Recipe for tuckshop win

The team at Scarborough State School have revealed what it takes to win Tuckshop of the Year after bringing home the honour from P&C Queensland's awards in May.

Scarborough State School’s retail manager Lisa Gill says “love, consistency and lots of hard work” go into an award-winning tuckshop.

“I was so humbled to think that the things we do every day were being recognised as being something special,” Lisa says.

“We go above and beyond every day because we all love what we do and it's amazing that our school community appreciates it.”

The tuckshop offers a diverse range of foods – some more popular than others.

“Our students are super adventurous when it comes to school lunches,” Lisa says.

“They love our sushi bowls, bento boxes, burritos, yiros, sweet chilli chicken wraps and everyday favourites like homemade pikelets, cookies and banana bread.

“Our everyday menu caters to all kinds of tastes. Our fresh foods like fruit, veggies, dairy, snacks and homemade goodies are always affordable.

“Special occasions are our favourite days/weeks. We make Ekka treat bags at Ekka time, Gingerbread at Easter, native spiced biscuits to celebrate NAIDOC week and we even did a lunchbox deal to honour one of our favourite staff members retiring.”

Running a tuckshop isn’t a one-woman job though, and Lisa is grateful to her team, the students and teachers.

“I want them to know that being the retail manager is the best job I have had and that they make each and every day a pleasure to come to work,” she explains.

“I could never have dreamed that I could find these amazing people who have made it possible for our tuckshop to become the best in Queensland. I couldn't do it without them.

“Tuckshop Day 2023 was a great day (in particular). The students and their class teachers showered us with notes, cheers of ‘thank you’ and handmade gifts to tell us how much they love what we do.

“It’s so nice to know they get just how much we love what we do.”