Dining locations, including Chili’s, have been stripped of their former branding to prepare for the upcoming school year
Following the transition from food service provider Chartwells to Aramark, almost all dining locations will see new branding come fall. According to the new dining website, now called Viking Food Co., there will be 11 dining locations available for students. Chili’s is notably absent.
The former home of Chili’s will be closed for the fall, but reopen in spring with several dining options inside, a dining representative told The Cauldron. Further details on the new dining options are expected to be shared with students in an upcoming email.
Update 8/2/21: Chili’s will be replaced by Magnus Food Hall, according to new signage added to the location.
Other locations will see significant changes to branding, but food options appear to parallel previous years. In the Student Center second floor food court, Chop’d and Wrap’d will become Greens2Go, GrillNation will become Grille Works, and Hissho Sushi will be known mononymously as Sushi.
The remaining dining options in the Student Center- first floor coffee shop Viking Grounds and Viking Marketplace dining hall- will keep their names. Viking Marketplace’s convenience store neighbor, Outtakes, will be renamed to Viking Express Convenience.
Papa John’s in Berkman Hall survives the cull, and will be joined by Tender’s Love & Chicken, an apparent return to form in the previous home of The Strip and Berkman Marketplace. Other unchanged locations are The Link- in the Innerlink between the Law Building and Law Library- and Business Perks Coffee, in the Monte Ahuja College of Business.
The final dining location seeing a rebrand is Fenn Shoppe, which will be called Viking Express @ Fenn. More information on dining options, hours, and meal plans can be found on the Viking Food Co. website.
Photos by Connor Mahon