RENOVATION ROUNDUP
C-store. So now we’re looking into some other additions, like a smoothie machine, and we want to add self-service coffee.” says Meilahn. Over at the school’s Lane Center, the retail food court also received a face lift. Elior Collegiate partnered with celebrity chef and restaurant owner Fabio Viv- iani to add four of his concepts to the space: Santorini, Taco Santo, Good Habit and Buona Napoli. The space’s existing Chick Fil A which was located opposite the food court and set up as a “kiosk-style, grab-and-go con- cept,” says Meilahn was also renovated into a full-scale concept. LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE While it’s still early in the semester, the student feedback on the renovations “has been overwhelmingly positive,” says Meilahn, adding that they’ve even heard some students say the changes influenced them to purchase a meal plan. “[One student] said how excited she was for the new brands, and that she actually decided to buy a meal plan this year just because of the changes that we
dining room is yellow, and we redid [our] Primi Pasta Station. And then in the Greens [a salad and wrap concept] room, it’s this beautiful green, and it’s really a warm environment to come into and just relax and eat and spend your time,” says Meilahn. In addition, the dining team added a new concept named Thrive which fea- tures a menu comprised of dishes that are free from the top nine allergens, and includes hot options, cold options and pre-packaged to-go options. Chesapeake is also now home to a new 24-hour C-store that uses tech- nology from software company Byte Technology to allow students to enter the store, pick up the items they want to purchase and then leave without ever having to physically check out. The Elior Collegiate dining team decid- ed to add the C-store to provide students with more late-night options. Currently, the C-store offers a wide selection of items, including ramen, fresh cut fruit and frozen pizzas. The team is looking to continue to expand its offerings in the future. “There’s quite a bit of space left in that
made, which we just thought was awe- some,” she says. So far, the team has held grand open- ing events for the Chick fil A, the new Fabio Viviani concepts, and a new Fire- house Subs location that also opened on campus. This month, it will celebrate the grand opening of Chesapeake Dining Hall with an Oktoberfest-themed party. The themed nights at Chesapeake Dining will continue long after the grand opening event wraps up. “About every two weeks we’ll be do- ing theme nights,” says Meilahn. It may be a luau or might be a barbecue, things that our staff can engage in as well.” The team is also planning on hosting bingo nights and will offer pumpkin painting as Halloween draws closer. Students can also expect the Fabiani concepts to rotate and can look forward to the introduction of limited time offers (LTOs) down the line. “We started with our core menus, and I can’t wait until we start bringing lim- ited time offers and rotating that Taco Santo out with something else,” says Meilahn. “Really showing them why we were chosen, and why we’re here.”
QUARTERLY | Q3
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