Student Dining at the University of Alabama
MKT 473 – Professor Butler
Katie Kelly, Taylor Clark, Grace Yin, Lauren Nossaman, and Evan Broome
Oct 15, 2013
1
Table of Contents
Executive Summary……………………………………………………………………….3
Background………………………………………………………………………………..5
Research Objectives……………………………………………………………………….8
Specified Population………………………………………………………………………8
Recruitment of Group/Individuals………………………………………………………...8
Running of Focus Groups/Interviews……………………………………………………..9
Findings………………………………………………………………………………….10
Implications………………………………………………………………………………11
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….14
Appendix A: Focus Group Outline………………………………………………………16
Appendix B: Sample Population………………………………………………………....18
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Executive Summary
Objectives
The purpose of our research proposal was to investigate and collect University of
Alabama student opinions on Tuscaloosa’s local restaurants and dining. Students were
asked for their opinion on several aspects of this topic such as:

Bama Cash and Dining Dollars

Dining for Different Scenarios

On-Campus Dining vs. Off-Campus Dining

Student Dining Halls and Meal Plans

Fast Food

Restaurant Improvements/Additions
Methods
The following were the methods chosen to conduct research for this project:

One focus group consisting of four people

Eleven individual-in-depth interviews
Findings
The following are the discoveries found during the individual and in-depth interviews:

Dining halls not favored, but are used due to Freshman requirements

The variety of Fast Food establishments in Tuscaloosa are popular amongst the
students; if only there were more on campus

On-campus dining seems to be much more of a hit that campus dining halls

Other than wanting a few more well-known nicer restaurants, Tuscaloosa’s off
campus dining impresses students in all aspects off dining wants and needs
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
Bama Cash and Dining Dollars favored, but to the extent of the required tuition
amount of the university
Implications

