Each year when students come back to Albion, there are some changes that have been put in place since the previous year. One change this school year is Baldwin’s attempt to have more global food nights, a change which is derived from the voices of Albion students.
Student surveys about Baldwin’s dining and hospitality services can be filled out at any time throughout the semester. Students are also encouraged to fill out comment cards, located in the napkin baskets at each table in Baldwin.
Baldwin also has a text messaging system, which students can contact at (517)-225-6361, put into place so that students can send in immediate feedback for any needs, even if it is just the milk dispenser that is running low.
Pat Miller, the Associate Director of Dining and Hospitality Services, explained the global station was sparked by student input from the survey that they wanted more variety in what’s being served at Baldwin.
Extensive planning goes into the global station each day. Miller expressed that something they would love to see at Baldwin is more input from the students on what they would like to be served at the global station. Miller, whose office is located in Upper Baldwin, says she is always open for suggestions and ideas if students want to drop by.
Miller mentioned how much time and effort is put into a dish just to perfect it.
“If you really look at what the word global implies, and you move [a dish] from a culture or region to a global category, [the dish] gets changed a little,” said Miller. “You can see that with some of the restaurants you go to, where structure changes to appease a more general population.”
Often times, ethnic or cultural foods found at restaurants claiming to be authentic have been Americanized. These foods are altered to reflect American foods and appeal to more people. This adaptation is something Bon Appetit is trying to stay away from.
Baldwin is also trying to implement a larger variety of food options at the grill station, which normally provides the American hamburgers and hotdogs. They plan to accomplish this by adapting the grill station into a street food station that features street foods from different cultures.
“The street food station is a relatively new thing. I haven’t worked on it yet, so I’m not sure how the students like it,” said Jenna Bradley, a junior from Lapeer, Mich., and student worker at Baldwin. ”But I personally like it because it’s something different. It’s not the same type of food over and over again.”
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