E-Café received its first menu revamp in over a decade, and the venue has been open for 15 years.

Hillel’s food choices had grown to become somewhat stale, and it was time for a change, dining services administrators said.

The changes include:

• Croissants and English muffins removed
• Banana Nut Madness bagel removed
• Several signature salads removed, including the strawberry mozzarella salad
• Chocolate chip bagel added, along with a rotating bagel of the month
• Quiche replaced with frittata
• Expanded grab-and-go section with kale and apple salad, strawberry and goat cheese salad, hard-boiled eggs, egg salad sandwiches, hummus and vegetable trays, and parfait cups
• Falafel bar added

Many of Hillel’s employees, including restaurant manager Michelle Lloyd, collaborated to create a new menu over the summer. Dining staff spent weeks training and testing recipes ahead of move-in day.

While the venue will still spotlight its bagels and kosher-style deli offerings, it now features more fresh ingredients and specialty items. The goal was to elevate food and give students something that felt new, said Alvin Wheeler, director of dining services.

“We really want to ensure that we’re providing everyone with a fresh take on everything,” Wheeler said. 

He explained that these changes were done to expand the restaurants and keep menus current, while also assigning each dining venue a unique identity.

Café 77, or Coop, will now serve pizza on Saturdays starting at 8 p.m., while d-hall debuted a menu on a six-week rotation and will feature a new Algerian-inspired menu in its Global Kitchen.

“If you have the same option at all five different retail venues, how is it fun and exciting? Students should look forward to something different in each spot,” Wheeler said.

Student responses have been varied but mostly positive, with many praising the fresher ingredients at Hillel.

“I’m excited about some of the changes on the menu, like the orange juice, tomato soup, additional smoothie flavors, and the falafel bar,” said Brianna Stone, ’27. But Stone says she will miss some of the removed items, like the acai smoothie.

Dining Services has relied on point-of-sale data to guide these new decisions. By having the ability to track which items sell well, the staff have been able to determine what to retire and what to expand. 

“We can see down to the candy bars what sells and what doesn’t,” Wheeler said. “That allows us to make changes that actually reflect what the students want.”

The commissary program has also been expanded to Hillel, meaning students can now pick up prepackaged items such as salads, fresh orange juice, berry cups and yogurt parfaits in addition to freshly cooked items. This was done to increase student convenience and grab-and-go options, especially for students with tight schedules, Wheeler said.

“Our goal is to make dining fresh, flexible and student-focused,” he said. “We don’t want to take away from our students […]. We want to give them new, exciting options that feel tailored to each location.”