Verney-Woolley Dining Hall, Sharpe Refectory and Ivy Room loyalists alike will find something fresh among the changes instituted in the past year by the Brown Dining Services.
At the Ivy Room, BuDS has added fair trade coffee and enhanced the space by setting up wireless computer stations last semester, installing new carpet and lighting and adding a "sexy new coat of paint," said Ivy Room Unit Manager Annie Hatch '06, a Herald contributing writer. Some other changes, like updated equipment, are not as apparent to customers.
The changes to the Ivy Room may be small compared to the five-month, $3 million overhaul of the V-Dub in 2002, but Hatch said she believes the Ivy Room's changes allow "more open space and better use of the room."
Though the Ivy Room is cash-only during lunch hours, the staff, food and prices are different after 8 p.m, when the eatery switches gears. In the evenings, when populated with students, the Ivy Room is generally "laid back with an atmosphere conducive to making customers happy," Hatch said.
"Freshens" will bring smoothies with vitamin and energy boosts to the Ivy Room. The new smoothie bar is part of an effort by BuDS to bring more local, healthier food options into the dining facilities. "This is a larger concept that will add options," said Gretchen Willis, director of BuDS. Freshens should be available in the next few weeks, as BuDS is currently waiting on the necessary equipment, Willis said.
Both Willis and Hatch confirmed that Ivy Room attendance figures have been up, though shopping period is always an unusual period in which students are testing new places before establishing their school year eating patterns.
Flat screen televisions, now hanging in several eateries around campus, including the Ratty and the Blue Room, are a part of a joint effort by BuDS and the Student Activities Office to raise awareness of school events. With the colorful messages on-screen and the old reliable table slips, BUDS wants to "make sure people know what's going on around campus," Willis said.
Another visible change to the dining room setup is the disappearance of the traffic signs in the Ratty. After changing the serving lines, BuDS initially instituted the street signs to help students navigate. But Willis said that people are aware of the changes, and the signs have become unnecessary.
Willis said BuDS has tried to give students choices and flexibility with their meal plans, in contrast with other colleges. The current meal plan has evolved over several generations - including only unlimited meals - before arriving at the familiar combination of meals and Flex Points, thereby allowing unused meals to translate into credit.
This year, each leftover meal credit can be redeemed for $4.45 at Josiah's, the Gate or the Ivy Room. This slight increase over last year's conversion factor of $4.20 reflects adjustments in the contracts with supply and pricing agencies negotiated each summer. Prices of individual items may also shift from year to year for the same reasons, she said.
BuDS will be reinstalling vending machines in the brick lobby near the eatery after removing them due to structural difficulties last year.
Louella Hill '04, local-food ambassador to the Brown community and director of Farm Fresh Rhode Island, continues to coordinate efforts to bring local produce to Brown students and keep local agriculture profitable and sustainable.
The weekly Brown Dining Farmers' Market - now in its third year - has blossomed from just a handful of vendors. Held in Wriston Quadrangle, the market serves to better educate the Brown community about where the food is coming from and introduce students to local farmers who are maintaining Rhode Island's long tradition of agriculture, Hill said.
Hill relishes the success of the programs so far and is optimistic about the potential for future improvements.
"We worked really hard to make this take off," Willis said of the entire BuDS staff.
Local and fair trade foods have gradually become more common around Brown's campus. Fair trade coffee is now available in the Blue Room, the Campus Market sells Rhody Fresh milk and fair trade chocolate bars and all the other eateries feature local products. Community Harvest signs identify local foods.
In addition to the weekly farmers' market, BuDS is coordinating a variety of events for the year.
On Sept. 28, BuDS will celebrate "Localmotion," a campus-wide event featuring a new variety of food and activities during dinnertime. The Ivy Room, known for its anti-Valentine's Day each February, is planning the first of its new monthly theme nights for later this month. Second semester, a visiting chef will come to College Hill to mix up the dining hall menus. A new BuDS Web site is also currently in the works for those who want to learn more.
