Changes are coming to University of Oregon cafes.
Right now that change is another 50 cents that patrons have to pay for a maple bar, but soon, the UO will see a whole new system in all their cafes according to UO officials.
Starting this term, four cafes located throughout campus were transferred to UO Dining, along with the EMU coffee service. This means most food, including bakery products, sandwiches, sushi and salad will come from the same kitchen as food in the residential cafeteria.
“We are trying to maintain what have been there, and keep the changes minimum in the middle of the stream,” UO dining director Tom Driscoll said.
The UO also plans to learn more of customers’ needs and test out new ideas to improve the service, Driscoll said.
Some customers have noticed the changes.
Kim Nguyen, a UO junior who majors in marketing, said she came to Lilis Cafe most days before her class for a twist doughnut and an iced coffee. She couldn’t tell any difference in the quality, but complained about the quantity.
“Some days when I come down (to the cafe) in the afternoon, there’s barely food left,” Nguyen said. “Many students in the business school and other schools come here for lunch and snack. I think they should keep more stock on food and pastry, if there is any changes happening.”
History major John Tuttle has worked for EMU coffee service since last fall. During the transition process, he felt uncertain about the future.
Tuttle has also seen some food run out in the middle of the day, or even not be in stock, along with a slight change in prices.
For others, the change is minor.
UO student Olivia Brown, studying digital arts, said she spent a lot of time in AAA. The cafe on the second floor was her spot to get a pick-me-up snack mid-afternoon.
“I didn’t even notice they changed vendors,” Brown said. “It seems to be as good as always.”
UO Dining is planned to take over the whole procedure one step at a time, Driscoll said.
“We are trying to increase the orders and enhance the products,” he said. “It’s a learning time for us.”
The next step is to uniform the cash register system.
“They are old and not up-to-date,” Driscoll said. “The new system will be better for staff to do report and bring up items more quickly. We are also looking into credit card enhancement, which will allow Apple Pay and Google Wallet.”
The new system, however, will not allow students to reload campus cash into their student IDs like the current cash registers. Driscoll recommended that students can reload campus cash online on Duckweb.
The new system is planned to be in full service by the end of this term, Driscoll said.
Looking forward to the end of 2015, UO will open a brand new cafe, serving at the new Allen Price Science Library. The university is also in the planning stage to change up the current menus, update facilities and develop new schemes for the existing cafes.
“It’s a planning stage now,” Driscoll said. “But we are going to see drastic changes in Fall 2016.”