Increased quality would cause more students to eat at the Dining Halls

More fast food options on campus would increase students eating on campus

Larger variety would give incentive to stay on-campus to eat

Larger variety and ease of pay would give incentive for students to eat out more

Increased amount of restaurants accepting Bama Cash and Dining Dollars gives
incentive to eat at those establishments
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Background
There are many viable dining options for students at the University of Alabama.
Students usually base these choices on several factors ranging from payment methods, on
or off-campus locations, discounts or specials, and more. The University of Alabama is
growing rapidly and a large percentage of the population in Tuscaloosa is made up of
students. Therefore, student opinions regarding dining in the city of Tuscaloosa are
valuable sources of feedback.
In addition to meal plans, The University of Alabama uses two types of monetary
systems to purchase food, meals, and other necessities both on and off campus. All
undergraduate students enrolled in nine credit hours or more partake in the Dining
Dollars program. This is a $300 fee automatically charged to each student’s tuition
balance at the beginning of each semester and deposited into an account on their student
Action Card. No additional amounts can be added to this program. However, parents can
preload funds to the second type of account on the Action Card called Bama Cash. Bama
Cash, like a debit card, is accepted at over 100 different locations on and off campus
including drug stores, gas stations, bookstores, vending machines, grocery stores, etc.
The university also offers meal plans which allow access to any dining hall on campus.
The University of Alabama requires freshmen to purchase a meal plan for both semesters
while all upperclassman have the option to purchase a meal plan or opt out.
Dining halls are a popular choice among students at any college because they are
conveniently located and serve a large variety of “buffet-style” food. The University of
Alabama offers numerous dining halls such as Lakeside, Burke, Bryant, and Fresh Food
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Company. All of these locations accept meal plans and can be found around campus near
dormitories and classrooms.
On-campus dining at The University of Alabama has dramatically improved over
the last few years. The most popular spot to use Dining Dollars, Bama Cash, and meal
plans is at the Ferguson Center, located at the heart of campus. Subway, Chick-fil-a,
Burger King, Starbucks, Pan Geos, and various other options can be found here at the
“Ferg”, as some students have nicknamed it. Another popular on-campus dining location,
Stewart’s Corner, can be found right next to the Quad in Lloyd Hall. This food court
offers Chick-fil-a, Pizza Hut, Boar’s Head Deli, Java City Coffee, and more. In addition
to these larger food courts, there are various smaller convenience stores, coffee shops,
markets, and delis dispersed throughout campus. Most of the locations mentioned above
accept both Dining Dollars and Bama Cash as payment.
Off campus dining at The University of Alabama is largely characterized by the
“Strip,” and several local, downtown Tuscaloosa establishments. The “Strip” is located
right next to Bryant-Denny Stadium on University Boulevard. It boasts several of
Tuscaloosa’s famous restaurants which hold lots of tradition to the university. Buffalo
Phil’s, Rama Jama’s, Bento, Surin, and Swen are just a few of the most popular options;
however, there are many other smaller establishments. Only a select few accept Dining
Dollars and/or Bama Cash.
Downtown offers more upscale restaurants such as Chucks, 5, Mellow
Mushroom, Innisfree, and many more. Scattered around Tuscaloosa are various other
restaurants that appeal to college students such as Kobe, Buffalo Wild Wings, Taziki's
and Iguana Grill to name a few. The majority of these off campus locations do not accept
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Bama Cash or Dining Dollars. Despite the inability to use Dining Dollars and Bama
Cash, students still regularly eat at many of these locations.
Fast food industries thrive off sales in any college town. Not only is the food
relatively cheap compared to other dining options, but most establishments are open past
midnight and satisfy students’ desires of a “late-night” meal. Some of the most popular
and convenient fast food locations include Wendy’s, Taco Bell, McDonalds, Checkers,
Five Guys, Guthries, Sonic, and Chick-fil-a which are all located on 15th Street or
McFarland. Some of these fast food restaurants have multiple locations all around
Tuscaloosa, some even on campus. The establishments located on campus in the
Ferguson Center and Stewart’s Corner accept Dining Dollars and/or Bama Cash, where
as the off campus locations do not.
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Research Objectives and Questions
In conducting this research, we hoped to uncover student opinions and thoughts about
on- and off-campus dining at the University of Alabama. We interviewed subjects using
the following research questions and objectives:

How do students feel about on- and off-campus dining options in Tuscaloosa?

What are their opinions of the dining halls on-campus?

What are their thoughts on the fast food restaurants available around campus?

What are student opinions about the available dining options on-campus?

What are student opinions about the available dining options off-campus?

