Exploring the new dining options at Notre Dame

This year’s adjustments to Notre Dame’s dining options have led to widespread social commentary from the student body. New features include a complete renovation of North Dining Hall (North), a new layout for South Dining Hall (South), and shorter hours for the popular restaurant, Reckers.

The first, and perhaps most widely publicized, change is the renovation and new layout of North dining hall. In August, the new North was unveiled, surprising visitors with its shining chrome and the new turnstile entry system. Alongside stylistic differences and upgraded technology, the new open floor plan and the dispersed buffet system takes a vastly different approach in North dining hall.

When asked for comment about the organizational differences between the two, freshman Ben Harris told the Rover, “I like the organization of [North] a bit better, whereas in South the food area is a choke point, because everything is in this one area and close together. North is stretched out, so even though you have to walk further, it’s less crowded and easier to navigate.”

Other students remarked that, in South, dining options are far easier to appraise and choose from than in North, which is so spread out that it makes choosing an item difficult.

New changes included additional flexibility in the “Grab and Go” quick meal feature. South Dining Hall’s Grab and Go utilizes meal swipes according to a point system, allowing a student to take seven points worth of food or drink for a single meal swipe. This year, students can redeem an unlimited number of meals swipes per meal period. Previously, only one meal swipe could be used per meal period, preventing students from both eating in the dining room and redeeming a “Grab and Go” meal or obtaining multiple “Grab and Go” meals. This new feature has been widely utilized, especially on Fridays before swipes restart Saturday morning. Students either save up their swipes intentionally or use leftover swipes to take home snacks in preparation for the weekend. This has, however, resulted in a very limited food selection Friday afternoon and evening.

While South’s “Grab and Go” expanded, North Dining Hall’s “Grab and Go” has been changed to be the “Marketplace.” This system, similar to the Huddle in LaFortune Student Center, uses Flex Points instead of meal plan swipes, creating discontent among students who valued the opportunity to use meal swipes.

“There isn’t a Grab and Go at North,” freshman Bryce Dahnke told the Rover. “They changed it to that weird market thing that uses real money.”

“I’m so mad about that,” added another freshman, Enzo Ambrose, “Lack of Grab and Go at NDH is unacceptable.”

Another change in the dining options are the new hours of the campus restaurant, Reckers. This popular dining option was previously a 24-hour establishment behind South Dining Hall, usually frequented specifically for its 24-hour status. The new hours are 11am to 11pm on weekdays and 11am to 3am on weekends.  

When asked to comment on the shift in hours, sophomore Connor Reilly said “literally everybody, including me, is mad that Recker’s isn’t 24 hours.” Upperclassmen report that, while Reckers used to be a happening place at the early hours of the morning, the limited hours have led to Taco Bell and Pizza Hut drawing a larger crowd.

Madeline Foley is a freshman Program of Liberal Studies major with two minors in theology and philosophy, politics, and economics. She enjoys sunny days and dark humor. She can be contacted at mfoley10@nd.edu.