The food will never be more important than the popularity of the provider.
Guilford’s two eating spots, the Cafeteria and Jazzman’s, the new coffee and pastry shop in the Underground of Founder’s Hall, tell different tales in the ongoing struggle for student culinary satisfaction.
With the departure of Subway last semester, Sodexho, Guilford’s food service provider, capitalized on the opportunity to offer a secondary option to the Caf’s wares, and Jazzman’s stands as the result.
The situation of the Guilford College Caf, much maligned for the dearth and quality of food options, has been a hot topic for students on campus for years, and the second semester of the 2002-03 school year has proven to be no different. “We definitely need more [food] options at the caf,” said Douglass Watts, a sophomore.
Vance Whittlesey, general manager of dining services for Sodexho, expressed similar sentiments when discussing the Caf’s options. “What it comes down to is choices,” he said. “The more choices you have, the more success you have.”
Vance continued to discuss future possibilities for the caf, offering that “[Sodexho leadership] want a total change” of the Caf, not just minor improvements to a product already deemed unsatisfactory. A grill for fresh cooked chicken, beef, or other foods lingers in the Caf’s future possibilities for innovation.
The Caf’s new complement, Jazzman’s, has arrived with a flourish this semester and answered the call for a hot drink spot in the heart of campus. The offerings, from coffee to hot chocolate to oatmeal raisin cookies, provide an alternative to the Caf.
Jazzman’s creation and addition to Guilford’s campus arose both from the departure of Subway and the call for a new eating option on campus. Jazzman’s came as a result of Sodexho “listening to the voice of the student,” Vance said, and introducing an alternative eating spot.
Students are capable of purchasing, on a $25 credit for the travel cart and Jazzman’s, coffee, hot chocolate, cookies, sandwiches, pastries and other items for the remainder of the semester, with a higher credit limit to come next year.
When asked about Jazzman’s reception by students, faculty and other customers, Natasha Lattimore, a Jazzman’s employee, stated that “everybody’s excited,” and that people felt that “this is what we need.”