University Dining Service
Newsletter
February/March 2013
Sample Bar – Give us Feedback!!
Price Commons and North Point Dining Halls offer samples of new recipes or products every Tuesday.
Customers are then asked for feedback. Take a minute each of these Tuesdays to try the sample and tell us
what you think. Your opinion counts!
January 29
February 5
February 12
February 19
February 26
Honey Chipotle Sweet Potatoes
Creamy Southwest Tomato Soup
No Sample – Mardi Gras Special Meal
Fettuccini with Sausage, Sage & Béchamel Sauce
Hamburger Stew
Cereal Survey
During the week of February 17, 2013, students will be offered the opportunity to vote for their favorite cold
breakfast cereals. The selections of cold cereals for 2013-14 academic year will be based on the most popular
varieties of cereals in each category, that are available from our vendors. Watch for the table and this
opportunity to help determine next year’s cereal selection.
Celebrate ‘Fat Tuesday’ at Mardi Gras Meal
There will be a Mardi Gras inspired menu offered on Tuesday, February, 12, 2013, from 4:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
at Commons & North Point Dining. Decorations, costumes, favors and the menu will reflect some of the
common Mardi Gras favorites.
Menu includes:
Sausage, Ham & Chicken Jambalaya
Shrimp Creole
Vegetarian Creole
White Rice
Red Beans & Rice
Cajun Oven Roasted Vegetable Blend
Full Salad Bar
Red Potato Salad
Cornbread w/Honey Butter
Key Lime Pie
Mississippi Mud Pie
Hard & Soft Serve Ice Cream w/Toppings
Mardi Gras Punch
Price:
Baseline $2.50
Flexline $7.00
Cash $8.20
Block Plan 1 meal
Please note that continuous service between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. will be modified to allow for set-up for
this special event in each dining hall. We will close from 3:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. at North Point and 3:00 p.m. –
4:00 p.m. at Commons. Both the Commons Mini Mart and Northern Express will be open during this time.
Nutrition and Dietary Habits Survey
During the month of January, University Dining Service will administer the annual Diet and Nutrition survey.
The survey will be offered in the dining halls with an incentive for participation. For those unable to complete
one during these times we will also solicit completion of the survey on line.
Watch for your opportunity to provide feedback. The survey will assess satisfaction with the nutrition
education services provided, your satisfaction with menus to provide healthy choices and meet special dietary
considerations.
The results of the survey will be published in the monthly menu and will assist the management team and
Registered Dietitian to enhance menus and services to you.
5
6
13
31
February
Todd Utpadel, Cook
Jimmy Kulidge, Service Lead
March
Paula Prince, Service Lead
Danielle Tuschl, Catering Lead
Eating Out. Customers Still Encouraged To Think Twice!
Price Commons and North Point Dining Halls continue to offer the “to go” option to customers as a
convenience. Although UDS provides compostable and reusable containers, rather than foam, for to go
meals, individuals should still consider “dining in”, as the most environmentally responsible choice.
By dining in, you will be more likely to eat a balanced diet with the ability to select a wider variety of healthy
foods and beverages. You will also be able to return for seconds or dessert rather than forced to make all
decisions at once. You will also have the opportunity to socialize with friends and possibly meet new people,
building your network within the campus community.
UDS does support “dining in” for all the right reasons although we recognize the occasional need with today’s
busy schedules, to dine outside the cafeteria also.
Here is a summary of what percentage of diners have taken their meals “to go” from first day of service in
September 2012 through the last day of classes in December 2012. You will note that students are using the
service less and those using it are using the reusable containers more. So, the trend is moving to more
sustainable choices by the diners. Way to go!!
Number of To Go meals
Percent of meals served To Go
% of To Go meals in reusable containers
Commons
2013 2012
13,980 17,563
6.7% 8.2 %
3.1% 2.1%
North Point
2013 2012
9,865 11,867
12.8% 14.1%
8.1% 5.5%
Student Managers Applications
Student Manager applications are now being accepted for all locations. Interviews will be conducted prior to
Spring Break with hiring targeted to be done by that time also. Pick up your application materials in each unit.
See postings in student employee areas.
Student Employees of Month
Month
Nov 12
Dec 12/Jan 13
Price Commons
Amanda Wood
Mang Thao
North Point
Retail Operations
Sean Sturman
Fouad Zahiri
Shannon Czajkowski Lexi Johnson
Catering
Julia Kyriakides
Holiday Feast Well Received
On December 12, 2012, Price Commons and North Point Dining Halls offered a buffet menu to celebrate the
upcoming holidays. The menu highlights were: Chicken Cordon Bleu, Carved Pit Ham, Au Gratin Potatoes,
Green Bean Casserole, Apple Crumb Pie, Gingerbread Cookies, Sugar Cookies, Mistletoe Punch, Egg Nog
and more. The top three favorite menu items in both locations were: Carved Pit Ham, Au Gratin Potatoes, and
Chicken Cordon Bleu.
Price Commons had 1070 diners and North Point had 495 for a total of 1565 participants in this buffet. Both
locations offered students the opportunity to decorate their own cookie and play some holiday games for
prizes. The linens and/or special decorations, along with candlelight were much appreciated by students.
When asked “Is the time on this special meal well spent? 87% replied “Yes”.
