By SOFIA YOUNGBLOOD/Contributor
Photos by Joshua Self/Staff
A new food service vendor took over Patriot Dining on Aug. 1, after the university’s contract with Sodexo, the previous vendor, expired. With a wide variety of healthy options, American Dining Creations hopes to improve the campus dining experience while using student feedback and suggestions to shape the program throughout the year.
“I think one of our major priorities was to get established, do a better job with food quality and presentations and enjoy the dining experience,” Resident District Manager for American Dining Creations Allison Adams said. “We really are a culinary-focused company, so our job is to have foods that people enjoy eating and that they want to come back and eat.”
Adams hopes the company will be a long-term part of campus life.
She jokingly said her dream is that the dining hall becomes so popular that “students are having to stand up because we don’t have enough chairs.”
The dining hall now features global cuisine options such as Indian butter chicken, Asian udon noodles and Italian classics. These options are served alongside everyday American comfort foods, including burgers and chicken tenders. Fruits and vegetables are kept fresh and seasonal, replaced every two days.
One goal for this semester is “learning what everyone is about regardless of culture, wants, needs, likes and dislikes,” Regional Executive Chef Kevin Walton said. “Usually, the first semester is about getting to know the population. Right now, knock on wood, we’ve had a lot of positive feedback.”
STUDENT INSPIRED MENUS
Menus are both chef and student-driven, running on a 4-week cycle but can be rewritten after student suggestions. The company keeps a record of portions each day, taking the amount of leftovers into consideration when planning meals.
“It takes one,” Walton said. “One person traditionally speaks for ten,” recalling how a single request for baked potatoes led to an entire baked potato bar. “I want all the feedback we can get, good or bad; it’s wonderful.”
American Dining Creations has placed QR codes throughout the cafe on doors, napkin holders and TV screens for students to submit requests and feedback.
“Don’t be afraid to say, ‘hi,’” Walton said. “We want to hear you; we want to know you … because we are here for you.”
The company also hopes to hire student workers to help serve, prep food and work with chefs.
“We really want the students to help us work in our cafes and our retail outlets because they’re great,” Adams said. “And students like to work with students.”
While the company expands its workforce, current staff interactions are already making an impact.
“The biggest difference that I notice is that the workers are very cheerful,” sophomore Reese Hataway said. “They’ll ask about your day, and they are very hype.”
She also noted improvements in presentation and quality. “There’s a lot more color, and I feel like I can eat pretty healthy.” Her one request: “More bowls for salads.”
NEW CONCEPTS
American Dining Creations plans to launch new dining concepts with a “Friendsgiving” scheduled for fall and dockside dining near the lake next year.
“I want to hear that [students] have had some new experiences with food,” Walton said. “We’ve tried to turn this cafe into a reprieve, to where they can come to relax, decompress from school, decompress from life and just enjoy each other’s company and enjoy good food.”
To find more information about campus dining and upcoming menus, visit the Patriot Dining website at patriotdining.com.
“The dining experience has improved immensely from last year,” Hataway said. “I do enjoy eating there. The change was for the better.”
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