Serving breakfast and lunch for hundreds of young students is no simple feat, but the four kitchen staff at Southgate Elementary School are up to the task.

Everyday, an average of 440 students eat lunch at Southgate; 221 kids took advantage of the breakfast Tuesday.

“Although the learning and teaching is important, this is a large part of the need,” principal Mark Randall said of the food program. “And these guys do such a great job. They’re kind of behind the scenes a lot.”

Southgate has one head cook, Teri Uher; a helper, Sheila Nipp; cashier, Barb Kime; and dishwasher, Gloria White.

Lunch is $1.70 and breakfast is 75 cents; students who qualify for free and reduced lunch pay 40 cents for lunch and breakfast is free.

According to Randall, “Families, based on whatever their financial needs are, can apply for free and reduced lunch.”

The application process is especially beneficial when families suddenly face budget shortfalls, like when a parent loses a job. The district receives state compensatory funding for free and reduced lunches.

For some students, their breakfast and lunch at school is the only food they receive all day, kitchen staff said.

Breakfast is “grab-and-go,” meaning students pick up sack breakfasts and eat them during class. First-graders still eat it in the cafeteria to eliminate messes.

“The breakfast program is nice because you know that some of the kids who can’t get it at home get it here,” Randall said. “Also, there isn’t always adequate time.”

Meal menus are determined a year out and follow a six-week cycle. They are planned on a seasonal basis (wraps in the fall, soups in the winter), although staff leave their options open for when Mary Weikum, food program director, attends food shows.

Times have changed in school lunch programs, and Southgate is no exception.

Mini corndogs and pizza crusts, for instance, are now whole wheat; hotdogs are made of turkey; and cheese and salad dressings are reduced-fat.

Uher, who started in the district at Ellis Middle School 19 years ago after the school burned down, has since seen the district eliminate options like the donuts at the snack bar.

“When I first started, they had more hotdishes,” she said.

Popular menu items at Southgate — which vary from year to year — include Cheesy Dunkers (hotdog buns toasted, topped with cheese and served with marinara sauce), chicken nuggets, mini corndogs, Beefy Nachos and chicken patties.

Another favorite is the Smucker’s PB & J (a crustless peanut butter-and-jelly sandwich).

“If something happens and we don’t have them, there’s mutiny,” Nipp said with a laugh.

The Southgate kitchen staff are almost local celebrities, they said. Current and former students spot the “lunch ladies” in public, in awe to see them outside of their usual cafeteria environment.

The staff are also “famous” for their annual Halloween decorations and costumes — each year they have a theme that isn’t revealed to the students until the last moment.

Themes have included “The Wizard of Oz,” superheroes, a hospital, prison and witches. Last year, they had a Sesame Street theme.

“We shut our doors — it’s our big top secret,” Nipp said.