Dear Voice Editor,

I am happy you noted that some of the dining changes made at the beginning of the fall semester were met with praise, and we are grateful to hear the critical feedback as well. As I mentioned in the campus-wide email sent at the beginning of the fall semester about dining changes, Dining Services encouraged feedback regarding these changes during the month of September through the comment cards provided at Common Grounds. We have read all of the comments and will be implementing the following changes over the next few weeks.  Please note that these changes were planned before your article on October 4th but we were unable to commit to these changes at the time of the interview as we were waiting for final approval.

Students on a meal plan will be able to use their meal swipes when purchasing sushi at the Fens, Common Grounds and Meyers.

Weekly specials featuring comfort food in Bistro 300 will be introduced at Common Grounds.

The hours of operation of the Fens Café will be extended, closing at 2:15 pm from Monday to Thursday.

Customers will be able to pick their favorite dressing when ordering rice and salad bread bowls at the Bistro 300 kiosk.

All new Bistro 300 rice and salad bread bowls have received great reviews and will continue to be offered without changes. We plan to implement a “Make-Your-Own-Bowl” option for the spring semester. With this new option, customers will be able to choose their favorite ingredients and create a custom bowl.

The dining staff takes allergy and dietary restrictions very seriously and we work directly with students who have identified their restrictions.  In addition, we continuously look to expand vegetarian and vegan food options.

Customer comments and feedback are a vital tool for delivering a high quality dining program to students.  The changes note above are an example of how comments and feedback can improve the food program!

Regards,

Richard Cody

Director of Dining Services