Since the start of the year, Sodexho has promoted its new and improved dining selections, or so the banner reads inside Davenport Dining Hall. But what exactly are the new improvements?
Are they the new Spot hours? Is it the closing of the Book and Bean Bistro? Or is it the hot food no longer being served Friday and Saturday evenings?
No matter what the changes are, they leaving students with little desire to visit Davenport or the Spot.
The new restaurant in the Spot, 151 degrees, has come after students complained about last year’s Salsa Rico selections, which are somewhat missed now. Instead of having four combo options to put on your meal card, now there are only two. You get to choose between the hamburger or the cheeseburger.
If you are not in the mood for either of those choices, you can always pay a high price for chicken fingers, cheese nachos or a grilled cheese sandwich using your Declining Balance Dollars.
The Spot has always been seen as the alternative to Davenport, but that has changed this year. Much to the dismay of students, the Spot has implemented new hours that leave the Spot closed during the hours Davenport is open.
What can we say, Davenport has been the topic of negative conversation since the Campus Times can remember. Unfortunately, that has not changed this year.
Student honesty is being put to the test this semester with the launch of the “Leos Honor System,” which lets students come between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. and scan her own card. The obvious problem with this is that students won’t always scan their cards, which means Sodexho will lose money, ultimately leaving students to foot the bill and pay more for on-campus dining.
Another change in Sodexho service is that hot food is no longer served Friday and Saturday evenings. Leaving students with hamburgers-a campus favorite- and sandwiches as choices for a fulfilling meal.
One of the most unknown changes is the closing of the Book and Bean Bistro. Located in the ULV Bookstore, the Book and Bean closed its doors for the summer and never re-opened.
No longer will we enjoy the soft cookies, the blended smoothies or the Dreyer’s Ice Cream. From one day to the next, the B&B Bistro had shut off its cash register and put away its espresso machine.
Yet, students had no notice of the closing; there were no signs on the door indicating the B&B Bistro would be gone forever.
A question on the minds of students is, “What happened to options?”
It seems as if Sodexho cannot offer substantial food options; it has to be all or nothing. Yes, students requested to have the “old Spot” back and although 151 degrees has taken a step in that direction, we have yet to see the vast options the “old Spot” offered.
The spot used to offer tacos, hamburgers, salads, nachos: all the things that fill you up with no nutritional value. We want it back.
Give us affordable prices and good meal options, and Sodexho will have a happy ULV community.
Unsigned editorials represent the opinion of the Campus Times Editorial Board.