Food firms asked to review Dining

Penn will enlist Aramark and Bon Appetit to help decide on outsourcing. The University has invited two food services companies to visit campus to help determine whether Penn will outsource Dining Services or other campus food operations. University officials and a representative of one of the firms, however, differ over exactly what the invitations -- extended to Bon Appetit Management Co. and Aramark Corp. -- might mean for the future of dining at Penn. Ernie Collins, president of Menlo Park, Calif.-based Bon Appetit, said his company was "asked to take a look at the situation and let [Penn] know whether we would be interested in submitting a bid" to take over management of campus dining. But Marie Witt, director of support services for Penn's Business Services, said Bon Appetit and Aramark came to campus this semester to provide insight on what an outside firm could do at the University. The visits were not intended to give the companies a chance to size up their opportunities at Penn, Witt said. She explained that the visits were part of the "request for information" phase of the University's examination of Dining Services. Over the past year, the independent consulting firm Cornyn Fasano has been reviewing campus food delivery, including Dining Services' operation. The firm's report is expected next semester. Executive Vice President John Fry addressed University Council Wednesday on the progress of the food services study. In his report, Fry said no decision had been made about whether to outsource Dining Services. He did not mention whether any companies had been consulted, either for advice or bids. Several members of Council's Dining Services committee, along with Fry, were not available for comment yesterday, and Dining Services officials said they could not comment on the situation. Witt characterized the visits as an attempt to get different companies -- the Philadelphia-based giant Aramark, as well as the smaller Bon Appetit -- to provide the University with an idea of how they "would approach a school like Penn." "People are saying, 'Do you think we should outsource or shouldn't we,' and we couldn't decide that until we knew what they could bring to Penn," Witt said. But Collins said more Bon Appetit representatives will visit campus in the future to determine his company's level of interest in taking over food services at Penn. Collins did not know when such a visit would occur or how soon Bon Appetit would decide if it will submit a bid. Witt said it "made sense" that Bon Appetit would visit again, if the University decides to begin soliciting bids. At present, that has not been decided, although Witt said she expects a decision early next semester. She added that the two companies, which already serve other universities and public schools, also examined what could be done with concessions in the Perelman Quad buildings and at athletic events. One Bon Appetit employee has operated as a consultant to the University on the food aspects of the Perelman Quad project, Witt said, adding that Bon Appetit has not yet decided if it is interested in operating Perelman Quad food service. Aramark is also already employed by the University, although not in the area of food services. Residential maintenance housekeepers are now supervised by Aramark, although that will change when Trammell Crow Co. takes over management of all campus facilities April 1. If the University does decide to solicit bids, additional companies may be approached, she added. Aramark and Bon Appetit differ in terms of size and clientele, as evidenced by their public information. Aramark, a large corporation with several other divisions completely unrelated to food services, recorded food and beverage sales of $4.1 billion in 1996, compared to only $122 million sold by Bon Appetit. Bon Appetit already handles dining at Whitman College in Washington State and St. Olaf College in Minnesota and does a lot of its business in Silicon Valley corporate cafeterias.

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