What are students’ thoughts on the Dining Dollars and Bama Cash programs
implemented by the University of Alabama?
Specified Population
Our research was conducted primarily to determine where the majority of students
eat, how frequently they eat at those establishments, and why they eat there. With this
goal in mind, we conducted one focus group of four people and eleven individual-indepth interviews that included students of all academic levels, Greeks and non-Greeks,
males and females, students who live on-campus and off-campus. It was necessary to
interview a diverse group of students in order to receive an accurate sample of the overall
student population in Tuscaloosa.
Recruitment of Interviewees
We conducted one focus group of four people and eleven individual-in-depth
interviews for our research on student dining preferences. Different tactics were used by
our group in finding strong candidates for participation in our survey. We used phone and
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text message communication to recruit the majority of our interviewees. E-mail
communication and Facebook messaging were also used to invite prospective
participants.
For the focus group, our team provided pizza, soft drinks, and chips to all
interviewees. This helped to relax attendees and create a comfortable environment to
conduct research in.
Running of Focus Groups and Interviews
The focus group was conducted in the living room of the
interviewer’s apartment at 8:00pm on the Friday Oct.4th. Pizza, chips, and soft drinks
were provided before starting the discussion. The group included three undergraduate
students and one PHD student; two of these students were males and two were females.
One undergraduate was an international student.
All of the participants knew each other before the discussion, but they had never
previously discussed this topic. For these reasons, the interview was very relaxed because
participants felt comfortable expressing their opinions and provided lots of useful
information.
Our team created strong predetermined questions which helped us to explore
participants’ feelings on dining in Tuscaloosa. A full interview guide can be found in
Appendix A.
Eleven individual in-depth-interviews were conducted as well. Students were
asked the same questions from the focus group but formatted differently. These
candidates were also comfortable expressing opinions because they knew the interviewer
personally and were not influenced by other interviewees in the room
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Findings
Dining Halls
In the interviews conducted, the majority of students polled about dining halls
said that they do not purchase a meal plan because they do not eat at these dining halls
frequently enough to need one. However, this information is likely skewed because only
one of the interviewees was required to have a meal plan since he is currently a freshman.
When asked, the interviewees said the reason for not purchasing a meal plan after the
required freshman meal plan, is because the quality of food is not as good as that of other
on-campus options.
Fast Food
For the most part, every student interviewed had positive feedback about the
variety of fast food options around Tuscaloosa, especially on 15th street. However one
reoccurring opinion from the interviewees is that they wished that there were more fast
food restaurants closer to campus and on-campus, making it that much more convenient
to grab a quick snack or meal. There were no negative comments on the fast food
establishments that Tuscaloosa has to offer.
On-Campus (excluding dining halls)
Most students interviewed had positive feedback about the university’s oncampus dining options. Starbucks, Subway, Stewarts Corner, and the Ferg Food Court
were some of the most popular choices. They reported that they would rather eat at these
on-campus establishments rather than dining halls due to the fact that the quality of the
food was better, and the choices are well-known establishments. Students also
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commented on the fact that these places do indeed accept Bama Cash and/or Dining
Dollars, so that they don’t have to pay more out of pocket than their tuition has already
included.
Off-Campus
After reading through all of the interviews, most of the participants reported that
they are overall pleased with the variety, quality, cleanliness, and pricing of off-campus
dining options. They reported that there are restaurants to fit all different occasions,
whether it is date night, or a night out drinking and watching a football game with their
friends. Many students did mention that they would not be opposed to a larger variety of
restaurants.
Bama Cash and Dining Dollars
Of all the interviews conducted, the majority of the interviewees said they love
that most of both on- and off-campus locations they visit accept Bama Cash and Dining
Dollars. However, other than the required $300 fee that is added to each University of
Alabama student account, most reported that they do not add additional funds to the
Bama Cash account since it is like a debit card that has limited use. The only reason most
students add money is for laundry or printing services, not for restaurant use. Overall,
interviewees liked the convenience of having an extra $300 of their parents’ money to
spend on food when their own money is running low.
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Implications
Dining Halls
Many of the students interviewed do not frequent the many dining halls on
campus because they do not feel the quality of food is high enough. Therefore, should
the quality of food increase it can be assumed that more students will eat there.
Fast Food
Interviewees wanted to see more options for fast food on campus. Currently, the
only “fast food” location on campus is Chick-fil-a located in Stewart’s Corner or Subway
located in Alston Hall. Adding more fast food options to campus would reach students
who only have a short time between classes to eat in addition to students who wish to
quickly pick a meal up before returning home.
On-Campus (excluding dining halls)
Many of the interviewees stated that if there were more variety of choices oncampus, they would choose to eat on-campus more frequently during the school
week. Food choices suggested by students include cuisines from different countries such
as Lebanese, Korean, or Ethiopian. Thus by broadening food selection, there is the
potential to encourage students to purchase more meals on campus.
Off-Campus
Students would like to have a wider variety of restaurants off-campus that accept
Dining Dollars and Bama Cash. They would also like to see a different assortment of
cuisine choices. By increasing dining options around Tuscaloosa, the desire for students
to eat out more often instead of choosing to eat at home also increases. If more
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restaurants started accepting Bama Cash, these establishments will reach a larger
demographic of students who do not have as much money to spend eating out.
Bama Cash and Dining Dollars
The interviewees said they liked the $300 allotted to them for dining; however,
they wished more establishments accepted this type of payment. Therefore, increasing
the number of restaurants that accept Dining Dollars and/or Bama Cash will encourage
students to expand their horizons regarding dining choices.
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Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be derived from surveys and research that the dining options,
quality of restaurants, and the restaurant industry overall in Tuscaloosa has flourished;
however there is still room for improvement. We specifically studied approximately five
different aspects of Tuscaloosa dining which includes on-campus dining, off-campus
dining, Bama Cash and Dining Dollars, fast food, and dining halls.
Most students were happy with the variety of fast food options off campus but
would like to see more options on campus. Student opinions on Dining Dollars and Bama
Cash were very similar; most students wished more places accepted these payment
methods. Students also rarely add more funds to these Action Card accounts because it is
easier to use a debit card or cash where every establishment will accept them. The most
popular options for students on campus are Subway, Starbucks, Stewart’s Corner, and the
food court at the Ferguson Center. Although students are content with the available
choices, they would still like to see more variety. Students were somewhat pleased with
pricing, quality, cleanliness, and variety of current establishments off-campus. However,
students did show interest in adding more upscale restaurants to Tuscaloosa for special
occasions or dating. Although the interviewees were mostly upperclassman, research
showed that the dining halls on campus are only popular with freshman since they are the
only students required to purchase a meal plan.
Through this research, our group obtained basic market research skills while
interacting and conversing with fellow students and peers. As students, the topic of
Tuscaloosa dining is interesting and fun to research because it directly affects us. The
large scope of dining options in Tuscaloosa did make it difficult not only for students to
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choose their favorites and also posed a challenge for our group to gather and process all
the data. Nevertheless, marketing research is a challenging process but it accurately
provides important information about the opinions and attitudes of a certain group of
people or market.
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Appendix A
Focus Group Outline
Introduction and Discussion of Focus Group Guidelines
 Explain the process and rules/guidelines of a focus group discussion
 Only one person should be talking at a time
 Encourage participants to voice their opinions
Dining Halls



