ISU Dining Service food may not have been considered fine cuisine in the past, but a new chef is bringing her experiences from the Culinary Institute of America in New York to change students’ perceptions of traditional dorm food.

Karla Boetel has put on her chef hat and filled the newly-created position of executive chef for ISU Dining.

As part of a merger between ISU Catering Services and residence hall dining services, Iowa State created the new position, said Jon Lewis, director of ISU Dining.

Boetel has been aiding in the training of dining employees, development of recipes and expansion of menus.

“An executive chef is one who oversees the culinary program,” Lewis said. “From time to time they do production.”

Boetel, originally from Des Moines, was a graduate of the DMACC Culinary Arts program and went on to study at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., for four years.

Explaining how an Iowa girl ended up in New York, Boetel said, “I won a scholarship for an apple pie.”

Originally, Boetel planned on finding permanent work somewhere on the East Coast, but after moving back to Iowa in search of work, she discovered the executive chef position at Iowa State.

“I kind of fell into the ad for an executive chef at ISU,” she said. “I love it. It’s good to be home.”

After going from the world’s premiere culinary college in New York to the kitchens of the residence halls, Boetel said there is nothing about her job she doesn’t like.

“There’s nothing I have done that’s not fun and exciting,” she said, adding, “I don’t even do dishes.”

Boetel said her duties at Iowa State have mostly been in catering services, but she also works with residence dining and retail operations such as Hawthorne Court Market, where she recently cooked a meal to celebrate ISU Dining Days.

“I try to offer advice on all things that are culinary,” she said.

“Fresh, local homegrown Iowa ingredients” are Boetel’s favorite foods to cook with, she said. The dining services at Iowa State use mostly Iowa-grown products from local companies and farmers across Iowa, she said.

“I’m working to create an all-Iowa menu for catering,” Boetel said.

Boetel said she enjoys the diversity of working at Iowa State, as well as planning and cooking at high-visibility events.

“I can be at any kitchen at any given day,” she said.

While Boetel said she is qualified to do both planning and cooking, she still loves cooking best. When she goes home though, she seldom cooks a meal.

“I probably more often than not go home and eat cold cereal,” she said. “When you’re working all day around food, the last thing you think of is eating.”

Given the opportunity to eat food cooked by someone else, Boetel said she enjoys eating “ethnic foods at really good ‘ma and pa’ home-style kitchens.”

Catering at ISU football games has been a source of excitement for her in the past, Boetel said.

“I showed up and was like, ‘Oh my gosh, look at all the red and gold,'” she said. “I was really impressed with my job.”