Students give their input on 251 North

While reviews for the only all-you-can-eat dining hall on the campus have been overwhelmingly positive, some students told officials they should address the frequently long lines and limited vegetarian options to make 251 North even better.

The Residence Hall Association set up a feedback table in front of the dining hall alongside Dining Services Director Colleen Wright-Riva and Executive Chef John Gray last night. This was the second such session the RHA held this semester and the first where dining officials were also present.

About 30 students stopped by the table to give their thoughts on how to improve the popular dining destination.

"Dining Services can send out surveys, but how accurate can they really be? How many students are actually going to respond to them?" said sophomore plant sciences and theatre major Dwight Townsend-Gray, who chairs the RHA's Dining Services Advisory Board. "We thought it would be better to do something like this, where we can interact face-to-face with students and really get a sense for what they want."

While many students praised the quality and variety of food options available, the most common complaint of the night centered on the long wait in line to get to the food. Offering multiple pizza and pasta recipes, the Italian station especially had become the most popular destination in the dining hall, and long lines tended to materialize rather quickly, according to Gray.

But after hearing several students raise the same concern, Gray and Wright-Riva discussed dividing the line into two sections much like staff had already done at the "Chef's Special" station at the back of the hall.

Another concern students brought to the table was of customers breaking the one main rule of the diner — not to take any food out. Reports of students smuggling food in backpacks and tote bags filled with take-out containers came to the forefront earlier this semester despite this rule.

"It definitely seems like something that could cause a problem," sophomore electrical engineering major Andy Hines said. "I would hate for the prices to go up because people aren't following the rules. I don't want to see that happen."

Wright-Riva said staff members are monitoring the issue closely, and students caught stealing food will be disciplined by the university's judicial board. However, in response to the suggestions the diner should have a carryout option, Wright-Riva said that is "not likely to happen."

"It's a sustainability thing," she said. "Part of what makes 251 North unique is it's a very sustainable operation, and having carryout containers would take away from that."

Even with five separate food stations offered at the dining hall, freshman criminology and criminal justice and psychology major Sophie Levin said she believed the variety could be expanded even further.

"More vegetarian options would be nice," she said. "We have the same thing every week, so it would be nice if there was more options available."

Wright-Riva said officials will collect what they learned and discuss how they can use the feedback to improve 251 North for its second semester.

"We'll get together over the [winter] break and brainstorm as a team," she said. "We're always looking to improve the experience for students."

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