January 23, 2025
Text: Glenn & Hektor - Photo: Helle Bjerre Christensen
In the Pump Station kitchen, Laila swings pots and pans. In fact, she has cooked in pans as big as kitchen tables and pots so big they could fit three children inside. Children's reporters Glenn and Hektor spoke to Laila about what it's like to cook for 200 children, who pays for the food and how the club's children can influence the menu
How many children do you cook for each day?
"I cook for 200 children."
Okay, that's a lot.
"Yes, but it's not every day that 200 children come. Sometimes there are only 150. But I always prepare enough food for 200."
I mean, how do you do that?
" I cook the food before you arrive. I always start at 11 or half past 11 and prepare the food. Because when you have to cook for a lot of people, it takes longer."
"But in reality, I do the same as your mum and dad, or as you do at home in your kitchen. I just have bigger pots and bigger dishes. And then I have two ovens and two hobs. So everything is just bigger, so I can cook for more people."
But is it hard to cook for so many people?
"I don't find it difficult. I do, however, find it difficult to come up with something exciting to make. Because it has to be something you can make in an ordinary kitchen like here."
How do you decide what kind of food you want to make?
"Before, I used to make a lot of sandwiches and all that kind of stuff. It's the kind of food I've been used to making in other clubs. Now the management of the club wants me to make hot food for you every day. And I really use you children to say what you would like to eat. The children themselves also come and say to me: "Can't you make this or that?"
How much does it cost to cook for so many people?
"I reckon it costs between 7 and 10 DKK per child to cook."
How long does it take?
"It takes about 3-4 hours every day."
Where does the money come from?
"The money comes here from the club. That is, some of the money for the food is paid by your parents, because they pay money every month for activities and food and stuff like that. And the rest is paid by the club. So it has nothing to do with my finances at all."
You've told us that some children actually thought you were paying.
"Yes, a lot of children come and ask if I'm paying for the food. And it's not. The club gets a big bag of money from the City of Copenhagen, so you can all go here. And that money is used for food, furniture, trips and everything else. So you can drink lemonade, for example. And play ludo. Or table tennis."
Who buys and where do you buy from?
"I'm the one who does the shopping. And I shop at nemlig.com. Do you know it?"
Yes, it's Nemlig.com. (If you don't know what Nemlig.com is, it's a shopping platform for food and recipes, ed.)
"And then I buy from a large company called AB Catering, which only sends food to institutions, restaurants and hotels where you can't buy privately.
(Interview continues below the box)
When Laila has more time - for example during the holidays - she doesn't just cook the usual food. She also does activities with us children such as
1. Cream puffs
2. Lollipops
3. Muffins
4. Bubbletea
5. Candyfloss
6. Filled chocolates
7. Sweets
8. Caramels
9. Waffles
10. Smoothies
11. pancakes
12. Milkshake
Laila also welcomes new ideas. "All children are always welcome to make a suggestion to me. And if I have time, I'd love to do it with you. Because I think it's really, really nice to do all these things. "Says Laila.
How do you get variety in your food?
"I do this by reading recipes online, looking in cookery books and by asking the kids at the club."
Can we children be allowed to help cook?
"You're welcome to do that. Sometimes there are children in the kitchen who want to help cook. And then they join in. Also for serving."
How did you learn to cook for so many people?
"Before I came here, I had never cooked for so many children on my own. It was completely new to me. I trained in a hospital kitchen at Herlev Hospital, where they cook for 3,000 people every day. So you don't cook the whole dish yourself, but you stir the sauce or fry meatballs, for example."
"The way it works is that you turn up in the morning and there are, for example, four people cooking meatballs, four people making dessert and four or five people making sauce. So there are a lot of people in a kitchen like that. There's also someone who cooks all the vegetables. And someone cooks all the meat."
"And there you have pots that are so big that three children your size could fit in one pot. You have machines that stir the pots. And you have pans that are almost as big as a kitchen table."
How do you decide what you want to do?
"I do that by asking the kids. And then by looking online and in some cookery books and magazines. I make what I think looks exciting. And then I think about whether it's possible to make it here in the kitchen. Because some dishes require several people to make them.