Belmont students will have more options for food this fall including two 24-hour convenience stores.
“I’m really excited, I feel like it’s kind of what we really need on campus,” said student Sadie Parker.
In addition to the convenience stores, Belmont is adding:
A deli - housed in the Neely dining room
A Shake Smart - to be housed in the new Betty Wiseman Hall
UCook Station - to be added to the Harrington Place Dining Hall
After listening to student feedback, auxiliary services announced these improvements after a long process of collaboration with Belmont Dining Services, Student Government Association and Sodexo.
One of the new convenience stores will also be added to the Wiseman Hall, the other will be housed in what is now the Corner Court. Both will include healthcare products, pre-packaged meats, fresh fruits and vegetables, frozen food, raw proteins and other general student grocery needs.
Neely Deli, which will include a large seating area, will serve deli favorites.
“In addition to expanding the deli, your Corner Court favorites will remain the same, but we'll be adding an enhanced menu,” Kelli Davis, auxiliary services analytics director said.
The deli will also have the standard to-go options seen in other dining locations such as Bruin Bites and Starbucks, serving wraps, salads and sides.
Betty Wiseman Hall will also have a Shake Smart, a healthy option for fresh shakes, smoothies, acai, overnight oats, juices and toasts.
“I like to see there’s healthy options… those are nice things to add, for sure,” Parker said.
Shake Smart also has customizable menu options, including adding protein powder and making items gluten-free, lactose-free or vegan.
“They're very health conscious, very healthy forward,” Davis said.
Harrington Dining will be renovated throughout the summer, adding a UCook station.
The station provides fresh vegetables, meats and other ingredients for students to make a personalized meal with chef supervision.
“We'll also do cooking classes and things like that… it has a bunch of cooktop stations for students to cook,” Davis said.
SGA has pushed for these changes after gathering opinions and ideas from the student body.
Former SGA President Carter Barnett met with Davis and the auxiliary services team to voice student input on new dining, which streamlined the improvements.
“Dining service improvements in general were brought to us by students, especially just lack of 24/7 options which that expansion will help with,” Barnett said.
Frank Reed, SGA’s next president, served on a board with Davis to discuss future planning and expansion with Sodexo.
“Essentially, we have been given pitches on some of the stuff that are pretty cool, and asked to give feedback on some of the new facilities,” Reed said.
Sodexo, in partnership with the university, is responsible for overseeing the planning, development and implementation of the new dining options.
“Our role includes selecting vendors, managing construction logistics, ensuring food quality, and enhancing the overall campus dining experience,” Charles Couture, Sodexo resident district manager said in a statement.
Through student and faculty feedback, food preferences, allergy awareness and more diverse options are now available in these new locations.
“I’m so glad they added the 24-hour stores. Sometimes I’m here late at night and I need a snack, but I don’t want to leave campus,” Parker said.
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This article was written by Emily Garver
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