Good Bye Seniors…
We are winding down to the last few days of the school year and we are opening the DC’s longer – until 2:00 am for late night brunch. Last night we served more than 2000 students from 9 to 2:00 am. It seems that there are still plenty of students dining with us but it gets quieter each day as students depart for summer.
I had the opportunity of running into a father tonight that was here to pick up his son, a junior, and they both dined with us before heading home. He asked if I remembered him; I said, “ yes, you are the dentist from the greater Boston area.” I first met him during move-in day three years ago and have not seen him since until today. He started to tell me how much his son enjoyed the school and the food on campus. As a matter of fact, during the first few days of the son’s freshmen year, he texted his father frequently, to tell him about the quality and variety of food on campus. Obviously the father was pleased how well we took care of his sons’ needs. He continued in saying that he now recommends that patients go to UMass and check out the fine dining that we have.
I thanked him and told him we will continue to get better and that we plan to roll out Peruvian and Korean cuisine next. I felt by the end of our conversation that we were just like old friends that seldom see each other.
It really makes my day when I hear from a parent giving us compliments about our food and how much they enjoy it and how we take care of providing their student’s meals while they are away from home, leaving more time to focus on studies.
This week, as mentioned, we are staying open longer until 2:00 am to provide snacks for late night dining. We did it last semester for four nights; this spring we expanded it to six nights, since it was such a hit. For the seniors, we will be open this Friday, the day before commencement in order to serve them one last meal.
It has been a busy and crazy week; but I have been enjoying every minute of it.
PS UMass Dining said their good byes to the seniors; many joined us for a group photo (to be posted online). I thanked all of them for dining with us during the past four years – a lot don’t want to leave; but hopefully during their time with us their culinary knowledge has been expanded and their minds have been opened to experiencing food from different cultures.
All the Best in the Future from your Friends at UMass Dining!
This is Ken Toong and thank you for keeping UMass Dining at the top.
Contact Ken at ktoong@mail.aux.umass.edu
You can follow Ken Toong on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/KenToong