MELISSA HARTZ
Design Editor
While students were at home enjoying the Thanksgiving holiday, changes were being implemented in the FDU cafeteria. Students are now able to utilize the trail mix bar and sushi station that were installed over the break. “Chef Jeff” Gourley, director of Gourmet Dining at FDU’s College at Florham, noted that the time had come to change up students’ cafeteria options.
“At this point in the semester, students have been eating in the cafeteria for almost four months,” said Gourley. “The quality is still there, but we needed to introduce a little variety.”
At the trail mix station, students can mix assorted nuts and dried fruits together to make a healthy snack or dessert. Gourley chose to place the trail mix bar right alongside the cakes, pies and pastries to provide students with a healthy alternative.
“While our pizza, fries, and burgers are still popular, there has definitely been a demand for healthier foods. We’ve noticed that we’ve cut back on our cakes and desserts, so it’s definitely nice to have a healthier option there,” said Gourley. Students have also noticed – and appreciated – the addition of healthier dessert options in the cafeteria.
“I think the trail mix bar is a great addition to the caf,” said junior Allie Leone. “It’s delicious and you don’t feel as bad eating it like you would a piece of cake or a bowl of ice cream.”
The sushi station has also seen tremendous success since it was introduced on Sunday, Nov. 29. From 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Monday through Thursday, students can get sushi rolls with their lunch. At the moment, there is someone serving the sushi, but Gourley noted that once the novelty wears off a bit, it will become a self-serve station.
“Right now we’re going through ridiculous amounts of sushi, but that’s also because it’s brand new,” said Gourley. “Eventually, it will balance out; people will go back to the rotisserie and other staples because they’ve been eating sushi for a week.”
He noted that the idea of the sushi station becoming self-serve was an important part of the cafeteria’s purpose.
“After college, people go out into the corporate world, and we try to reflect a corporate eatery. Instead of someone handing you food, students really get the experience and freedom to create their own entrée. That’s really the concept of the caf – we call it a cafeteria, but it’s really a dining room.”
Gourley also said that he was not worried about the stations’ effect on sales at the Grill and other campus eateries.
“We know that people sometimes take extra nuts or fruit back to their rooms,” said Gourley. “But it’s not exactly convenient to carry a Styrofoam bowl of almonds around, so people will still buy the containers available at the other eateries on campus.”
The new stations were the result of ideas pitched to ASC-US, an organization which allows FDU students to suggest new foods and stations that they would like to see in the cafeteria.
“ASC-US is always looking for new suggestions,” said Gourley. “The communication is definitely up to the students, though; they have to come to us with any suggestions or dietary needs that they would like met.”
Gourmet Dining plans on working on new signs for the remainder of the semester. The new signs would include things like calorie counts, descriptions and inclusion of any possible dietary concerns such as nuts, lactose or gluten. These new signs will be available in the cafeteria in January, when students return from Winter Break.
