Once known as Campus Market, the convenience store in the basement of the Stephen Robert ’62 Campus Center was rebranded as Gourmet To Go at the beginning of the semester.
With the change in name, Gourmet To Go now offers an expanded selection of prepackaged food items that Campus Market did not offer, said Bobby Noyes, operations manager for Dining Services. Some non-food goods — such as toiletries, cleaning sprays and school supplies — also remain for students to purchase, he added.
Dining Services aims to offer healthier food options in the change from Campus Market to Gourmet To Go. “Across campus and in the industry in general, we’ve seen an increase in demand for healthy and wholesome options,” Noyes said. “What we seek to do is offer those to students and faculty in a prepackaged format.”
This rebranding coincided with updates to the Blue Room’s menu over the summer, which introduced a larger variety of options incorporating fresh vegetables and local produce. “We were able to do some things at the Blue Room that were really well received, and we wanted to continue and offer them during the academic year,” Noyes said. “We thought Campus Market would be a great space to offer those items.”
Fresh salads and grain bowls in the Blue Room proved popular over the summer, which influenced Dining Services’ decision to provide similar offerings in the revamp of Campus Market. “Now, in the fall, we’ve been continuing using fresh produce from local farms in grain bowls and salads in a grab-and-go format at Gourmet To Go,” Noyes said.
Yearly sales reports revealed that many of the non-food items offered in the former Campus Market did not sell very well, Noyes said. These performance reports were an additional motivating factor behind rebranding Campus Market to Gourmet To Go.
Students interviewed by The Herald expressed mixed reactions to the opening of Gourmet To Go.
Benjamin Alers ’22 said he appreciates the focus on health in Gourmet To Go’s offerings. “At my old school, we didn’t have a lot of quick options for food, so I could only really buy unhealthy snacks,” said Alers, who transferred from Rice University. “I really like how easily I can grab a quick to-go lunch before class” at Gourmet To Go.
Alaina Parisella ’22 reacted less positively to the changes in offerings at Gourmet To Go. “I used to come (to Campus Market) a lot for a little snack, so I’m kind of disappointed they got rid of the candy section,” she said.
While Gourmet To Go aims to offer healthier options than Campus Market did, some sweet staples remain. “The only part of the store that I really care about is the milkshakes, so as long as they stay, I’m fine with whatever changes they make,” said Sophia DeRosa ’22.
