Patrick O'Brien Inspires Staff and Creates New Flavors as Concordia's Director of Dining Services

College dining hall food, in most scenarios, is nothing to get excited about. Patrick O’Brien, director of dining services at Concordia, is hoping to change that perspective. He has a passion for food, and he hopes to share that love with students at Concordia.  

For Patrick, food has been at the center of his life for many years. He is a third-generation chef and started working in his family restaurant at a young age. His love for food began when he found the way it makes people come together. “People always come together and show love when you're preparing food.  To be of service to others through food has always been my calling and passion.” 

He was able to hone his passion throughout his education at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, and through an externship in Paris at Da Rosa Restaurant. Prior to working at Concordia, he was on the Culinary Innovation Council for Elior Education and spent time as a director of dining for York College. 

Since starting at Concordia, O’Brien has worked to bring this innovation to Janzow, on Concordia’s campus. “I want to take college food service to new heights, and there are always cool fun items we are creating in Janzow.  New fun menu items such as Neapolitan style pizzas, house smoked BBQ, and fusion items such as Thai chicken tacos, curried steak flatbreads, and soups boules highlight some new items we've infused this semester.” 

The key to Patrick’s success has been making sure he works without limits. “I am consistently pushing our staff to be better from a food standpoint.  But one of my passions also is tying the food in with decor, food displays, and making foods look more attractive to our consumers.  I try to treat each event as its own occasion with unique decor and innovative food.” 

This is a challenging task. On busier weeks, chefs may be working over 100 hours a week to create this environment for different diners.  The key to executing these goals, Patrick believes, is to motivate your employees to do the work. “When you have a vision that you want to reach, you have to motivate and inspire others to accomplish those visions.” Patrick states that a lot of his work with his employees is hands on. “I lead by example, so I throw my apron on and work side by side to show I really care about what we're doing and want to help see the ideas come to fruition.  When my employees see something such as a dessert bar that's looked the same for 5 years suddenly come to life, I think that helps motivate them to want to continue to change and evolve our business.” 

Food service, he says, is no joke. “I have chosen a very challenging profession, but I love what I do.” Patrick says that all of the hard work is worth it. “I don't think there's any better thing a person can do for another than cook a beautiful meal for them.  When you hear the dining room full of laughter and chatter, you see smiling faces as they eat our food...  All the hours, the exhaustion, it comes full circle and it's very rewarding.  College students and our younger generations are similar to clay in that every experience molds them into who they will one day become.  We want to make sure even the dining aspect of Concordia makes an impression they will remember.”   

Patrick is married to Kaylee, his wife of six years.  They have two daughters Josie (5) and Olivia, "Livvy" (3).  They have 4 dogs, Enzo, Archie, Millie, and Charli.  In his free time, Patrick enjoys camping and boating, and challenging himself to find more flavors and profiles.

Interested in trying some of Patrick's food? Learn about Concordia's dining options here.