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New campus food court ready for growing campus
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Monday August 20, 2001 |
Arizona Daily Wildcat
New campus food court continues improvements
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Now that the new food court is actually open, how does it stack up to the old one? The Wildcat asked students for their thoughts.
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"It's a lot more convenient to have everything in one room."
- Paul Thompson
aerospace engineering sophomore
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"They need to offer healthier food with a little more variety."
- Lisa Reed
meteorology senior
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"I didn't expect it to be so modern. I've never seen anything like this at a college."
- Andy Alexander
undeclared freshman
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"I've studied here for four years, and this is much better."
- Iakovos Papaiakovou
finance graduate student
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"It's a lot nicer and bigger than the old one. I really want another bagel place."
- Catherine Strickland
business sophomore
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By Anthony Madrid and Sandy Thompson, both freshmen in the Med Start program, eat at McDonald's in the recently completed food court of the Memorial Student Union Center late July. The new food court - which includes the old union's On Deck Deli and Domino's Pizza -- opened July 2.
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After the July 2 opening of the Memorial Student Union Center food court, returning students and staff say they are pleased with new changes.
A larger dining area with outdoor seating and the consolidation of all food vendors under one roof are just some of the improvements that have been made thus far.
"We've added Panda Express, which serves Chinese food, and Seattle's Best Coffee," said David Galbraith, director of University of Arizona Dining Services.
Galbraith said the space allotments for On Deck Deli, Domino's Pizza and McDonald's have been increased to accommodate the high consumer demand.
"On Deck Deli was running so well in the old Union, so we just upgraded the equipment," he said.
Michael Guenther, a supervisor at Domino's Pizza, said he was impressed with the new location.
"The new setup is awesome," he said. "It's a better layout, and we got all brand new equipment."
Louie's Lower Level, a restaurant forced to shut down last year after a grease fire destroyed the kitchen in the old union, will make a comeback as a restaurant called Orville & Wilbur's.
Galbraith said Orville & Wilbur's will serve Louie's signature chicken strips, french fries, chicken nuggets and salads. It will be located directly outside Cafˇ Sonora in a trailer specially designed for the restaurant. Galbraith said the restaurant would open today.
Cactus Grill, an upgraded version of Fiddlee Fig that also opened today, is now located above the food court and will accompany a smoothie bar.
In addition to the main food court, improvements are also being made to aid campus vendors. A Nathan's Hot Dog vending cart, one that formerly shared a tent on the west side of the Modern Languages Building with El Cerrito Mexican food, will be moved to a location near the outdoor seating area of the new food court. The move comes as a result of a higher volume of customers at El Cerrito.
Student Union officials also plan to open a satellite location in the brick courtyard of the Main Library, which will open in October. Galbraith said the satellite location will provide students with a coffee stand, bagel shop and a convenience store. He also said the location is planning to stay open later.
"We're going to set later hours for the new location so that students who are studying at the library don't have to walk over to the food court in the middle of the night for a cup of coffee or a snack," he said.
The Student Union Building is open daily from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Information on the hours and location of all restaurants and stores can be found on the Web at www.union.arizona.edu.
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