Say goodbye to grimy salad bars and hello to all-day breakfast. Centennial Village’s dining hall is serving up fresh eats to keep you fueled from wake-up to late-night bites. While UM’s dining experience hasn’t gotten raving reviews in the past, the new dining facility is giving the campus a chance for redemption. Get ready, ’Canes — your campus dining experience just got a major upgrade.
With nine food stations, an all-day breakfast and even a cupcake shop, the new Centennial Village dining hall is getting thumbs-up from many students who say they enjoy dining at the sprawling 40,000-square-foot facility.
“It’s amazing,” said Ty Raimann, a sophomore majoring in business management. “ It’s certainly a major upgrade from the previous Stanford Dining Hall.
Donivan Drzyza, a senior who has eaten in every dining hall across campus over his four years at the university, said he also likes the new dining hall digs.
“I’d say the options are a lot more diverse,” said Drzyza.
The two-story dining hall — with its multiple indoor and outdoor seating areas for 600 people — is one of the highlights of Centennial Village, the new $335 million campus housing facility that replaced the five-decade old Hecht-Stanford Residential College.
In August, the University of Miami showcased the new facility with a 10-day dining hall campus debut that featured TikTok stars A.J. and Big Justice. Festivities included sessions with the new staff, dietitians and food influencers, a pop-up bagel shop, a barbecue day, vendor fairs, several giveaways and a presentation from Food Network celebrity chef Monica “Mika” Leon.
Joel Chamizo, director of Dining Operations, who has been with the university for 20 years, elaborated on the process that went into the menu offerings for the dining hall.
“We have a lot of history and production records on what are the hits and misses,” said Chamizo.. “One of the major things for the students is choices. We always want to make sure there is always a balance, a variety in making sure we are serving something different at each station.”
The dining hall layout features different food stations, including pizzas, pastas, burgers, yogurt parfaits, a deli station, an allergen-free food station, Misha’s Cupcakes and even a teaching kitchen.
Khushi Bajaria, a junior public health major, said he liked the variety of vegan and vegetarian options and the endless breakfast hours.
“A lot of people love the all-day breakfast option, especially if they prefer whatever variety that is available,” said Bajaria.
Raimann said he is also a breakfast station fan. “I’m having pancakes right now at dinner time, so I’m really pleased with it,” Raimann said.
Michael Ross, district manager of Compass Group, the contract food service company that oversees all of the dining halls at UM, said he believes the Centennial Village dining hall is exceptional. “This is the latest and greatest, and we are just thrilled with it,” said Ross.
The goal for Ross and his team is not only to make the dining hall aesthetically attractive, but to also have the ability to address the dietary wishes and social environments that students yearn for.
“Any student that has an allergy can come in here and ask if we have gluten pasta,” Chamizo said. “All of our pasta that we use in house is Barilla pasta and it is vegan as well.”
Despite the positive reviews of students and staff, some students were more critical of the new offerings, including a first-year student who wanted the stations to offer more condiments “beyond salt and pepper,” and a senior who said he missed the salad bar setup at the old dining hall.
Others complained that while they like the quantity of food options, they did not think the quality of the offerings increased that much at the new dining hall.
“The quality of food is about the same, but it’s an overall better atmosphere,” Drzyza said.
Freshman Andrew Ortega remains positive saying, “It may not be the home-cooked meals I enjoy that my parents make, but there’s plenty to choose from, and I can have something different every week.”
Although Centennial Village houses first-year students, the new dining hall is open to the entire UM community.
“The whole thing is terrific,” said Joseph B. Treaster, a journalism professor in the School of Communication, who dined at Centennial with a few colleagues. “It’s brand new, it’s clean, it’s inviting. There are all kinds of different foods, and everyone who was working there went out of their way to help me find what I was looking for.”
Centennial’s Culinary Classes
The new Centennial Village Dining Hall is not only the new campus dining hot spot but a fun, interactive space where students can learn how to prepare their own meals.
With shiny new kitchen appliances and cookware, Station 9 in the dining hall offers students a chance to see cooking demonstrations and a chance to eat foods they have learned how to cook. The station has seating for 22 students, 16 of which were filled at the inaugural cooking class in September.
During the one-hour class, chef Alfonso Mendoza introduced his 16 student sous-chefs to shiitake mushroom eggplant lettuce wraps. He carefully guided them on preparation, including instructing them on how to hold a knife, cut properly and put ingredients into the pan.
“It is a humbling experience learning how to do something new that can be used for yourself, friends and family,” said Mendoza, who is an executive chef with Chartwells Higher Education Dining Services, the culinary experts on campus.
Students were positive about the finished product.
“Very delicious,” said Kasey McPherson, a senior ecosystem science and policy major. McPherson attended with several other members of Plant Based Canes, a student club for vegans and vegetarians. “I have been to cooking classes, but this was my first in Centennial Village and it was fantastic.”
Mendoza said the dining hall works with nutritionists to offer universal meals for each class. These meals are free of all the nine major food allergies. Students who have allergies can feel safe to participate in these classes and eat the food.
“If you are interested in looking for healthier alternatives, starting somewhere where they provide you the foods and how to make it, is a good place to start,” said Mendoza.
Although the first class catered to non-meat eaters, other cooking events will include meat and desserts, said Michael Ross, district manager of Compass Group, the contract food service company that oversees all of the dining halls at the university
“Our next one is apple pie,” said Ross, who added that the dining hall will inform students of the dates and menus of future classes. The goal is to have at least one a month along with other cooking demonstrations.
words_noah gulley, brandon blanco & communitywire.miami. photo_ethan dosa. design_ariella green.
This article was published in Distraction’s Fall 2024 print issue.
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