COVER STORY
R he center of Mississippi State’s architectural identity for more than 100 years has been Perry, the dining hall with the stony exterior and imposing stature that resembles an old stone church, but also some- thing more biblical: Over the years, students have taken to nicknam- ing the structure “Noah’s Ark.” And like the biblical boat, the cavernous dining hall with soaring ceilings has been a central gathering place and refuge to keep the students, faculty and staff afloat and well nourished. The fried catfish didn’t jump in two-by-two, but the Aramark team ensured that Catfish Fridays have weathered all the recent changes. Now, the restructured, refreshed and reimagined interior is ready for the next generation on campus, unveiled last month as Perry Food Hall. “Perry has always been more than a dining hall,” says Andrea Pichardo, Aramark marketing manager at MSU. “It has been a gathering place, a landmark, and a touch- stone for generations of students. The renovation was not about changing that role, but about refreshing the building to better serve today’s campus community.” The result is a space that Pichardo describes as “both deeply familiar and exciting- ly new,” just the way anyone would want a historic restore/refresh/remodel to go. Starting in the fall of 2023 with planning, the decision was made to renovate what had been the Marketplace at Perry into a multi-concept food hall that showcases the cathedral ceilings and brings in even more sunlight with a cool “glass box” seating area.
New classic: MSU’s renovated Perry Food Hall is ready for the next 100 years in historic building At Mississippi State University, it’s a whole new world inside the refreshed, restored and revitalized dining hall, with new concepts, a historic bakery and a cool “glass box” seating area.
BY TARA FITZPATRICK
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QUARTERLY | Q4
PHOTO COURTESY OF ARAMARK
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