The Alumni Memorial Union has welcomed Junior’s Smoked BBQ to the group of restaurants available with a meal swipe at Marquette Place, and students have mixed feelings about the change.
Melanie Vianes, general manager of Marquette Dining Services, said this is the second of four restaurants that will be at Marquette Place’s pop-up station this year. For the first six weeks of the year, this spot has been taken up by Forage Kitchen, which offered salads and wraps.
Junior’s Smoked BBQ is a small business originally located in Roosevelt Grove, Milwaukee. On a meal swipe, students can get the pulled pork sandwich, smoked chicken sandwich, smoked beef sloppy joe or loaded mac and cheese bowl, with a side of potato salad or chips.
“The goal in the beginning was to have rotating concepts and then we stuck with one per year, and so now to add variety back in, we’re moving to four per year,” Vianes said.
Vianes said the process of picking a vendor for Marquette Place is a collaboration between her, the Marquette Dining Culinary Director Gary Schrubbe and District Manager Abdullah Burks.
“We talk to the teams about if they can have staff available, if they can meet the operating expectations, because not everybody can come on site and do a lot of meals in a short period of time,” Vianes said.
Bennett Chapman and Brooke Everson, both sophomores in the College of Communication, were surprised and disappointed to see the switch from Forage Kitchen to Junior’s Smoked BBQ when they returned from fall break. Forage Kitchen offered two different types of bowls, both packed with grains, vegetables and the option of added protein and a Chicken Bacon Caesar Wrap.
“I was really upset when they took out Forage, because not only was it the only objectively healthiest option in Marquette Place, but it was also easily the most accommodating,” Chapman said.
Chapman, who is a vegetarian, and Everson, who has Celiac disease, both felt their dietary restrictions make it difficult to find a variety in meals at Marquette Dining.
Erbert’s and Gerbert’s in Marquette Place does offer gluten-free bread, but Everson still feels that there is a lot of room for cross-contamination that would result in her getting sick. Marquette Place is also home to the Grill, which serves burgers, chicken tenders, fries and more; Taqueria, Marquette Place’s spin-off Chipotle; Einstein Bros Bagels and Ian’s Pizza.
“It’s really hard to find options where there isn’t intense [gluten] cross-contamination,” Everson said. “Especially from someone who has intense food anxiety, anyone touching bread and the ingredients for sandwiches, then handling something that is gluten-free, it becomes really difficult [to find food options], and that’s not something a lot of people think about.”
Chapman also said that he wished there had been more notice given before the removal of Forage Kitchen.
“That would have been nice to know, because as someone who’s planning out their meals, we have to have that meal planned, or there’s no other option for us,” Chapman said.
Vianes regularly looks at feedback about the dining halls through the satisfaction survey [found in the bio of their Instagram, [@marquette_dining], website, dining advisory board and sales.
After hearing feedback about Junior’s, Vianes said they are being asked to provide a gluten-free option.
“[Forage Kitchen] was a really solid option when you get so used to—and I’m not even trying to be that person—but with all the carbs and all the sodium, [Forage Kitchen] was a nice fresh option,” Chapman said.
Vianes said they are working to decide on the next pop-up station and considering what foods would be good in the colder season.
“I think there should be an option in Marquette Place that is healthier,” Chapman said. “I honestly think that they should have an option there that is 100% vegetarian and gluten-free.”
You can visit Sodexo’s website to learn more about Marquette Dining Services and to provide feedback about dining.
This article was written by Annie Goode. She can be reached at [email protected].
