Open for Business
Southeastern's Student Union addition features new dining facilities and state-of-the-art event space
Monday, February 17, 2014
The new War Memorial Student Union addition is now open, giving students and the community access to nearly 90,000 square feet of modern amenities and services. The most anticipated features of the Student Union addition include The Mane Dish dining facility, the Lion's Den food court and the Grand Ballroom.
The Mane Dish – named by Southeastern students Traci Simon and Scott Knight as part of a Campus Dining contest – features a fresh food concept offering a wide range of foods prepared on the spot in front of guests. Located on the second floor of the Student Union addition, The Mane Dish houses several stations that provide fresh food throughout the day, including a comfort station with homestyle dishes, an International grill and a pasta station. Pizza, salad and dessert also will be available, along with a grill and deli station offering hot and cold sandwiches and panini. The Mane Dish, an all-you-care-to-eat facility, offers three meals a day Monday through Friday and two meals a day on Saturday and Sunday. The new dining facility accepts meal plans, Cub Cash, cash, credit, debit and Lion's Lagniappe.
The new and expanded Lion's Den food court includes dining retailers such as Chick-fil-A, Panda Express, Taco Bell, Mooyah and the Union Market. The Lion's Den is located on the first floor of the Student Union addition and accepts Cub Cash, cash, credit, debit and Lion's Lagniappe.
The Grand Ballroom, located on the third floor, is the region's newest state-of-the-art event facility. The ballroom is available for campus organizations and the community to reserve for events and conferences.
Current dining retailers Popeye's, Subway, Quizno's, Java City, Starbucks, The Mane Market and The Mane Market Too will remain open in their current locations, and the existing Chick-fil-A will continue to operate in the Twelve Oaks Complex in addition to its new location. Cayman Café is now closed.
The union renovation and expansion project, which began in early 2012, is being completed in three phases with an expected final completion date later this year. Phase two is now underway in the current union mall area, which will soon house the University Bookstore, conference rooms, classrooms and offices. Phase three will bring the renovation of the current union annex, where the existing bookstore is located, to make room for a new Center for Student Excellence, University Counseling Center and University Health Center.
The $32 million project was funded primarily through a self-assessed student fee and revenues obtained from commercial providers that occupy the space in the union. Holly and Smith of Hammond and WTW of Pittsburgh, Pa., served as architects, while Lincoln Builders of Baton Rouge is the contractor overseeing construction of the project.
Contact Campus Dining with any questions about the new dining facilities.
