Fresh Semester, Fresh Market

Southern Virginia University offers new dining options

Robyn Peterson
The Herald
3 min readAug 30, 2019

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By Robyn Peterson

A new semester brings new classes, new faces, and, now, new dining options. These changes include the recently opened Fresh Market cafe and the Coca Cola beverages that will now be offered on campus. Dorado, the burrito grill, also received its new name and minor upgrades over the summer.

The new Fresh Market cafe sells everything from apparel to medication to quick snacks. Some classic menu items from the former campus cafe, Jonezzey’s, have returned, including the cæsar wrap, the springtime salad, and many baked goods. A custom smoothie bar will also be returning, anticipated next week. Along with old favorites, new menu items are being introduced. The items include the California wrap, the turkey pesto sandwich, and house-made hummus.

Photo courtesy of Zachary Bearnson

“It’s SVU through and through. We made it, students made it, students get to enjoy it, students make the food,” said Joseph Whetstone about Fresh Market. Whetstone, Director of Auxiliary Services at Southern Virginia, helped bring about the recent dining changes.

Whetstone and his team conceptualized, designed, and built Fresh Market. Cafe managers Heidi Glauser and Justin Wiseman worked with Whetstone on this project. Since the beginning, they were also involved with many aspects of creating Fresh Market.

“I just hope [students] love it. I love it, I put a lot of work into it,” said Glauser. “I am super proud of all that we accomplished this summer. We worked hard and I hope that that pays off in student satisfaction and that they know that we did it all for them.”

Photo courtesy of Zachary Bearnson

Because Fresh Market is focused on providing good, fresh food to students, the menu items are made on-site. There is no microwave or fryer in the kitchen. The cafe includes features like half walls, sightlines to the kitchen, and a glass door fridge to increase transparency as well so that students know what they’re eating.

In addition to the new Fresh Market, sodas offered on campus will also be changing. Although the university has exclusively offered Pepsi products since 2010, starting this semester, Coca Cola beverages will be offered in Fresh Market, Dorado, and the dining hall. Fresh Market currently carries these beverages, and a Coca Cola Freestyle vending machine will soon be installed in Dorado. Coca Cola will be available at the dining hall starting Thursday, September 5.

Photo courtesy of Zach Bearnson

The university has also switched to a points system for meal plans. Students receive a certain number of points corresponding to their meals per week. These points are used to purchase meals. For example, a meal in the dining hall is seven points. Entrees at Fresh Market are usually four points, with sides and drinks for one or two points each. Students can choose how to spend their points and where.

“We hope it offers more flexibility. That was our goal, to offer more flexibility and customization,” said Whetstone in regards to the point system.

Even as the campus is transformed by these changes, the work is not finished. The Fresh Market creators want to be approachable about their product, and they welcome student suggestions.

“Saying that we’re proud of what we have isn’t to say that it’s done. It lives, it will continue to change. It will continue to move according to the feedback of the students and we’ll try to provide the best,” said Whetstone.

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