A Cold-Cut Trio to go is not most people's idea of a traditional, Ivy League dining hall meal.
But next month, when sandwich franchise Subway comes to 1920 Commons, old notions of campus dining may begin to change.
In a move that could revitalize Penn's embattled dining services, the University has entered a one-year contract with Aramark, a Philadelphia-based food, facility and management support company, to evaluate and revamp campus food offerings -- most markedly so far by bringing retail chains into the dining halls.
Aramark will replace Bon Appetit Management Company, which over the last four years implemented additions to the University's dining services including custom-made omelets and Hill College House's pasta bar but was unsuccessful in making meal plans attractive to much of Penn's student body -- particularly upperclassmen.
Bringing the fast-food franchise to campus is proving to be a popular decision among many students.
"It's better food than in the dining halls, and probably more reasonably priced," Wharton sophomore Lea Cohen said. "Houston Hall's pretty expensive."
But at the same time, more retail dining options mean fewer traditional meal plans, which could potentially detract from the close-knit community feel at which the college house system aims. And while dining services will continue to try to foster those goals, the cost efficiency and convenience of the arrangement must be evaluated, according to Business Services spokeswoman Amy Johnson.
"It may be that we change up the balance between retail options and all-you-care-to-eat meal plans," Johnson said.
Finding such a balance has been difficult for Penn in the past, and some plans for boosting campus dining's popularity have been met with criticism.
In the spring of 2001, controversy erupted over a proposed plan that would have required freshmen to buy 17 meals each week, and Stouffer Commons Dining Hall was closed before the start of the last academic year, due in part to a decreasing customer base.
Over the past few years, Penn has reacted to student dissatisfaction with its all-you-care-to-eat plans by introducing more Dining Dollar -- a point-like system that can be used at dining halls as well as other dining venues around campus -- and retail options.
The number of mandatory freshman meals has also been scaled back from 14 meals last year to the current nine meals.
However, there are no plans as of yet to overhaul the meal plan system.
"All-you-can-eat is still a strong choice for a number of students," Nunery said.
Student discontent with aspects of Penn dining was a factor in deciding to hire Aramark to take over services.
"We conducted studies over the course of last spring with students, and to bring Penn dining to the next level, a new vendor was needed," Johnson said, adding that Bon Appetit became part of food service company Compass Group, and its long-term viability was in question.
"There weren't hardcore problems with Bon Appetit," Nunery said, claiming that the company had high quality food, but Aramark was more economically viable and its locality made it more convenient.
Nunery said that under Aramark, which Penn has utilized for other services in the past such as vending and catering, Penn dining services are more flexible, PennCard access is expanded, dining hall hours are longer and prices will remain the same.
The company will employ a program called MarketMatch to make continual modifications to dining services by getting feedback from students and examining the whole University area, its population, their schedules and their eating habits.
"It's a much more comprehensive study," Aramark Campus Services Marketing Program Manager Maeve Duska said. "It draws on more than just Penn's own dining services."
And because cost is such a prominent issue, Johnson said that "a pricing analysis is one of the first steps."
Aramark Campus Services Resident District Manager Mike Cenicola said the company will make long- and short-term changes according to its findings, which will be presented at the end of the semester, and perhaps bring in more retail opportunities if Subway is a success.
The 12-month contract between Penn and Aramark could possibly blossom into a more permanent relationship if it proves effective.
"Our goal is to have a long-term partnership with Penn," Cenicola said.
"At the end of the 12 months, we will be evaluating our relationship with Aramark," Johnson said. "We're thinking about the future, but we don't know yet what the future will hold."
Some new additions to campus dining include retail options in Huntsman Hall and pizza and salad venues on the newly-renovated middle floor of 1920 Commons.
Also, Kings Court/English House will feature a granary program with vegetarian and vegan options, Hill House will serve more Asian cuisine and beginning in October, guest chefs from around the world will come to campus.
Many students with meal plans are optimistic about the upcoming changes, but some are also open to the idea of looking to alternative dining options.
"I wanted the flexibility of being able to either eat at the dining halls or cook in my room," said College sophomore Melissa Lincoln, who chose the 75-meal PennFlex plan. "And from what I hear, dining food and hours are a lot better this year."
