COLLEGES & UNIVERSITY
‘BAMA BURRITO BOWLS Roll ‘tide, but don’t roll the burritos; bowls are better at ‘Bama. When Bruce McVeagh, resident district manager for Aramark Higher Education, looks through his meal plans at the University of Alabama, a couple items “jump off the page,” he says, as cult favorites: the burrito bowl on Tuesdays at the campus’s Fresh Food Company facility and Nashville hot chicken on Fridays at Lakeside Dining Hall. “What makes the burrito bowl so popular is, number one, it’s really good and it’s fairly healthy as far as the students are concerned, but also it very closely parallels ]the service style of] a retail brand,” McVeagh explains. A generation of students raised on Chipotle, he observes, finds value in the bowl format—especially since at ‘Bama, the extra, fresh guacamole is free. “It very much mimics what the students are used to, and so that one is huge.” The protein choices are marinated beef and chicken. TUSCALOOSA HOT CHICKEN The Nashville hot chicken trend shows no signs of abating anytime soon, straddling the transition from trend to menu standard. The spicy indulgence is firmly entrenched in college dining halls, as well. Alabama’s Nashville hot chicken “brings people from far and wide” on Friday nights, McVeagh says, thanks to the sweet-hot profile of the hand- breaded chicken breast, alongside fresh- cut fries and a piece of Texas toast. The crispiness of the chicken is another selling point. McVeagh uses a house-made breading using corn starch and flour for a crispier mouthfeel that holds the hot sauce well. “We toss them in the sauce, like people do wings in a big bowl when they come out of the fryer,” McVeagh says.
QUARTERLY | Q3
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