On Friday 30 June, the VUB campus in Etterbeek was filled with the aroma of glowing charcoal, grilled meat and tasty veggies, as VUB held its traditional annual staff BBQ for the 22nd time. The tradition goes back to 2000, and has been interrupted only by two Covid years. As many as 2,300 people registered this year to raise a glass and a fork with their colleagues.
Hauling glasses
VUB staff prepared the BBQ with the greatest care.
It’s without doubt the biggest BBQ in the capital, as the Vrije Universiteit Brussel is the largest Dutch-speaking employer in the region. It has 3,735 staff; added to the 3,493 full-time employees of the UZ Brussel, that makes more than 7,000.
So the preparations for the BBQ are no mean feat and start six months in advance. This culminates in a day and a half in which all the necessary equipment is delivered and set up: some 20 tents, 2,500 plates and accompanying cutlery, 50 large BBQs and 400 kg of sustainable charcoal.
Chairs and more chairs
The Infrastructure Department worked hard get everything in the right place.
For this BBQ, VUB teamed up with sustainable caterer Choux de Bruxelles. They take care over portion sizes, use local and seasonal vegetables – giving uglier veg a chance – and avoid surplus food, as well as using as little disposable material as possible and keeping a short production chain. No fewer than 448 packages from Choux de Bruxelles were ordered, with hamburgers, satays, mushrooms, halloumi and lots of salads, all of them enjoyed with great relish.
The leftovers from the BBQ will be donated to Poverello, a homeless organisation best known for its food donations to those in need.
Time to cook
Dean and professor Evert Zinzen of the Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy donned an apron himself with a smile to ensure the BBQ went off without a hitch.
The after-party
Others took care of the social aspect of the BBQ and prepared the after-party, which was also a great success.