Hospital food isn’t usually something people write home about – but a new mum was stunned when she was served a ‘celebratory’ meal that some would mistake for a dish from a fancy restaurant.
The woman had spent a few days in the maternity ward after giving birth to her baby at the North Shore Private Hospital in Sydney.
The night before she was discharged, hospital staff surprised her with a three-course ‘celebration’ dinner – red and white wine included.
The dishes included Mediterranean roast vegetables with shaved pecorino on baby rocket greens with balsamic drizzle and pan-fried chicken supreme slow braised in thyme, infused Shiraz jus with baby roast potato and seasonal vegetables.
The food didn’t end there.
She was served a bread roll with Lurpak butter, and treated to a dessert consisting of a chocolate, raspberry and coconut pebble with berry coulis, along with two single-serve bottles of Shiraz and Sauvignon Blanc.
‘It was the perfect sendoff before all the sleepless nights,’ the mum said, rating her meal an eight out of 10.
Despite her last hospital meal looking ‘fancy’, she said her dinners from previous nights were ‘more average’ but ‘still tasty’.
Hospital staff surprised a new mum with a three-course ‘celebration’ dinner – wine included
She was treated to a dessert of a chocolate, raspberry and coconut pebble with berry coulis
As she was breastfeeding, the mum said the wine was just a ‘one-time’ treat to herself, served with her ‘special’ hospital dinner.
She explained that she expressed her breastmilk afterwards and threw it away as she had planned around her baby’s feeding schedule.
Her post was met with more than 260 comments, with many impressed by her food.
‘That looks like something in a fancy restaurant. WOW,’ one said.
‘This is so much better than what I got after having my daughter in Brisbane. Just toast and a sad muffin. Love that they gave you actual wine – that’s very Aussie of them. The chicken looks proper good too, not just hospital food,’ another revealed.
‘I’m literally in the maternity ward in a public hospital in Melbourne right now and my jaw dropped. The envy I feel,’ one mum shared, laughing.
While one person brutally pointed out: ‘It doesn’t look good but for hospital food, it’s better than normal.’
Meanwhile, mums who gave birth in public hospitals revealed what they were served, which was a far cry from the ‘gourmet’ dishes offered in private hospitals.
One mum shared a ‘grim’ picture of her public hospital food, which consisted of ‘corn flakes, milk and no bowl to pour them into’. Other items included bread, jam and an uneaten muffin from her previous meal that hospital staff had kept aside for her
‘My Vegemite toast at 9pm after back labour tasted like heaven on a plate for me,’ one mum shared.
‘My 3am cheese sandwich on brown bread tasted f**king great. The next couple days of damp bread and tinned spaghetti, not so much,’ another revealed.
‘I got a slice of cold toast and a cup of tea but my God it felt delicious,’ one added.
One mum shared a ‘grim’ picture of her public hospital food, which included an uneaten muffin from her previous meal that hospital staff had kept aside for her.
‘Corn flakes, milk and no bowl to pour them into! Oh and bread. Not toast. Just bread. At least it came with proper butter I guess,’ she said, sarcastically.
‘Also don’t be fooled, the muffin was leftover from the night before because by some miracle, they didn’t just take and throw it out without asking if I was finished eating.’
However, some were lucky, with one mum revealing: ‘I’ve had great public hospital food. Last baby, I was in for a couple of weeks and the meals were good. Stroganoff with mashed potato and vegetables right after the baby was born.’
Meanwhile, many joked that the private hospital food was a good way to ‘boost the birth rate’ in Australia.
But not everyone agreed, with one mum confessing: ‘No amount of good quality hospital food can convince me to have another baby.’
