Students returning to AU may have noticed some changes to TDR as well as the departure of cafe manager Ted Canto, who some students called the face of the dining hall.
"He provided a face for TDR; he was always out in TDR, not just someone behind the scenes," said Meg Imholt, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Canto was a face students expected to see while dining at TDR.
"Seeing Ted was part of the TDR dining experience," said Joellen Kriss, a sophomore in CAS. "You could always count on seeing him in some capacity around TDR."
Canto was promoted to general manager of a Bon Appetit location in Virginia, according to Nancy Bryant, the manager of TDR.
Canto's departure was marked by the creation of a Facebook group titled "Ted Canto: Come Back Home to TDR."
Students said they loved Canto's responses to the comment cards posted on the TDR bulletin board, which contained comments ranging from encouraging to hostile.
"I always enjoyed his responses to the comment cards," said Carrie Winslow, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs. "It was a no-nonsense kind of wit that not everyone can get away with. Plus, he actually did listen to the comments and took the serious ones into consideration."
Although some students believe that only Canto filled out the cards, Bryant said she fills out some comments cards as well.
A past project, known as the Bridge project, was going to include a Mary Graydon Center and TDR expansion. However, this project was recently changed to only renovate the Mary Graydon first floor.
Although the project would have added 150 additional seats into TDR, Housing and Dining Programs is looking at ways of gaining more space, said Julie Weber, executive director of Housing and Dining.
Students coming back complained about the lack of space in TDR.
"It gets way too crowded," Kriss said. "When it's insane with a million people in there, I lose my appetite. I seriously think we need another dining hall."
One way TDR may regain some space is taking back part of the break room for employees, Weber said.
Besides Canto's departure and ways of possibly gaining new space, there are new activities and food choices within AU dining.
"We're going to beef up the fire wok with more stir-fry options," Bryant said.
For Imholt, the fire wok was a source of complaint. "Fire wok should not have cold things; hence the 'fire' part of the wok," she said.
TDR will host events like a carnival and a block party on Sept. 12, Bryant added. "We make it enjoyable for students, we give you confidence of not being home and make it enjoyable for you in TDR."
Besides the upcoming activates at TDR, the Marketplace is now home to two new food options: Panini Express and Pacific Rim, which serves Asian stir-fry.
"Students' food preferences change constantly, so we try different concepts," said Weber. "Asian food is very popular; panini is really popular too. We try to stay fresh, stay current"
