Academy Opens New Dining Hall

By SAM ALTMAN, LENA KOOK, AARYAN PATEL, SEAN RICARD, and MARVIN SHIM

Towering white walls, a huge open forum with pristine wooden tables, fresh balcony seating, a new dish conveyor belt, revolutionized organization, a better location for many students, and more—suddenly, Exonians are buzzing with excitement for the new dining hall. 

As students and faculty arrived back on campus from break for the winter term, the administration was delighted to announce the long-awaited reopening of the North Side dining hall, formerly known as Wetherell and now referred to as New Dining Hall.

After over a year and a half of construction and anticipation, the renovated dining hall on the north side of campus finally opened. While another dining hall complementing Elm was familiar to some upperclassmen, many lowerclassmen were excited to have two dining halls on campus for the first time.

During its opening week, the new dining hall opened gradually. On Tuesday, Dec. 10, it was open for various drinks and snacks. On Wednesday, Dec. 11, it was only open to uppers and seniors, on Thursday, Dec. 12, it was reserved for lowers and preps, and Friday, Dec. 13, was the first full day of operation. 

Instructor in English L.J. Cooper commented on the way that the school facilitated the opening of the new dining hall. “I liked how when I went there on opening day, they offered us little ice cream treats. I also noticed that students were already sitting down, mingling at the tables, and doing homework. So it seems to me that students are already eager to create an inviting atmosphere within that space, and that’s a testament to the hard work the construction crew and the school itself accomplished,” he said.

Lower Aaron Spence agreed, saying, “The food was amazing at the open house, especially compared to Elm on that day.”

Upper Ethan Benenson appreciated the staggered opening of New Dining Hall. “I think it’s one hundred percent good. I mean, it allows for more space for all of us,” he said. “It gives the D-Hall workers a chance to adjust.” 

Senior Preeti Jain commented on the interior design of the new dining hall, “It’s very spacious. It’s definitely different than the old dining hall. but there are some remnants of it. like the yellow walls on the side that still kind of remind me of that.” 

Upper Rebecca Nguyen also recognized the spatial advantages: “ I think it’s super open. I think the space will be really good for accommodating people at meals so that we don’t have to wait in lines that long.”

“I think the new dining hall was well built. The table placement on both floors is good, and I really like how there is a place to sit on the balcony,” said Spence.

Lower Eliyas Koch-Manzur agreed. “I really like how the building was constructed because it has a very sophisticated and professional feel to it, almost like a college dining hall,” he said.

Senior Jackson Lyle agreed, and added his thoughts on what the new dining hall lacks: “I think it’s definitely got all of the things that need to be better [than the old one]. I think the serving room is really nice. I would like to see some kind of decoration on the walls, and it feels a little too ‘banquet-y.’” 

Lower V Murdaya agreed, saying, “I think that the new dining hall looks really stale and bland right now; the walls are just white, the chandeliers haven’t been placed yet, and it just doesn’t have that cozy feeling that Elm provides.”

“My first impressions were that it looked immaculately clean, modern, and sophisticated,” Cooper shared. “It just feels like a much more open and airy kind of space. We’ll have to see what it will be like when crowds of students and faculty are in there, but it does seem like you have more breathing room and you could have more intimate conversations.” 

Cooper continued regarding the architecture, “There was an upper floor too with wooden tables, and I thought it was really cool to have that balcony arrangement up there. It conveys a certain kind of warmth and camaraderie in an interesting way,”

Koch-Manzur also pointed out the small differences between Elm and New Dining Hall, “I also think the new dining hall has a lot of small improvements like the wooden chairs and tables and also the rotating dishwasher.”

“I think the kitchen being in a separate room is an interesting design choice because it will help with the flow of traffic. It also makes it so the general eating area is only for eating and talking with each other, and that makes you feel more at ease,” Cooper commented.

Lower Osbert Chang, on the other hand, cast doubts about the serving area. “[It’s] Very, very nice, but I have some doubts about how they’re going to fit everyone into that small area where they get their food.” 

Spence shared these concerns. “I think there may be some issues with the entrance to the new dining hall getting too crowded, especially in rush hours, because the way in is the way out,” he said.

Some students commented on how an additional location for dining allows for a more flexible schedule. “I’ll probably be able to head over to Elm after practice now,” Sanders said. “I feel like that’s what most people will do because it’s closer. Now I can actually have that opportunity for breakfast that I wouldn’t normally have because, before, I didn’t want to walk across campus just to eat.”

Thapa agreed, “Also at lunch, who is going to Elm? All of the academic buildings are on North Side, so everyone wants to be here.”

Now that there are two dining halls, students and faculty alike will be forced to choose which one they want to attend each meal. To prep Emmanuel Zheng, the white, formal nature of the new dining hall offers relief and something new compared to Elm: “I like the very stark white design of it and the glass panes—it just feels less robotic.” 

Zheng added, “I think it is a lot more minimalistic than Elm. I wouldn’t say Elm is robotic, but it’s not very clean and it’s pretty cluttered most of the time, and this gives some order to the dining process.”

“I liked how new, clean, and sleek it looked,” lower Eshaan Tripathi said, “So far, it feels really breathable and bigger with the second floor too. The tables are longer and it just feels very new. It’s much brighter because of the color of the walls. the new dining hall, in comparison to Elm, just feels more lively and a better color and design.”

This sentiment was shared by prep Ashton Sanders, who did not experience the pre-renovation New Dining Hall. Sanders commented on the contrast between the interior design of Elm and the new dining hall, “I kind of like Elm over this because of the minimalistic vibe of this place. I feel like adding stuff, [beyond] all the stark white adds character.”

“I went [to the new dining hall] during Faculty meetings, but I never went for breakfast since I live in Webster and of course Elm is so much closer. I went to lunch twice however, and I found the food pretty good,” Tripathi continued, “It’s a good location to go to right after class, but it takes more effort in the winter to go all the way to the new dining hall, at least to those who live on the library side of the campus.”

Lower Artur Novaes Ferreira agreed. “I personally prefer Elm especially because of the location since I live on that side of the campus,” he said. “I still like the new dining hall, but I think it could be designed better since in its current organization there’s a lot of traffic between the food and dining areas.”

Koch-Manzur shared, “I think Elm vs. the new dining hall depends on the time of day. Elm is more convenient going to and from sports, while the new dining hall is better right after classes.”

Nguyen also agreed with this, saying,  “The location of the new dining hall is super convenient because it’s super close to classes, and it’s easy to grab breakfast if you have time before your class.”

Cooper noted, “At Elm, there are three different areas where you can get food and you know the staff are working so hard around the clock to make it as pleasant of an experience as possible. I think just the physicality of the space at the new dining hall seems to suggest or encourage a sort of comradery or conviviality. I’m here eating this meal in this space and I feel like I can kind of spread my wings a little bit, and just connect with people in a way that I may not be able to at the peak hours over at Elm.

With its modern amenities, fresh look, and spacious design, the new dining hall stands in contrast to the older, more traditional dining hall of Elm. Students and faculty alike are excited about visiting New Dining Hall, and with its doors wide open, it is clear that this addition will be a welcome upgrade to campus life.