Frisbie's cafeteria cuisine is now being served at Portsmouth Regional

PORTSMOUTH - It has long been well known in the Rochester area that the food at Frisbie Memorial Hospital is exceptional and now that HCA has taken over the facility, they not only learned this tasty tidbit, but they are bringing the same food service to its sister facility Portsmouth Regional Hospital.

Unidine, the company that handles the food service for Frisbie, came on board in November at Portsmouth Regional Hospital, offering a definite upgrade for its patients, their visitors and the general public, who are welcome to pop by for lunch, or just coffee and dessert.

"Frisbie's food has a good community following," Unidine Area General Manager Marcello Raffaelle said. "People come in from the community for lunch, for a soup and salad. They come in for dinner because the prices are pretty good and the food is great. We have quite a following of people from the Rochester post office."

Raffaelle said their area executive chef Daniel Bullis has worked in the food industry for over 39 years.

"I have worked with him for 10 years now," said Raffaelle. "We were awarded the account at Portsmouth because of the successes we have at Frisbie in both the quality of the food and our customer service. With the two locations, we plan to make Unidine the flagship for the region. We are really proud of what we do."

More:What youth homelessness looks like, why Rochester lights up in green and how you can help

What makes Unidine food special?

"Our main success comes from our fresh food concept, from the fact that all of our food is made from scratch," said Raffaelle. "Our fish, pork, chicken and beef are fresh, not frozen. Our potatoes are real. They do not come out of a box. Vegetables will always be fresh because they come in daily from vendors and whenever possible we source from local farms. We offer award-winning New England clam chowder and chicken chili. Our slow-cooked braised pork and primavera are amazing. Dan, our chef, has won many awards for his cooking."

For patients, Raffaele said it is Unidine's belief that offering the best products aids in patient healing.

"We have no chemical additives," he said. "Come and try us. We serve the patients, and also the staff, the administrators, visitors and anyone else who want to come."

New menu energizes the staff

Portsmouth Regional's Associate Chief Nursing Officer Megan Gray said the staff is talking about the energy Unidine has brought to the hospital.

"It is wonderful because they have made a commitment to serve quality food, and they do," she said. "Their philosophy is that food is part of the healing process and I agree with that. As we do rounds, the patients are raving about the new food."

More:Rochester Share Fund, Revival Day of Hope want people to know they're here to help

As to their health, Gray said any organization that serves farm to table as Unidine does is good for the patients.

"Food is what helps heal us," she said. "A person's well-being involves both mental and physical health. If you have to be in the hospital, let's make sure to feed you well. This commitment to this by Unidine is being embraced by the entire medical staff. Add in fresh air and sunlight and we are treating our patients right."

Raffaele said Unidine could be in the restaurant business because they are that good. Instead their nationwide service includes hospitals, senior homes and assisted living facilities, corporate dining, colleges and universities, even sports stadiums.

"We have been in Portsmouth less than one month," he said. "We have already increased the sales in the cafeteria."

Summer​ Menegakis, vice president of marketing and communications for Compass Community Living, the parent company of Unidine, talked about its success.

"Unidine operates in over 450 facilities and is the leading provider of food and dining management services for discerning clients throughout the United States," said Menegakis. "Since its founding in 2001, Unidine’s success derives from consistent execution in four key areas – an exclusive focus on food and dining management services, a commitment to seasonal, fresh-from-scratch cooking, exceptional customer service and a corporate culture enlivened by each team member’s passion for culinary and service excellence."

For more information, visit www.unidine.com.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Portsmouth NH Regional, Frisbie Memorial have restaurant-quality food