Chandelier Room to re-open for lunch, catering

by Mark McGowan

NIU's favorite spot for "adventuresome" lunch treats will re-open Tuesday, Sept. 10. The Chandelier Room, closed during the spring semester for renovations inside the dining room and the kitchen, is ready for business every Tuesday and Thursday through Tuesday, Nov. 26. Joan Quinn, coordinator of food systems labs in the Department of Family, Consumer and Nutrition Sciences, said she will publish the list of semi-weekly themes and menus the first week of September.

Renovations and additions to NIU's popular Chandelier Room, including a new oven in the kitchen and new chairs, table linens and centerpieces in the dining room, are complete. The all-you-can-eat lunches resume Tuesday, Sept. 10, and continue Tuesdays and Thursdays through Tuesday, Nov. 26. Call 753-1895 for a reservation.

The price for an all-you-can-eat meal is $7. Catering services also are available.

Diners will find new draperies, chairs, table linens and floral centerpieces, and those who never stopped for lunch there last fall will notice new carpeting. The student chefs behind the scenes will enjoy a new stove/oven/griddle, which replaced a antiquated unit as old as Adams Hall itself.

"Everyone's going to be happy to have us back," Quinn said. "We heard last semester that a lot of people were disappointed." The Chandelier Room's absence last spring followed a reduced serving schedule during the fall semester, fueling rumors on campus that the longtime dining room was closed for good. However, Quinn said, the Chandelier Room returns to full strength this semester with an enrollment of 14 students.

Students create all the menus and manage the production sheets, staffing, ordering and nutritional analysis in addition to preparing and serving the food. The two-semester course serves as a capstone project for FCNS students; all the planning is done during the first semester "Introduction to Food Services" class.

"The experience they have here so highly qualifies them for the real world," Quinn said. "Learning through doing is the best learning."

Quinn said the Chandelier Room's Web site will be updated and will continue to feature menus and selected recipes.

Dining hours are 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. with reservations. The dining room is open until 1 p.m. For more information or to make required reservations, call 753-1895 or visit http://chandelierdining.hhsweb.com/.