Minor changes to the Great Hall had business booming in September.
The campus eatery’s traffic has increased between 5 and 7 percent, and sales have grown from 20 to 25 percent during Friday lunches—typically the slowest period of the week, said Nate Peterson, resident district manager of Bon Appetit Management Company.
Peterson and Bon Appetit Marketing Manager Sarah McGowan discussed possible improvements for the eatery with the Duke University Student Dining Advisory at its meeting Monday night.
“Fine-tuning our program and really nailing down customer needs helped us make the necessary changes,” Peterson said. “It took some time, with trial and error and really figuring out what works and what doesn’t.”
He added that Bon Appetit has made a few minor modifications this year, such as lowering Friday lunch prices in the Great Hall by $1 for the majority of stations and adding a bruschetta bar to the vegan and vegetarian stand.
Bon Appetit runs nine eateries that operate on campus, including the Marketplace, the Trinity Cafe and the Devil’s Bistro. The Great Hall serves more customers than any other eatery at Duke, said DUSDAC co-Chair Alex Klein, a senior and former online editor for The Chronicle.
“We like to bring in Duke’s largest vendor at least once a semester so we can hear about the ways they are trying to improve their operation, food-wise and otherwise, as well as offer feedback,” Klein said.
DUSDAC suggested creating a weekly e-mail for meal specials and re-evaluating the way the eatery cooks meat dishes.
Peterson said he did not anticipate any large-scale alterations in the near future, adding that he would like to gather more feedback. If students want to provide suggestions, they can speak with the chef on duty, write on Bon Appetit’s website or fill out a comment card in the Great Hall.
Although the Great Hall currently has two independent contractors—Sushi Nara and Sitar—Peterson said no additional vendors will be introduced due to physical space constraints and limited machinery available.
In other business:
Juniors David Wang and Nari Sohn and sophomore Katherine Franklin made a guest presentation to DUSDAC about starting a Duke chapter of the Campus Kitchens Project. The organization is a nonprofit service group that repackages and donates food from campus eateries to the local community. The Campus Kitchens Project currently has branches at 25 schools.
Wang said Alpine Atrium showed interest in working with the students and would potentially offer its kitchen to repackage the food.
“This project is completely feasible, and it is already being run at different schools,” Wang said. “We have direction; we have all the necessities as far as eateries and planning.”
DUSDAC asked the students to consider the legal issues regarding using a kitchen on campus and health factors in repackaging food.
“We absolutely support [the concept] and if the vendors can pull it off logistically and legally, we want them to give their food if they can,” Klein said.
He added that many student projects fall through for various reasons.
“Every year, we get five to 10 groups of students who come in with really ambitious ideas and I think only two have come into fruition,” he said. “It’s tough.”
DUSDAC also discussed its role in Duke’s upcoming Food Week, a collaborative initiative to raise awareness about food-related issues. Food Week will be held Oct. 25 through 29.
In addition, the Refectory at Duke Law recently created a homemade, unprocessed cheese whiz alternative for their Philly cheese steaks at the request of Duke Student Government President Mike Lefevre, a senior. The sauce is currently called “ooey gooey” cheese.
To boost sales, DUSDAC members brainstormed alternative names for the newest addition. Suggestions included “Bedda Chedda” cheese whiz, “Cheddariffic,” Lefevre Whiz” and “Hot Mike Sauce.”
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