Whipping up a new kitchen

Campus Dining Services has expanded significantly this academic year, with new kosher and halal food options to accommodate the University’s diverse student population. The improvements to mealtime offerings have been so tremendous, in fact, they’re outgrowing our kitchens.

The Geisert Hall kitchen will be remodeled and transformed into freezer and cooler space, making way for a new, much larger kitchen and full kosher workspace including separate preparation areas for meat and dairy products.

The renovation will double the seating for patrons and provide a more comfortable workspace for kitchen staff. Some 1,200 meals are served in the Geisert Hall cafeteria each day.

“We’ve tried to make the best use of the space, but when it’s busy people are literally working on top of each other,” said Ron Gibson, director of Campus Dining Services. “You can imagine what happens when 550 people show up for lunch.”

The cafeteria continues to operate regularly as the addition grows steadily outdoors. Gibson said the interior renovation will begin in May and the project will be completed by the time classes begin in August 2011.