On Friday night, the Courtyard Cafe buzzed with life, with a long line of students eager to test out the renovated space. The cafe, closed since August, has a redecorated interior and a layout that returns more human interaction to the ordering process, after an earlier renovation last spring was widely panned for putting a wall between students and workers.
Simon Thomas ’27 said the remodel is “aesthetically pleasing” and “definitely” an improvement from the spring.
“I like to see who’s back there,” he said.
Associate vice president for business and hospitality Joseph Flueckiger wrote in a statement that “students were eager to return and came out in large groups” on Friday and that a total of 827 students were served.
After the reopening, Elijah Jacobs ’28 said that the Courtyard Cafe looks “a lot better and cleaner.” However, he also noted “pretty bad” wait times during the opening weekend.
While sitting in the Cafe on Oct. 19, Nathaniel Wayne ’28 said that the main change from the renovation is that “you can see the humans.” He also noted longer wait times.
Flueckiger concurred that the Cafe experienced “a few technical challenges” on Friday that were “resolved that evening.” However, he said he believed the new ordering system software would eventually “streamline” wait times and “reduc[e] bottlenecks.”
“The new platform allows for faster, more flexible ordering, use of meal equivalencies, with improved accuracy in communicating orders to the kitchen,” he wrote.
Om Shah ’26 said the remodel “looks beautiful,” despite the lines being “a little long.”
“I’m so happy,” Shah said.
The summer renovations were partially in response to the earlier spring renovation that generated strong student opposition. In an April survey from Dartmouth Student Government, 83.68% of student respondents said they felt “extremely dissatisfied” with the renovations, while 0% of students stated that they were “mostly satisfied” or “extremely satisfied.”
In an Aug. 3 email to campus, announcing the renovations, DSG president Sabik Jawad ’26 wrote that the spring renovations led to “de-humanization” of the “experience.” Writing that the “opposition stemmed” from “damage” that the renovation did to the Cafe’s “status as a community space.”
“Our relentless advocacy for a layout that reflects those priorities have been successful, as the College has announced and started constructing a more interactive Courtyard Cafe,” Jawad wrote. “This layout brings in-person customer service in addition to the Kiosks from last spring and increases seating.”
DSG general senator and member of the Dartmouth dining committee Tamia Kelly ’27 said in an interview ahead of the reopening that she “hopes” that Dartmouth Dining takes student responses into consideration moving forward.
“With the amount of pushback that happened last term, I’m hoping that dining takes it as a sign that they need to listen to students,” Kelly said.
Kelly, who described herself as an “avid” Courtyard Cafe customer, said that the main issue many students had with the changes last year was the loss of face-to-face engagement with dining staff.
“At the end of the day, they’re not just workers,” Kelly said. “They’re people we converse with, and they’re our friends. I think dining staff [are] a really big part of student life here.”
Flueckiger wrote that the remodel built on student feedback “received through surveys, advisory groups and informal conversations.”
Flueckiger said in his statement that the “energy” in the new Courtyard Cafe “has been fantastic” since opening day, and noting that student feedback has “highlighted how inviting” the space is.
“Our team is working hard to keep orders moving quickly and to ensure a great experience for everyone,” he wrote. “We want to thank our students for their patience during reopening weekend.”
Tyler Grubelich ’26 said that he was “extremely excited” for the reopening and to get to try his favorite menu items again, especially the salads.
“Everyone loves Courtyard Cafe food,” he said.
Iris WeaverBell ’28 contributed to reporting.
