now...

[Kinote]

"Join the Canadian Forces! See the world! Meet new people! Challenge yourself daily! And damn, do we ever have good food!" ...You know, it might just work!

[TCBF]

The food is actally quite good.  Most of the people who complain about it never ate so good at home.

Our cooks are the best.

Tom

[Daidalous]

I love going no course and eatting in the mess.  Some one cooks the food, serves it to me, It tastes good and my dishes are cleaned for me.     That sounds like heaven to me.

[Pte.Marleau]

You guys can't forget the delicious IMPs. Those are pretty good 2.

[zipperhead_cop]

Summer 95 and 96 there were lots of Light Meal packs going around Gagetown.  There was probably a bunch that had expired and they wanted to pawn them off on a bunch of jr officers to have a laugh when we actually ate them. 
I liked the pepperoni.  It was like they had been stored in a road salt pyramid for a year, and were sweating salt.  The dried cheese was usefull as a fire starter, but since we were never allowed to have fires, there was much cheese distributed along the Lawfield Corridor.

Mess food rocks, and I never got sick of the IMP'S.  I used to brag to my friends about how good the food was.  Nothin' makes a meal like having a cold chocolate milk machine handy and drinking it until you are in pain.  If only those glasses wern't so damn small.

[a Sig Op]

Sig Op = Signals Operator MOC 215, an amalgamation of the former 211 (radio operator) and 212, (telphone operator).

Basically, the guy that sets up and uses the radio.

Amalgamation of Tel op (Tele-type, not telephone, data over HF, the linemen have handled most of the telephone stuff for quite a while...) and Rad Op (Radio Operator) actually.

Tac rad is to a sig op what section attacks are to an infanteer... basic stuff... instructing on the equipment, strategic HF, sattelite, signals dispatch, microwave connections, electronic warfare, all sig op stuff

In fact, in a tac-rad CP, we're not supposed to use the radio, the officers are supposed to be the one's talking to the troops, we're just supposed to set up the equipment, then monitor for VP.

And to tie it to the thread, we eat well while we do it

[Ed Gagnon]

The food in G-104 in Petawawa is outstanding.  You cannot find a better choice or presentation of the food.  It is excellent in all respects.  If you live in you will not complain about the meals.

Food in the field is also very good.  I do not ever remember finding the food in the field anything to complain about.

Good luck and good eating.  See you at the gym!!

Ed Gagnon
PSP Manager
CFB Petawawa

[yammit]

Got of the bus for GMT summer of '98 in Wainwright... first meal ever was grilled salmon steaks... I thought I was in heaven!

Then the Brits got a hold of the kitchen!

Summer '01 - JLC - lunchtime - philly cheesesteak sandwiches - witnessed the Snr Brit cook reach into the meat bucket, pull out a handful of meat, onions and peppers, then dip it in the "molten, orange, cheese-flavoured dipping sauce" bucket, eat it, wipe his hands on his shirt and go back to serving!  Went up CoC with complaint.

After that - no more Brits on the serving line - they were kept in the back "preparing" our food for the rest of the summer.  God knows what hell I've consumed.

If there are any Brit cooks on this site who take pride in their work who are offended by what I've stated - there were witnesses other than myself... the memo I submitted can probably still be found on my course file in Wainwright.

American MRE's are quickly improving - their MRE Bread is WAY better (esp the whole wheat with Blackberry jam and crackers with jalapeno cheese) - the messes are nowhere near ours.

My only major complaint about box lunches - two sandwiches, a tub of potatoe salad, and only one TINY mustard pack!!!

CFD Dundurn is the only place that gives two mustard packs!  Any CF cooks on here?  Please - a mustard for each sandwich and one for the potato or macaroni salad!  Thank you!

tlm.

[TCBF]

"Nothin' makes a meal like having a cold chocolate milk machine handy and drinking it until you are in pain.  If only those glasses wern't so damn small."

- Liquid chocolate donut?

 

[Tommy]

...Nothin' makes a meal like having a cold chocolate milk machine handy and drinking it until you are in pain...

Ugh... I know that feeling... after about the 7th glass its really hard to do any work after lunch for at least an hour.....

after the first week of being on ration strength and realizing that no one is gonna take the food away, I usually slow down my milk intake...

if i didnt, i would have udders by the end of a tasking....

And yes... Pettawawa has an Amazing Mess.... some of the best food ive ever had... that and Trenton is up there... Borden and Meaford are pretty good as well. and Connaught could hold its own..

basically Food Goes in me...