A live disc jockey, prize giveaways and games are not something a person would normally expect while having lunch in a cafeteria, but if you ate in Tennessee Tech’s cafeteria last week, that’s exactly what you would have experienced.
Chartwells hosted its grand opening event in the Caf Oct. 20. This past summer, the cafeteria went under some much-needed construction to bring it up to date. The old buffet bars were taken out and replaced, all of the tables and chairs were replaced, and there are now multiple food stations with chefs behind them. It almost looks like a professional quality dining restaurant.
It does seem strange to have a grand opening event for a place that never really closed, but this event was to celebrate and highlight the renovations and produce student interest.
“The grand opening was awesome and full of life,” said Robert Davidson, a junior pre-med student. “The DJ was solid. The food was on point at every station. Another thing that was exciting for me is that Chris, my favorite sandwich maker, was there. There renovations are cool, a little dark, but cool.”
“I only went because my boyfriend wanted to eat there. I have to say I was honestly pleasantly surprised,” said Leah Owen, a junior English student. “The games were really fun and I really like the renovations, but I wish it were a little lighter in there. It’s kind of hard to see.”
The prizes from the raffle drawings and contests varied in size and value from meal plans and gift boxes to Apple TVs.
Johnathan Zirock, senior civil engineering student, was one of the contest prizewinners. He won 25 dining dollars, Chick-fil-A chicken minis and a water bottle for participating in the apple pie eating contest.
“I don’t have a meal plan, but I saw the advertisements for the free TV giveaway so I thought I would give it a shot,” said Zirock. “The music was actually good, the contest was a lot of fun and the food wasn’t nasty. There was a decent amount of people in there. It looks a lot nicer than it did before and it has more space. I like that there are more options for food, but it’s weird that it’s so much darker.”
