The VIU Cafeteria is a vital part of the day for students. Many students who live in residence live off meals provided by the cafeteria from the meal plan. It’s important that these meals are nutritious and filling.

However, in recent years, the cafeteria has fallen short with meals being bought in, relying on prepackaged goods and repetitive dishes. In addition to these problems, you may have also noticed the shrinkflation. You’re not the only one. Tim May, the new Food Services Operations Manager, agrees that a change needs to be made.

“I feel like we’ve lost a lot of the students to [Door] Dashing because they weren’t satisfied with the food that they were getting,” May says. “They would eat it once and if we didn’t capture them, they would just spend their money elsewhere.”

May has been in this role since February and has already implemented several necessary changes. Prior to this position, he was a Culinary Instructor here at VIU for three years and brings with him 45 years of experience in the culinary field. “I’m very honoured to be here to give back to the students and hopefully they can come away with having good food that’s economical and that they feel good about eating,” he says.

The cafeteria food is provided by two separate businesses, Food Services and the students of the Culinary Arts Program. The Culinary Arts Program is a two to three-year program that teaches an introduction to cooking, knife work, how to make different sauces, baking, menu design/planning, and much more.

In order to blend Food Services and the Culinary Arts Program, May’s goal is to have them work alongside each other. May wants more involvement from the students in this program, such as buying freshly baked baguettes from them for the sandwiches, having them butcher the meat used for the dishes, or having the students take the reins on the newly introduced salad bar.

“I’m trying to incorporate those kinds of work abilities amongst each other because we work so close together and the better we get along, the easier it is for everybody,” he explains.

Going forward, the Poke station as well as the soda fountain station are being removed. There will now be a pasta station that is operating between 1 and 4 pm. There is also a pizza station to be added, that will serve a number of different options, as well as a salad bar. Students from the culinary arts program will be serving hot lunches, and Food Services will be serving hot suppers.

In the near future, students will also be able to order pizza until 7 pm. On top of this, coming into the new year, the cafeteria will offer an online ordering service. This means that students are able to jump online, order their meal and pay for it, then come in person to pick it up.

May emphasizes the need to make ordering good food more convenient for students—just as convenient as DoorDash.

“We want to make sure that they are nourished and feel good about what they eat.”

The cafeteria will soon bring back plates and cutlery so that students are able to have a sit-down meal and enjoy themselves.

There will also be some variations in what will be served weekly in the cafeteria. “We’ve created a theme for rotating weekly menus,” he says. This will include Italian night, International night, Pub night, Asian night, and more! “We’re trying to appeal to a broader audience and I feel that it’s going to take a little bit more time for that trust to come back for the students.”

Currently, there are a few different options for Dining Dollars that the cafeteria offers. For a four-month term, a Light Appetite plan is $1430, a Medium Appetite plan is $1870, and a Full Appetite plan is $3300. Naturally, investing in these plans for a full school year doubles these prices.

For many students, paying that amount upfront is a financial struggle. May explains that his goal is to make all meals more affordable for students. “I think what’s really important is that we recognize not everybody can afford the meal plan; the Dining Dollars $6600 for the year. The initiative is to try and create something that is cheaper,” he says. It is worth noting that Dining Dollars is a way to invest your money into healthy eating habits, not necessarily to save any money on cafeteria food. May has made an effort to change this.

Some of the more affordable options include: a half sandwich and soup for $8.99, pizzas for $12.99, pastas for $13.99 that come with a salad and bread, as well as the regular meals that are normally $17.99 but reduced down to $15.99 if you use your Dining Dollars.

May emphasizes that if students are struggling financially to afford such meals, there is help available.

May encourages students to reach out to him via email (Tim.May@viu.ca) or to one of the cashiers if you are struggling.

They will point you in the right direction.

For students who wish to give feedback, you can do so through the VIU Cafeteria survey, where you can share your thoughts on VIU campus dining.“We want to hear from the students,” May says. His goal is to know what students like about the new program and what they dislike, in order to improve. “We need to make sure that everybody who comes through the door is happy and if they’re not, we need to hear,” May says.

This will be an exciting and necessary change for the cafeteria. Students will now have the opportunity for more affordable options, a greater variety of dishes, and the chance to have a sit-down meal that they can enjoy with friends.