Gabe Lehman
lehmanga@grinnell.edu
Numerous changes to the layout and setup of the Spencer Grill over the course of winter break include the move of both the microwave and the milk containers from their openly accessible spots by the window to within the Grill itself, where employees are now in charge of providing microwave and milk services. There are also new soda machines in place, which means that the west side metal curtain is permanently closed for aesthetic reasons.
The changes may or may not be temporary based on student feedback, according to Lisa Thornton, assistant director of Dining Services.
“We had a lot of people asking for soy and skim and so we decided to move those back here,” Thornton said. “It’s something we are going to try out this semester and see how it goes.”
Some students who frequent the Grill said that they were upset and a bit befuddled by the changes, as they felt that the character of the Grill itself is no longer the same.
“The Grill is an empty shell of its former self,” said Willa Collins ’16. “Self-gov should apply to dairy and non-dairy creamers in my opinion … and the amount of milk you put in your coffee is a deeply personal thing.”
Students must now ask Grill employees to use the microwave or to get milk and creamer, which Thornton noted was the result of the microwave actually breaking.
“We’re going to test it out and see what happens,” Thornton said. “Right now we’re just using the one that is [in] Spencer.”
New soda machines also replaced their decade-old predecessors, which were prone to breaking down. The new placement of the machines means that the “window” of the Grill facing West is closed permanently, which has confused some students into thinking that the Grill is closed when it is actually open.
“Walking into the Grill area from this angle and fleetingly thinking that it’s closed is a daily struggle for me,” Collins said.
However, Collins acknowledges that these changes have not been major life-altering events and assumes that she will eventually adapt without too much worry or trouble.
“I feel like I’m the quintessential old person that is angry at everything that has changed,” she said.
Nonetheless, Thornton noted that student feedback is important and that Dining Services would “absolutely” be open to discussions about the Grill changes and how they have affected the experience of dining and hanging out in the Grill.
— Additional reporting by Nora Coghlan
Lane • Feb 5, 2016 at 8:02 pm
Just to clarify, the microwave broke. It’s coming back. But please continue to complain about the milk situation, the one register open, and the wall down on one side.