Dr. Mia speaks with Senior-Care Executive Chef Craig Bowerson, a longtime kitchen professional who developed a resident-led menu system, about bringing choice, personal history, and better food to assisted-living dining. They explore practical ways caregivers can use familiar recipes and cooking together to nourish relationships, including when dementia or limited time complicates meal preparation.
Craig Bowerson is an Executive Chef who believes our most vulnerable deserve a higher level of care. A service professional for 33 years, he has worked every position in the kitchen, culminating in the role of Chef. For the past eight years he has served as Chef at a senior care facility, where he developed a groundbreaking menu system that puts choice and power back into residents’ hands and lets them select their own meals. He has made it his mission to prove that budgets are not the enemy of quality.
https://craigbowerson.substack.com/
https://www.youtube.com/@craibow
https://www.instagram.com/craigbowerson
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
01:00 Why family recipes and resident choice matter
03:13 Meet Craig Bowerson and his resident-led menu system
04:44 Staffing, cooking skills, and the cost of prepared food
07:15 How residents help build a personalized menu
09:58 Alternatives, comfort foods, and flexibility at mealtime
11:08 Making cooking manageable for caregivers and people with dementia
13:37 Cooking together to build connection and preserve family traditions
18:32 Simple meal-prep ideas and familiar freezer meals
19:59 The history hidden in old family recipes
23:17 Why dignity and choice drive Craig’s work
26:19 Taking the resident-choice program to more facilities
Support the show
Video on Ask Dr. Mia YouTube channel
Transcripts on www.miayangmd.com. Transcripts are automatically generated and may contain minor inaccuracies.
Email: ask@miayangmd.com
Opinions expressed are exclusive of Dr. Mia Yang and not reflective of her or guest speaker's employers or funders.
Video on Ask Dr. Mia YouTube channel
Transcripts on www.miayangmd.com. Transcripts are automatically generated and may contain minor inaccuracies.
Email: ask@miayangmd.com
Opinions expressed are exclusive of Dr. Mia Yang and not reflective of her or guest speaker's employers or funders.
