Can anyone remember the food at Craig-y-nos?

Putting together the story of Craig-y-nos is like piecing together a jigsaw puzzle.

Take the question of food.
What was it like at Craig-y-nos?

In theory it should have been plentiful and good after all did we have a team of gardeners who grew all the fresh fruit and vegetables for the hospital.
And a high calorie diet was deemed essential along with the "fresh air" treatment.

Well, the food was certainly abundant. In fact it was not just the patients who were coerced into eating all their food.
Nurses were expected to eat a high calorie diet too in order to build up their immune system to combat TB.

One young nurse told me that in the 1940’s the matron would threaten:”No food, no ward.”


So it was interesting to speak to one ex-patient last night who had clear memories of the food. She summed it up in one word:”Horrible!”

Looking back she says the main complaint was that it was served cold.
By the time we got our meals the food had already travelled through several corridors, and a lift to the ward kitchen on the second floor.
Here Sister Morgan dished it out on to plates which maids carried into the wards.

Secondly, most of it was boiled and overcooked.
She remembers we had a lot of boiled potatoes and tapioca pudding.

These are some sample menus:

Breakfast- lumpy porridge, hard boiled egg, cold kipper, herring.

Dinner: boiled chicken, rabbit, mousse, tapioca, salads,

Supper: fried egg

Very small children in the Glass Conservatory recall “the sweetie tin” being handed around at the end of each meal.

Christmas dinners are looked back upon with affection by those who can remember them because they were warm and Dr Williams carved the turkey from a heated trolley in the ward though one patient recalls a year when Dr Huppert dissected the bird.

What can you remember about the food?