Surveys of 422 customers yielded these results:
Overall rating of the meal:
33% Excellent
48% Good
15% Fair
4% Poor
Menu:
29% Excellent
54% Good
12% Fair
5% Poor
Entertainment & Decorations:
32% Excellent
49% Good
15% Fair
4% Poor
Menomonie Wedding Show
University Catering staff will be participating in the local Menomonie Wedding Fair on Sunday, February 17,
2013 from 12 noon. – 4:00 p.m. It will be held at Vision Quest, just south of Menomonie. Staff will share
details on our facilities and menus and partner with the MSC reservation and events staff to create an eyecatching display. Spread the word as we work to bring more weddings back to the newly remodeled MSC.
Midnight Breakfast a Success
The Midnight Breakfast, which was free to hall residents, was held December 16, 2012, from 10:00 p.m. –
12:00 a.m. This event offered a free breakfast meal on the eve of exam week, and the opportunity to relieve
stress by playing games. This event was held at both the Price Commons and North Point Dining and was cosponsored by University Housing.
There were 782 attendees at the Commons and 359 at North Point, for a total of 1141. Housing & Residence
Life staff kept the games going and prizes were given out to many participants.
GRADE
A
B
C
D
F
Overall
44%
39%
15%
1%
1%
Activities
41%
25%
21%
9%
4%
Menu
27%
37%
22%
12%
2%
The students appreciated the event and were sure to have enough energy for the late night studying as no one
went away hungry.
UDS Professional Development Day in Review
On January 14, 2013, permanent and student management staff attended all day training with a day that started
in the Memorial Student Center. There were many topics presented during the day and they received good
ratings on a 5 point scale.
The day started with updates on the University Personnel System (UPS) being created for all UW-System nonstudent employees. This session was presented by Deb Gehrke, Director of Human Resources at Stout. This
was designed to help staff understand the future of their pay, classifications, recruitment processes, and
transfer opportunities. This session received a 4.2 rating.
There was a session on updates within Dining Service and sharing of statistics from the past semester on sales,
costs, and customer assessments. This is a time when we also do employee recognition with certificates and
pins provided to permanent staff celebrating work anniversaries and student managers celebrating years of
service. The average rating for this was 4.4.
Scott Griesbach, SLS Executive Director, presented the Housing EBI survey results for the 2011-12 year and
provided details on each factor assessed regarding satisfaction with living on the campus. The presentation
provided insights into the way Housing puts the data to work each year to improve satisfaction for the
upcoming years, showing marked improvement on factors that become a focus each year. The Housing
department does an outstanding job utilizing the survey to improve operations and all the improved ratings aid
in securing the contracts needed to support both the Housing and the Dining budgets. Scott also shared details
not only on the Dining Factors but also each question asked to achieve the factor ratings. Dining has many
questions that are well above the national averages and none that are below! Way to go UDS Team! The
Dining Satisfaction Factor was 5.26 at Stout and compared to 4.74 nationally. Scott’s EBI presentation
received a 4.4 rating from the attendees.
Lunch was provided using a food show concept of stations to try new foods which might be useful in adding
to existing menus. There was a multitude of stations offering a variety of food options and the ratings for the
lunch was 4.1 The tabulated results will provide managers with ideas to focus on as they work on menu
design.
After lunch we had the annual safety training on topics including personal protection equipment and hazard
communications tools. The session received a 3.7 rating.
Then the entire dining team loaded a bus to head to UW-Eau Claire and toured all areas of the brand new
Student Center, including behind the scenes tours. This received a 4.3 rating from attendees.
February
1997 Donna Zerbian, Service Lead
1999 Barb Stephens, Service Lead
2012
March
2008 Todd Utpadel, Cook
Jason Horzewski, Food Production Assistant
Disaster Management 101 – Kudos to the North Point Dining Service Team
We are very proud of our North Point Dining Service Team. They managed an internal disaster very well.
Within hours of the occurrence the dining staff worked on the large clean up issues. They then devised plans
and special accommodations to assure on-going, though limited service to our customers. Combo meals at
Baseline prices were offered out of Northern Express, along with a limited buffet in the seating area during
meal periods which started with dinner the same day. The campus also extended the shuttle bus service. A
thanks also to our team members in other facilities and across campus for their assistance.
How did this happen: On January 22, 2013, sometime between 2:30 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. there was a freezing
of the fire protection water sprinkler lines in the ceiling over the main service area. This was caused by the
incorrect operation of the HVAC system for the building, which then created negative pressure and the
infiltration of subzero air. The freezing caused the sprinkler heads to deploy, one above the ceiling and one
below. Campus police responded immediately to the alarm and the fire department turned off the water
supply shortly after 3:00 a.m. once confirming there was no actual fire. It has been stated that these sprinkler
heads can deliver 80 gallons of water per minute. Luckily, we have floor drains in the service spaces that did
allow much of the water to exit through the plumbing system.
Damage was contained to a relatively small area. Steamatic, a local restoration and recovery company, was
immediately called in and managed the recovery and restoration process. In order to meet the required
“drying out standards” established by the industry, Steamatic required six days of special equipment, work,
and monitoring. On Monday, January 28, 2013, the area was cleared for dining staff occupancy and use. The
Dining team did decide to open without completing the cosmetic/aesthetic work until Spring Break to get back
to full service days sooner.
Our customers were very understanding and we appreciate their patience. The costs incurred by this incident
for equipment, building repairs, and the work of the outside contractor, will be covered by insurance.
University Dining Service Newsletter
A UDS Publication
February/March 2013
Articles should be submitted to Jim Selz
Not an official document.
For information only
Not printed at tax payer expense