How many dining halls accept meal plans?
o How many years have you had a meal plan?
Do you have a meal plan?
o If no, why?
o If yes, which one do you have?
Will you purchase a meal plan next semester?
o Why or why not?
o Any opinions on cleanliness or quality of dining halls
Fast Food



What fast food restaurants do you visit most frequently?
o Why?
o Which is your favorite?
What factor influences you the most to visit the fast food restaurants?
Do you prefer fast food on campus or off campus?
o Why?
o What fast food restaurants would you like to see on campus?
On-Campus (excluding dining halls) vs. Off-Campus



Do you prefer eating on or off campus?
o Why?
What kind of dining options would you like to add on campus?
What is your favorite dining hall on campus?
o Why?
Bama Cash and Dining Dollars


Where do you spend the majority of your dining dollars?
o Why?
Do you use Bama Cash to dine around Tuscaloosa?
o If so, where?
o Why or why not?
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
How much do you typically spend on Bama Cash/Dining Dollars per semester?
Miscellaneous Reviews




Do you think Tuscaloosa restaurants are reasonably priced?
o Why or why not?
o Examples?
What kinds of restaurants or specific establishments would you like to add to
Tuscaloosa?
What do you think about the cleanliness and safety of restaurants in Tuscaloosa?
Do you think restaurants in Tuscaloosa provide good service?
o Any improvements?
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Appendix B
Sample Profile
Student Name
Will
Drew
Vicky
Schenk
Samantha
Guangfu
William
Alicia
Richard
Kim
Anna
Giffin
Tyler
Ashley
Chao
Class Level
Freshman
Sophomore
Sophomore
Junior
Junior
Junior
Junior
Senior
Senior
Senior
Senior
Senior
Senior
Senior
PHD
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Gender
Male
Male
Female
Male
Female
Male
Male
Female
Male
Female
Female
Male
Male
Female
Male