The Hot Lunch Lady

When Niki Rafatjoo sent her kids off to school with delicious and healthy lunches, she thought she was simply doing the right thing. She had no idea a business was bubbling right under her nose, until she started getting calls from other moms asking for her “special” lunches. Niki knew she was onto something when she literally “got called into the principal’s office” at her son’s school. Having heard the buzz, the principal wanted to know more. Once Niki explained her nutritional philosophy and motivation, the principal was on board and she was preparing 45 lunches from home every morning.

Niki realized she had the makings of a successful business and formally took on the role of The Hot Lunch Lady. She moved her operation into a catering kitchen and was delivering 400 lunches each day to ten different schools by mid-year. Now in her second year, Niki has expanded to more local schools and turned her commercial kitchen into a bustling lunch spot.

Her own adolescent experiences and concerns about the next generation blossomed into a passion for nutrition. She admits to working hard at staying fit and healthy and doesn’t want the same struggle for her children. She points to body image problems, depression and hormone imbalances as examples of issues that can be addressed through diet. “See, touch, taste” is how Niki describes her approach. She believes that by giving vegetables to children every day, kids will adopt a vegetable-centric diet because they see it as normal.

The Hot Lunch Lady’s mission is to also educate those she serves. Niki reminds parents that “our eyes get trained that a giant cupcake is the right size.” She speaks with parents about the needs of individual children and often has to convince them that “just because Michael Phelps eats 10,000 calories per day, your fifth grader on the swim team should not.” She emails parents if she notices that they’ve ordered juice for their child every day instead of water. “Little things mean all the difference in nutrition,” she says.

Niki also emphasizes that dessert should be a special treat…not a daily one. Her company offers it only twice a month, featuring such items as brownies fortified with spinach and mini applesauce muffins topped with frosting sweetened by pumpkin puree. The kids won’t taste the difference, but their taste buds will develop an acceptance of vegetables.

Niki’s other tricks-of-the-trade include flatbread pizza with tofu, sweet potato, broccoli and asparagus all hiding in the sauce and butter noodles infused with undetectable pureed squash. With hundreds of kids gobbling up The Hot Lunch Lady’s meals every day, parents can rest assured that their children are receiving hot, fresh, healthy meals that will go into tummies, not trash cans.

Not only do parents appreciate The Hot Lunch Lady’s nutritional options and great value, they also eat up the convenience of online ordering. Schools contracted with the company issue parents a passcode so that account access and management are just a click away. Parents have the ability to view expansive daily menus and order up to three months in advance.

Niki’s latest incarnation is her restaurant in San Juan Capistrano. She opened the kitchen originally so that school officials and parents could tour her facility and taste her food. Many parents inquired about meals for themselves after their “tour,” so Niki answered with a restaurant that complements her lunch program. The storefront also showcases her artisanal gelato containing locally grown fruit, sugar, water, whole milk and “nothing you can’t pronounce.”

With a background in event planning, The Hot Lunch Lady has also found a way to fuse fun and healthy food by offering private parties right in her San Juan kitchen. Kids aged 6 and up can celebrate their birthdays while learning how to run a restaurant, design their own aprons and prepare tasty meals and gelato. For a fabulous ladies’ or parents’ night out, The Hot Lunch Lady also offers Dinner with a Chef, where an exclusive 3 to 4 course meal is created by their chef and enjoyed by up to 8 of your friends. If you’re celebrating a special event off-site, The Hot Lunch Lady also provides an array of catering options to suit your specific needs.

Located in Marbella Plaza
31115 Rancho Viejo Road * San Juan Capistrano * 949.218.4300
TheHotLunchLady.com