Dining Services has implemented lots of changes around campus this semester and will continue to make updates as the year goes on.
“I became the Director of Dining services in January and have been making some big changes. I have been talking to students and the FGCU community over the last year and have heard them loud and clear – they wanted variety, local vendors, quick service and food trucks,” Tara Scrivano said. “I think we have delivered…but we aren’t stopping yet! I believe food on campus should be ever changing, fresh, and trendy. I want to keep our offerings dynamic.”
All of campus dining is cashless as of fall 2023. Payment options include Apple Pay, Google Pay, Eagle and Flex Dollars and credit cards.
Within the Cohen Student Union, updates have come to every restaurant except Brahma Express. Chick-Fil-A is offering Grubhub kiosks with hopes of shortening lines and making it a more convenient experience.
“It’s definitely an improvement and has really cut down the wait time for students. The way it was set up before took much longer to get your food. I think the kiosks are great,” senior Lucia Navarrete said in regards to the Chick-Fil-A line.
Not all students agree the Chick-Fil-A kiosks help with the flow of orders.
“I believe the kiosks at Chick-Fil-A back up the line even more than before. Every time I go I find that there is a larger crowd of people and not enough employees to keep up with the sped up influx of orders,” sophomore Francesca Monteferrante said.
Burger239 was replaced by Cuban Connection, a local restaurant featured multiple times in The Rally last year. Nautical Bowls, an acai and smoothie restaurant, will be in The Rally on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Starbucks is now accepting mobile orders from the Starbucks app and students are able to use their rewards.
“It’s really awesome that I can finally get points and rewards from the Starbucks on campus because last year I was missing out on a lot of free stuff,” sophomore Kayden Cantwell said.
Food trucks are on the library lawn or in the bus loop Tuesdays through Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The calendar for food trucks can be found on University’s Dining’s website. Only cash or card are accepted at the food trucks.
On-campus housing is seeing lots of new dining features as well. Paradise Smoothie, Bubble Tea & Coffee opened at The Boardwalk for North Lake Village’s fall move-in. South Village will soon host food trucks on Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m..
According to Dining Service’s Instagram, lunches at The Boardwalk started Sept. 5 and will continue every first Tuesday of the month.
SoVi Dining has two new Farmshelves, where herbs and greens grow in-house. According to the Farmshelf website, these indoor farms grow food two to three times faster than traditional farms but are using 90% less water.
Campus Dining has also partnered with Housing & Residence Life and is working with SnackBoxes so families can send their students care packages containing their favorite snacks.
Dining Services has been working with students to hear what dining options they want to see on campus.
Students can expect more updates and changes as the year goes on.
