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Gastronomic goals
Campus cuisine cravings constant challenge

By Amy Dean

The words cafeteria or dining hall aren't used by BU Dining Services. Students eat in dining rooms, and this distinction is integral to understanding Dining Services' philosophy when it comes to preparing and serving meals to the campus community.

"Being a city-campus community influences the quality of the food we serve because we are competing with Boston restaurants and the variety of foods the city offers," says Barbara Boden, marketing director for BU Dining Services. "So we offer meal plans that can be used for traditional eating in the residence dining rooms as well as retail dining at the Union Court, Science Fare, and Late Night Cafés."

Variety is vital in planning meals that will keep students satisfied, says Jim Major, the food service director who oversees operations at the Warren Towers Dining Room for the Aramark Corporation (which runs BU Dining Services). "We serve pretty much anything under the sun. We're constantly updating our meals and making them new and attractive. And because so many students have traveled the world and are a lot more aware of world cuisine than in the past, we offer meals with an international flavor." But American fare is still a favorite choice of most students. "The kids want to try different things," Major acknowledges, "but they also want food that's familiar to them. They still want cereal, sandwiches, burgers, pizza, and French fries."

The Warren Towers Dining Room feeds 4,000 students a day and offers a grand spread. Students make meal selections at a variety of food stations: a pizza station, a south-of-the-border-- style taco and burrito bar, a fast-food stand that serves hot dogs, garden burgers, hamburgers, and daily grilled specials. There are specials of the day, made-to-order sandwiches from the deli, cooked-to-order omelettes for breakfast, and fresh-baked bread daily. Hot baked potatoes can be transformed into a meal with a variety of stuffings, and a salad bar offers more than 30 choices a day, a dozen dressings, and three or four prepared salads. Fresh fruit is always available, as are two home-baked desserts every day and regular and soft-serve ice cream. And there are

15 kinds of soda, 8 juices, and 4 varieties of milk -- skim, chocolate, 2-percent, and whole.

Vegetarians and vegans need not fear meat-heavy menus; there are always meatless daily entrees as well as a wide variety of tasty pastas and whole-grain breads. "We also have a resident dietitian to help with food allergies and special diets," says Boden. "And we mix up our traditional dining offerings with special events each month -- Ben and Jerry's ice cream festivals, fruit fests, holiday dinners, chocolate extravaganzas, and the Visiting Chef Series, where chefs from well-known restaurants are invited to work with campus Dining Services chefs to bring students their unique creations."

Sometimes the cuisine at BU replicates home cooking. "Rice Krispie treats are one of our biggest desserts," says Major. "We're putting them out now at every lunch and dinner." And sometimes the cuisine rivals home cooking. The traditional September lobster night for students has proved to be so popular, Major reports, that another has been added for the spring. And thanks to Annabelle's of Portsmouth, N.H., a small family-owned ice cream company, students enjoy premium-style ice cream in both traditional and special variations.

"Right now, Annabelle's is working on a vegan ice cream for us," says Major. "And a pumpkin-flavored ice cream, too."

The skinny on campus food

While pizza and fries may be a favorite meal choice for a student on the go, campus cooking serves up a variety of healthful choices.

"There is nothing in the dining rooms that you cannot, or should not, be eating," says Royletta Romain, BU's registered dietitian. General nutrition information, such as calories, fat, sodium, and cholesterol content, is posted near many serving locations in the dining rooms or is available to any student on request. Chefs cook only with cholesterol-free oil, vegetables are steamed, and sauces are served on the side. BU also cooks to order or batch-cooks entrees, meaning portions are prepared depending on the number of diners expected, so food stays fresher longer and retains much more of its nutritional content.

Kosher cooking

Former Boston-area executive chef Valerie Lareau, the enthusiastic dining services director at Hillel House, says BU's kosher cooking appeals to the orthodox and traditional Jewish community. "We feed close to 700 people weekly," she says. "That's up 35 to 40 percent over the past year. It's grown because we've made a lot of positive changes. We've worked hard to make kosher dining appealing, so people keep coming back."

Lareau cites display cooking at lunches and dinners as something that diners like. More important, however, is the variety of offerings. "We just had prime rib," she says. "We've never been able to have that before. We serve glatt kosher meat -- the strictest level of kosher. It can be very difficult to get kosher food and make it interesting, but we've all put our heads together and come up with ideas the students love. We've had pan-seared salmon. Brisket. Asian-themed stir-frys. We served trout amandine for dairy day, and the response was great. And when we do a sandwich bar, it's huge.

"Hillel House is a great dining place," she adds. "It's got a very homey feel to it."

Faculty and staff can eat in all campus dining rooms, including the Hillel House dining room, during normal business hours, with a valid BU ID. Prices for the all-you-can-eat meals are: breakfast $5.65, lunch $7.15 ($8 at Hillel House), and dinner $8.95 ($9.80 at Hillel House). Students may invite a faculty or staff member to dine with them for free by requesting a guest pass from their residence director.

10 November 2000
Boston University
Office of University Relations