to relieve overcrowding, Derby
said one thing is certain: “The
building can’t be expanded.”
Lenoir is surrounded by classroom
>uildings on the north and west,
] !)avis Library on the east and the
Pit on the south.
Food quality and price
“I don’t really have any prob-
em with the food.”
This statement, made by Robin
son, sums up the feelings of most
intCTviewees about the food sCTved
at campus dining halls. She gives
the meals a good rating with re
gard to variety and quality, with
one exception: “They don’t cook
the broccoli.
I’ve never had
broccoli that
crunched.”
Shah, a
vegetarian,
said the food
was satisfac
tory, but she
wished more
vegetable en
trees were of
fered. “There’s
very little vari
ety fw me,” she
said.
Walker said
the food lacked
variety and
was often
served cold.
But her major complaint is that the
meals are “extremely overpriced.”
“I can go out to McDonald’s
and eat something for cheaper than
that and enjoy it more,” Walker
said. “There’s nothing spectacu
lar in Lenoir.”
Derby said the food in the cafe
terias is priced competitively with
Chapel Hill restaurants that offer
services similar to campus dining
services, like Spanky’s or K&W
Cafeteria. Often students unfairly
compare meal prices in Lenoir or
Chase to grocCTy store prices. Also,
many students may expect cam
pus dining to measure up to home-
cooked meals, Dwby said.
He added that prices on several
items are lowered every year, and
price increases occur only when
the cost of a particular raw prod
uct, such as beef, rises. Increases
in operating expenses may cause
price hikes as well, Derby said.
Dining atmosphere
When separated from the spac
ing problem experienced during
rush hours, students generally
liked the atmosphere and employ
ees of Lenoir and Chase.
One employee, LaDon James,
a freshman cashier at Lenoir, said
she liked the environment in the
dining halls but did have a couple
of bad experiences with roaches.
She saw a roach at Lenoir once
while working, and in Chase she
spotted one crawling on the tray
supports directly across from the
closed-in dinner entree.
‘That’s why I didn’t eat at Chase
a lot at the first of the semester,”
she explained. But the employees
at Lenoir are nice and seem to have
a good rapport with the customers,
James said.
Robinson said many times she
has come in right at closing to
an all-you-can-eat option to the
Guaranteed Meal Plan without
undercutting present services, he
said.
“The Flex Plan was definitely
not successful because we did not
have an unlimited seconds facil
ity,” Derby said.
Most students interviewed said
they would probably stick with the
cash card regardless of any changes
in the alternative plan. Shah and
Walker both said the cash card
was convenient because they do
not feel compelled to eat at set
times of the day.
“It’s just a lot easier than hav
ing a certain number of meals per
MCAROLINA
DINING SERVICE
Replacement charge if damaged or lost.
The individual to whom this card is assigned is
liable for any charges due to loss until reported.
VAU4ME9 •YSTEWI OHIFFIM TECHH0U)«T, VtCTO^ MY-U* FKT 40BMS*
order food and was still not treated
rudely by the food servers and
cashiers. “They’re all relatively
courteous,” she said. “I’ve come
in here real, real late and they’re
still nice.”
Meal plans and the $100 mini
mum
Derby said students over
whelmingly choose the cash card
with a declining balance over the
guaranteed meal plan. The latter
plan is based on the failed Flex
Plan which was piloted in the fall
semester. The cash card allows
students more freedom than the
other two plans, both of which
limit the user to a certain number
of meals per week, Derby said.
Although students would save
between 20 and 25 percent using
an alternative to the cash card, the
restrictive guaranteed plan is still
not popular, he said. Parents and
students have often said they want
a cheapCT alternative to the cash
card, which can encourage reck
less spending, Derby added. “It’s
just going to take a new marketing
approach,” he said.
Marriott is considering adding
w eek,”Shah said. “I wouldn’t want
meals to go to waste.”
Derby agreed that the cash card
is “the most flexible plan there is.
The cash card’s the ultimate.”
One issue that is not flexible is
the $ 100 minimum that all campus
residents are required to pay to
ward the meal plan of their choice
at the start of each semester. Ac
cording to Derby, this policy was
instituted by UNC several years
ago and serves to attract contrac
tors by giving them an automatic,
captive clientele. Even if Marriott
loses its bid to run University food
services and leaves the campus,
the $100 minimum stays.
If Marriott does remain for
another five years (and as the in
cumbent they have an advantage
over other bidders), they are likely
to turn a profit and make history as
the first service to do so.
What is the secret to their suc
cess? Maybe the answer can be
encapsulated in simple statements
made by Shah in reference to
Lenoir “Lenoir is doing its job.
It’s not the best, but it could be
worse.”
Black Ink Survey
How do you feel about the services
provided by Marriott Corporation?
1) Do you have a meal card? ___________
2) Do you live on campus?.
3)(Campus Residents) Do you put more than
the required $ 100 on your meal card?
4)If you only put the required $100 on your
meal card, where do you eat the rest of your
meals?
5)Do you approve of the mandatory meal plan
ofSloo? ^ ^
6)Where do you spend your meal card points
(Chase, Lenoir, Circus Room, etc.) ?
7)Would you buy an unlimited seconds meal
plan?
8)What changes, if any, would you make to
Dining facilities that Marriott offers?
Please return all surveys to Suite 108-D or mail them
to:
Black Ink
CB# 5210, Carolina Union
UNC-CH
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
Black Ink February 11, 1991