A taste of Italy has come to Homeplate, the College dining hall known for its health-conscious eating alternatives. Students willing to bear long lines now have the opportunity to dine at the newly installed panini bar: Il Panino.
Along with the new lunchtime option, Homeplate is hoping to keep customers satisfied with extended dining hours.
The decision to add alternative lunch fare was long in the making. Dartmouth Dining Services officials and its affiliated student advisory group collaborated in brainstorming possible menu additions in order to maintain Homeplate's attractiveness as a dining option.
In an interview with The Dartmouth, DDS director Tucker Rossiter acknowledged that the dining facility, located directly across from the popular Food Court, was in need of an upgrade.
"We knew Homeplate needed some sprucing up and some changes," Rossiter said.
Homeplate staff were aware that their hot entrees were not as popular as they had once been and hoped a new option would improve both business and customer satisfaction, Rossiter said. Beth Rosenberger, Homeplate manager and a certified dietician, had always wanted to try out Italian grilled sandwiches, or paninis, on her menu and saw this as a perfect opportunity.
The popularity of the new lunchtime dining option is easily visible in the consistently long lines for the sandwich bar. Lines can often take more than 15 minutes, which can be difficult on a tight class schedule. As the novelty of the panini wears off, lines are expected to die down.
Meredith Russo '08 acknowledged the often lengthy wait, but it has not stopped her from frequenting the panini bar numerous times since its opening last week.
"The paninis are a nice change and because there are so many variations you can have them every day," Russo said. "It's nice to have a hot sandwich in the winter, even if the line to get one is incredibly long."
Il Panino offers five different panini options, which can be purchased as either a half or a whole sandwich and with a soup combination. Choices include chicken florentine (currently the most popular), buffalo chicken, eggplant parmesan, turkey Ruben and Portobello mushroom.
Rossiter attributed long lines to students wishing to substitute ingredients in the pre-planned, but not pre-made, sandwiches, which take three to five minutes to grill. DDS has not yet received any complaints regarding lines, although one student expressed annoyance at the multitude of sandwiches offered.
Rossiter said that additional improvements will be necessary in the future.
"We still have issues," he said.
DDS is attempting to deal with the issues as quickly as possible. New grills, for example, have already been ordered to keep up with demand, and the sandwiches are now being served at both the entree bar and in the dining hall's deli section.
Rossiter encouraged continual student input, adding that DDS highly values its student patrons and their input and wishes to keep them happy.
"We always are looking to make changes that may enhance the quality for the customer," Rossiter said.
As for its extended hours, Homeplate will now remain open an extra half hour before closing at 8 pm. The additional half hour was instituted as a result of a Homeplate survey and DDS's desire to remove some pressure from the Food Court dinner rush. A separate Student Assembly survey, conducted late Fall term, found that 91 percent of students wanted Homeplate to stay open later.
