Dining hall staffs devour diner comments

Author: Miranda Tsang

Each dining hall has its fanatics. Atwater Commons students seem to love Atwater's dining hall so much that they never leave the grass-roofed building. Their dining hall boasts a piano, a comfortable sitting area, delicious garlic bread, pizza and fresh pasta. Ross residents come to eat in flip-flops regardless of the weather and wait in long lines for the latest and greatest from the famous Mongolian wok. Proctor fans praise the dining hall's panini machine and the fully stocked salad bar, some advertising their Proctor passions with t-shirts that read, "The Strength of the Terrace is His Also."
Who and what are responsible for the variety and difference between dining halls?
"When there was only Proctor and Freeman International Center (FIC), the dining halls used to share the same menus," says General Manager of Commons Dining Bradley Koehler. The chefs spend between 10 and 15 hours per week conceiving and posting their menus.
A lesser known fact is the extent to which menus are shaped by student feedback and suggestions. Thanks to the comment card system at each of the dining halls and the Grille, students are able to voice their opinions on not just what the dining halls serve, but their thoughts and opinions about how they serve it.
And commenting just got even easier, as comment cards are receiving a technological makeover.
"We've recently put comment cards online, since so much of what students do is on the computer," says Koehler as he pulls up the Dining Services Web page to demonstrate.
Nobody remembers exactly when the comment card system first began - no one asked seemed to remember when the system began, nor could they recall a Middlebury without this avenue of discourse between students and staff.
In any case, the possibly-ancient system is still functioning today, and students continue to take advantage of it on a regular basis.
"I once requested more Roman sandwiches in Proctor," says Michael McCormick '09. "They said they'd eventually have them again, and then, well, they did."
Kelsey Nelson '09 confesses that she has never filled out a comment card, but says that her friends did all the time.
"The realistic ones get acted on pretty quickly," she says.
In fact, the managers and chefs who answer the cards do so daily on weekdays, and those posted on weekends are answered on Monday.
"I'd say 80 to 90 percent of the comments we receive are positive," reflects Koehler. Sometimes students even ask for recipes.
"Usually graduating seniors," adds Brent Simons, dining manager of Ross Commons.
But, don't the comments ever get annoying? Wouldn't the chefs rather make their menus and not have to deal with students' opinions? Koehler and Simons said no way.
"The only way that we can improve is with the feedback from the students. For example, there was a comment on thick corn chowder at Proctor," says Koehler.
The two men stressed the importance of constructive criticism. "We want to figure it out. Why was the chowder too thick? Who was making it that day? Was it the starch?" says Koehler.
Often, students make requests that the Dining Services staff simply can't provide. "We're honest," says Koehler. One student had written earlier that day asking where the fruit was now that the freeze in California was over.
Ross Commons Chef Christopher LaFramboise responded that even though the freeze was over, prices were still high. Simons noted that there just isn't as much fruit to be had either, as a result of the freeze.
Kenneth Lazo '09 remembers that he once asked for a certain flavor of Ben and Jerry's ice cream, and was told that that flavor did not come in large quantities.
According to Koehler, the approximately 10 percent of comment cards which are not positive are not necessarily negative. "When Ross first opened, we received a comment card specifically for me that said, 'You rock! I want to have your babies!'" says Koehler, laughing. A few weeks ago, Ross received a card saying, 'The guy on the Mongolian grill is hot!' which, Koehler and Simons speculated, refers to a high school staff member.
While Koehler, Simons and the rest of the dining staff can't bring a panini machine to Atwater or a Mongolian grill to Proctor, comment cards allow students to make their dining hall their own in more subtle ways.