By Aaron Williams
When the dining services contract between Sodexo, a French multinational corporation, and the University of Louisville was signed in 2008, adding a cafeteria for students was part of the agreement. The result is what U of L students now know as Ville Grill, formerly WestSide Dining. But how much do students actually know about the service that provides them meals several times a week in exchange for a couple swipes of their Cardinal Card?
“I have no clue of how [the food] is really prepared or where they get it from,” said Matt Bellus, a sophomore mechanical engineering major. “All I know is that most of it tastes really good and it’s a buffet. What other reason would you need to eat there?”
To find out the inner workings of Ville Grill, The Louisville Cardinal was invited on a tour of the facilities with Melissa Ingram, the executive chef. Ingram said that the newest dining offering at U of L gets around 10,000 transactions a week from students, and serves an average of 3,000 students a day. Ville Grill is frequented by a large number of resident students at the university. These students, depending on their meal plans, get a certain number of swipes, or visits, a week.
The dining options include: Bella Trattoria, the pasta and pizza station; Flying Star Diner, comfort food central; Basic Kneads, the sandwich and soup stop; Magellan’s, home of international cuisine; and Wild Mushroom, for vegetarians and vegans. Each of these stations serves daily offerings and special menus throughout the week. What is served is determined by Sodexo’s corporate menu and also by what is local, fresh and organic. The nutritional facts about day-to-day items can be found at uofldiningservices.com. On the site, students are able to construct a meal and then review the nutritional value that their food has to offer.
Much of the food found at Ville Grill is made from scratch. Ingram specifically pointed out the homemade soups and fresh-made chips at Basic Kneads, which also bakes its own bread. As for the ingredients found at Wild Mushroom and Magellan’s, Ingram stressed they are all as organic as can be found. It should also be mentioned that Basic Kneads, Wild Mushroom and Magellan’s all serve general entrees, but students can have their food made to order, with their specific requests tailored to. Ingram also said that the fries served at Flying Star are hand cut and made right in their kitchens, rather than being frozen. Even the dessert options at Ville Grill are fresh-baked in house by three bakers on staff.
“[Ville Grill] serves smaller portions with the intention of students coming back for seconds or going to another station, to cut down on food waste,” said Ingram about the portion sizes.
Matti Verder, resident district manager of Sodexo, pointed out that Ville Grill is unique among college cafeteria-style dining because it remains open between the hours of 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays, through breakfast, lunch and dinner, which Verder termed “continuous dining.” There is also a chance that dining at Ville Grill could bring customers into contact with Cardinal football or women’s basketball players.
“The men’s football and women’s basketball teams eat here every day,” said Verder.
What can students expect in the future from Ville Grill? Firstly, there seems to be an honest emphasis on student feedback. Whether it be one-on-one or on the website, Ville Grill encourages its customers’ input.
“If something at the comfort station isn’t quite how Mom might make it, let us know,” said Ingram.
Secondly, students will be able to sample a featured entree at Ville Grill. According to Karen Newton, director of health promotion and education for Campus Health Services, students can obtain the recipe and ingredients for this entree through the Basic Pantry program at The Nest. Students can even attend cooking classes to learn how to make their meal.
“Students have even more options this semester for learning how to cook and eat for vitality,” said Newton. “Campus Health Promotion is offering four cooking workshops in our Activity Room, co-sponsored by Sodexo. Students learn cooking skills and eat the meal they’ve helped prepare. All recipes will be available in the Basic Pantry section of the Campus Health Promotion website.”
Students living in the dorms will also have access to quality cookware to prepare their food.
“Three residence halls are now equipped with cooking kits that include good quality pots, pans, utensils and Basic Pantry recipes,” said Newton.
Finally, in addition to their partnership with Campus Health, the staff at Ville Grill says students should look for more themed nights in the spring semester, similar to the breakfast finals blitz meal or the streak and shrimp meal, both from the fall semester. Coming soon will be a Valentine’s Day event that will offer the students the opportunity to vote on their favorite meal at Ville Grill, with the winning dish being served Feb. 14.
