Editor’s Note: How can a dining program that serves tens of thousands of students and staff each day churn out award-winning cuisine that has been recognized by Princeton Review for having the best campus food for seven years in a row? MassLive visited the UMass Amherst campus, interviewed chefs, tasted the food and toured the kitchens to find out how the UMass Dining program became a dining dynasty.
Of the hundreds of faces who make up UMass Amherst’s award winning dining program, for many, one of the most familiar and beloved is Joanne Keller — who helps run the breakfast omelet station at the campus’ Hampshire Dining Commons.
Keller, dubbed the “Omelet Lady,” had been a staple of the dining hall’s omelet making crew for over a decade, when in July 2020 at the age of 65 and amid the COVID-19 pandemic, she announced her retirement.
She took a year-and-a-half long hiatus before — spurred on by messages asking and encouraging her to come back — she returned to the position in a part time role in late 2021.
Two years later, and nearing 15 years in UMass Dining, Keller is back a handful of days per week whipping up eggs and preparing omelets to students’ hearts and desires.
“It’s great because I get to work really a couple days a week and interact with the students and cook a few omelets and help out my co-workers,” Keller said.
When she is on — typically Tuesday and Thursday mornings — her and her team’s omelets are still in pretty high demand, according to Keller.
Balancing about 10 burners at the breakfast station, Keller is usually overseeing five of them at a time as lines of hungry students form, grow and steady during the rush typically from around 8:30 to 10 a.m.
She estimates that in an normal day she makes somewhere around 200 omelets, adding that the “Hamp” omelet station goes through about 15 to 18 cases of eggs per day. With 144 eggs per case, the numbers quickly tally up to the thousands.
For Keller, the secret to her success is not only her down pat omelet-making formula, but also the bonds she forms over time with students she meets as she prepares their meals.
“After a while you get to know their names and what omelet [they like],” Keller said. “Now, I’m getting to see the same kids all the time, so I form a bond with them and they like that personal touch.”
Keller said for some students, having that familiar face in the dining hall who knows their go-to order makes them feel like the UMass campus is more “a part of home,” even if they haven’t been back to their actual homes all semester — particularly for international students coming from abroad.
The kind feelings between Keller and the students she serves are often mutual, with students even inviting her to their events and giving her shoutouts when they see her.
She said a group of women’s rowers at UMass recently invited her to join them and their coaches on a boat out on the Connecticut River early one morning, only for several of the girls line up for one of her famous omelets the next day.
“I really like the interaction with the kids and I see them out and about at the hockey games and the sporting events,” Keller said. “I feel like I’m appreciated, but I appreciate them for all their kindnesses.”
Across her career in UMass Dining, Keller has had the opportunity to interact and form friendships with many students who’ve passed through the dining halls but in particular the student athletes who often come to fuel up in the mornings before trainings and workouts.
She can count the likes of current NHL player Cale Makar — a former star UMass hockey player and now a defenseman on the Colorado Avalanche — as well as NFL player Andy Isabella — a former UMass Minutemen wide receiver and a now a member of the Buffalo Bills — among her connections.
Joanne Keller, a beloved omelet cook at UMass Amherst, poses with former student and current NHL star Cale Makar. Keller announced her retirement in July 2020 but returned to UMass in Nov. 2021. (Courtesy Joanne Keller)
She said she has also had the chance to cook breakfast for the school’s new chancellor, Javier Reyes.
So what goes into Keller’s famous omelets? In a recent visit to UMass by MassLive, Keller demonstrated her process.
Keller said to start, one needs a good non-stick pan, and usually she’ll begin by sautéing any meat or vegetables going into the omelet to warm them up and crisp them with flavor before pouring in the raw eggs.
The liquid egg batter will slowly solidify around the outer edges first and with a “fish turner” spatula in hand, Keller will raise up the sides of the forming omelet to cook away the any runny eggs.
Once sufficiently cooked on one face, Keller then flips the omelet up into the air in a controlled motion and lands it on the other side to ensure the other face gets cooked thoroughly.
She flips it one more time and then adds a handful of shredded cheese to melt in the middle before folding and serving.
The whole process takes about five to seven minutes per omelet, and Keller noted that students who in a time pinch will sometimes ask for an egg scramble, which have become more popular for her and her team to prepare since they are generally less time intensive.
Despite coming out of retirement for part time work, Keller said she still faced some uncertainty about her longterm future with UMass Dining due to problems walking and standing she experienced prior to a hip replacement surgery in January.
Post-surgery, Keller said she feels like “a new person,” with a new spring to her step.
“So, I don’t see me leaving anytime soon,” Keller said. “It’s been really fun and I’ll just do it as long as I can.”
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