BusinessAugust 29, 2016
Business notebook: Southeast cafeteria expands dining options
The cafeteria in the Towers Complex on Southeast Missouri State University has gone through some changes over the years with its layout and seating, but the kitchen area remained largely unchanged until recently. Towers Cafe underwent a $3.4 million renovation by expanding the dining options and overhauling the layout...
The cafeteria in the Towers Complex on Southeast Missouri State University has gone through some changes over the years with its layout and seating, but the kitchen area remained largely unchanged until recently.
Towers Cafe underwent a $3.4 million renovation by expanding the dining options and overhauling the layout.
Virtually all of the kitchen equipment is new. Seating is more varied. Food preparation has been brought to the front of the house, making it visible to diners.
But "it's not just the renovations; it's the recipes," Jonathon Tanner, director of student engagement at Chartwells, said. "We're trying to bring more delicious food items to campus. There are so many new concepts."
Towers Cafe now has food stations throughout the 22,500-square-foot dining area. Each features a different dining experience. Baker's Crust offers freshly baked goods. The Kitchen serves main menu options that rotate on a five-week cycle. Brick-oven pizzas are baked throughout the day, just past the salad bar and deli, where sandwiches are made to order.
Across from the bakery and deli breads is The Oasis, which focuses on options for people with allergies and sensitivities. Foods free of gluten, dairy and nuts are offered and prepared separately from the rest of the food.
"Any food item offered there is prepared there in an environment free of the main eight food allergens," Tanner said.
Chartwells also brought in a registered dietitian to oversee the offerings and be available to students.
"We're actually one of the few campuses in Missouri that has a registered dietitian," Tanner said. "She's here for dietetic needs, allergen needs or even if [students] don't want to gain the freshman 15, [they] can make an appointment with her."
Food preparation is something officials have highlighted not just in The Oasis, but throughout the cafeteria.
In the past, the preparation went on behind the scenes, away from diners' eyes. In the renovated Towers Cafe, much of the food is made to order.
"Our main kitchen area is an open concept so the students can see the chefs preparing the food right in front of them," Tanner said. "We all like to see our food prepared, so I think this is a really cool concept."
Along with the renovated kitchen is a renovated dining area, with seating for about 600 people.
Towers Cafe serves a breakfast, lunch and dinner menu, with continuous continental-dining options offered during off-peak hours, to fit students' schedules. Though the Cafe's clientele is primarily students, the community also is welcome to partake in the "all-you-care-to-eat" meals.
Receive Daily Headlines FREESign up today!
Towers Cafe is open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. Brunch is served from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, with regular food service available from 5 to 8 p.m. those days. Students may dine using their university meal plan. Community pricing options are available for students without a meal plan or members of the community.
Wills Chiropractic changes hands, name
After the July retirement of Dr. Jim Wills of Wills Chiropractic Center, Dr. James Lee has taken the baton. Wills Chiropractic Center now is Lee Chiropractic Center, serving the region in their Jackson offices at 2625 E. Jackson Blvd.
Lee said he is excited to continue where Wills left off. Some plans for the business include acupuncture, cupping therapy and a Class IV laser treatment.
Though Lee only recently moved to Southeast Missouri, he is familiar with the region, having attended Southeast Missouri State University from 2006 to 2009.
He moved to University of Missouri-St. Louis to pursue a career in nursing but eventually switched gears and went to Logan University in Chesterfield, Missouri, to study chiropractic. Lee has a bachelor's degree in human biology, and his doctorate in chiropractic.
Joining Lee as office manager, replacing Doris Thiele, is Sara Richter. Richter graduated from Southeast Missouri State University in 2011 with a degree in hospitality management. Richter, a lifelong dancer, has a passion for health and wellness. Throughout her life, she has been treated with chiropractic care and is passionate about the benefits it can provide.
First Friday Coffee moved to Sept. 9
Because of the Labor Day weekend, the First Friday Coffee event hosted by the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce will take place on the second Friday of September.
It will be Sept. 9 at the Isle Casino Cape Girardeau's Event Center.
Doors open and a continental breakfast is served beginning at 7 a.m. The event is open to chamber members, and there is no cost to attend.
Business licenses
- Wallis Petroleum #536 is a store specializing in liquor, beer, tobacco and lottery sales at 420 S. Kingshighway. Dirt Cheap is at that address; Wallis Petroleum LC has purchased the business. The anticipated opening date is Sept. 22.
- Sherry Annette, 109 Broadway, is an art and gift shop owned by Sherry Annette Montgomery. The anticipated opening date is Sept. 8.
bbrown@semissourian.com
(573) 388-3630
Story Tags
Connect with the Southeast Missourian Newsroom:
For corrections to this story or other insights for the editor, click here. To submit a letter to the editor, click here. To learn about the Southeast Missourian’s AI Policy, click here.
Advertisement
Receive Daily Headlines FREESign up today!
