By Luke Willis
The Scene staff
St. Louis Community College officials announced in 2020 that they were getting out of the cafeteria business for good.
No more burgers on the grill. No more pizza slices. No more hot breakfasts.
But now the Forest Park cafeteria is back, and many students, faculty and staff are happy about it.
“Since I don’t have a car, it’s easier for me to grab a snack now,” said Jeenin Mahmoud, 21, a criminal justice major.
Actually, the cafeteria had a “soft opening” this summer, with a limited number of food items sold in the Campus Store, which had taken over the cafeteria space.
Now the store has moved to a large room next door, formerly known as Cafe West, and the cafeteria is offering its full menu.
That includes meat and vegan burgers, chicken sandwiches and tenders, pizza, gyros and other international dishes, salads, French fries and onion rings, as well as breakfast selections such as pancakes, waffles, eggs, toast and hashbrowns.
“I think students just wanted real food back,” said Chef Manager Lucas Olson.
Olson works for American Dining, the private company that is contracting with STLCC to operate cafeterias on the Forest Park, Meramec and Florissant Valley campuses.
Julie Stillman, interim senior auxiliary manager, heads the STLCC office that was instrumental in bringing the cafeterias back.
“Food makes community, and we’re a community college,” she said.
The new cafeterias are modeled after traditional food courts, with separate “storefronts,” including Stacked, the burger station; Cucina, a mini pizzeria; and World Market for international dishes.
Each storefront will feature daily seasonal specials, according to Olson. “I love it,” said Terris Thompson, 60, a switchboard operator at Forest Park, who rated the food a “10” on a scale of one to 10.
Employees at the Forest Park cafeteria also prepare boxed food items to be sold in the Wildwood Campus Store.
Hours for the Forest Park cafeteria are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Fridays.
American Dining is now working on a plan to allow students, faculty and staff to start ordering food in advance through the Fresh Rewards app.