A wide array of fresh fruit is part the dining hall’s recent changes.
“The trips up to the dining hall now seem somewhat less tedious,” Kaki Su ’19 said of the improved mealtime experience through changes introduced this term. After weeks of planning and organizing, SAGE Dining Services and the Dining Hall Committee created a new calendar of events for April. Whether it be the make-your-own donut bar or the assortment of bite-sized pretzels and dipping sauces, the dining hall this term now offers a variety of new food options for the Choate community.
According to Dining Hall Committee member Anna Deitcher ’18, the improvements on the menu and high frequency of special events were the products of a dining hall survey sent to the student body near the end of the winter term. In the survey, students were asked what they felt the dining hall lacked.
“We found out from the survey that berries were a popular breakfast choice for many students. That’s why you see berries more frequently in the dining hall this term,” Deitcher explained. She continued, “We’ve also gotten a lot of positive feedback on the chicken nugget dinner that took place last term, so we considered holding more events like that in the spring.”
SAGE Director Paul Kikosicki said of implementing the changes, “There’s a lot of work involved in the menu-selecting process – a lot more than you think. In the case of berries alone, we had to spend more time managing our budget, since berries are generally more expensive.” In addition to managing finances, Mr. Kikosicki had to communicate with local food distributors to ensure that the food is of the best quality, as wells as train SAGE staff members for various working stations.
Despite the endless hours invested in this project, Mr. Kikosicki believed the process was worth the time and effort. “We know that Choate is a home away from home for many students, so we want to provide a variety of dining options,” he explained.
Many students reacted positively to SAGE’s efforts. Mint Sethbhakdi ’18 said, “I like how there’s more fruits, not just in the salad bar but also in the new baskets. The baseball-themed popcorn and pretzel lunch was also very creative.” Sophie Mars ’19 said of the pretzel and donut bars, “The food is not healthy, but it definitely tastes good.”
However, along with positive reactions came speculation on why these changes were happening so rapidly, especially at this point in the year. Some say that these improvements were implemented mainly to impress the guests on campus during Spring Visits. Sarah McAndrew ’20 said, “The visitors on campus seemed impressed by our dining hall, so if that’s what SAGE was trying to do, it worked.”
Nevertheless, fans and doubters alike agreed that their dining hall experience was a much more positive one, a goal the SAGE staff strove to attain since the start of the school year.
