UC's "Residential Restaurant" Gains National Attention

University chefs and food service directors from around the nation converged on the University of Cincinnati’s MarketPointe at Siddall over the summer, as UC’s “residential restaurant” became a national model in college cafeteria food preparation. ARAMARK senior food service director Omar Rayan says MarketPointe has become a training center for ARAMARK food service providers across half of the country.

MarketPointe at Siddall opened for business last fall after a $3.3 million renovation turned an outdated college cafeteria into a 468-seat restaurant that rocketed UC to the national forefront of providing innovative food service to students, faculty and staff. New equipment and cooking stations were moved to the main level of the restaurant – resulting in the point-of-service, display-style cooking concept that has the UC diners salivating and has representatives from other educational institutions taking notes.

“The reason that ARAMARK selected MarketPointe as a national training site is because ARAMARK believes this is the nation’s best example of a residential restaurant,” explains Rayan. “We hosted two, week-long sessions with people across the country who are transforming their former cafeterias into restaurants. Around 30 people, from chefs to food service directors, attended each session.”

ARAMARK is one of the world’s leaders in food services at educational institutions. UC signed a seven-year contract with the company in 2000.

Another indication of MarketPointe’s success is the most recent UC Housing and Food Services survey. It reflected a 79 percent improvement in overall student satisfaction with UC dining services, compared with the previous survey.

More improvements were made to MarketPointe for fall quarter, as wireless Internet access became available. UC’s other residence hall cafeteria, the Sander Dining Center, got  a fresh coat of paint in time for the start of fall quarter. Rayan adds that the Sander Dining Center will introduce two new food concepts for the fall: wraps and a Stir Crazy taste station that’s similar to the stir-fry taste station at MarketPointe.