Following student feedback, Campus Dining has implemented a multitude of changes this semester. A new lunch option at Kissam hit campus this week, and starting Monday, Jan. 13, plant-based omelettes will be available at all omelette stations on campus. 

“Student feedback and dining behavior is one of the key drivers of our dining strategy on campus, and we measure and track trends every day,” Vanderbilt Director of Business Services Operations Sean Caroll said. 

Because of low utilization of Kissam Kitchen’s hot lunch option last year, Campus Dining discontinued Kissam lunch in favor of focusing on Chef James Bistro in Rand. But after consulting with VSG, Campus Dining decided to reintroduce lunch at Kissam with soup, salad and sandwiches available Monday through Friday from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Kissam lunch differs from the Rand sandwich station in that it offers chicken, salami, ham, roast beef and tofu as protein options and features only bread from Frothy Monkey, a local coffeehouse.

“We feel that the elevated bread options and convenience of order prep and customization makes Kissam a great alternative to our existing sandwich options on campus,” Caroll said. “As for wraps, that is something that we are currently exploring.”

Carroll reported that Kissam lunch has only seen positive feedback thus far and that meal swipes are significantly higher than last year. 

After students complained that they couldn’t get menus and hours of operations for dining locations in the same place following the discontinuation of the Campus Dining app, Campus Dining updated NetNutrition so that it now lists dining locations’ hours of operation. 

Free Fridays and Munchie Mondays will continue from last semester, beginning with free Rand cookies Jan. 10 at 11:00 a.m. while supplies last and free Quest Chips on Jan. 13. Munchie Mondays consist of giveaways at Munchie Marts the second Monday of every month while Free Fridays consist of giveaways every Friday.