T HE FOOD-MANAGEMENT field has many erudite experts in the art of fine cooking and the science of nutrition, but cooking by the book doesn’t always pass the test of the taste buds. For this reason, we measure our food service at Hudson River State Hospital by the patients’ seal of palate approval. The first Monday of each month, the supervising dietitian and the food manager conduct a patients’ foodcommittee meeting which is attended by 12 to 14 men and women patients representing their particular wards. The group meets for about an hour in a small room in the administration building to discuss food preparation, food service, and food in general. Patients are encouraged to talk freely about anything pertaining to hospital food. After a period of general comments, there is a roundtable discussion in which each person is called upon for remarks. This prevents one or two people from monopolizing the meeting. When Mary complains that the Swiss steak was not tender or John says that the breakfast coffee was weak or Margaret prefers a new formula to an old one, we ask the others to give their opinions.