A Chick-fil-A unit will open in the Idaho Commons food court Monday, serving chicken sandwiches, waffle fries and fruit cups.
The Chick-fil-A will operate from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and is located on the lower level of the Commons in the food court.
University of Idaho students, faculty and staff will now have the option to choose from a scaled down version of Chick-fil-A”s regular menu, said Kevin Maines, director of operations for Vandal Dining.
Maines said many of the decisions made about the new food court unit were made to serve the UI community as efficiently as possible.
“We are adamant that when we open a new unit, we do it right,” Maines said.
The choice to add a Chick-fil-A to the Commons was made after completing a process that took into account UI student purchase habits, focus group feedback and university and Sodexo input.
“Our goal is to continue building a well-rounded portfolio of food options across campus to satisfy our customer base to the best of our ability,” he said.
According to Maines, Chick-fil-A will operate under Sodexo guidelines and standards like every other food vendor on campus. These standards apply to multiple aspects of the business, including the HAACP food safety program and local health department standards.
Chick-fil-A will also have a staff made up of a number of UI students, Maines said. He said 60 to 75 percent of the staff will be students – about the same as the amount who work at Einstein Bros Bagels.
Some employees have been training at another fully operational Chick-fil-A this summer so they can return to UI and train full-time employees and student staff, he said.
Prior to opening, employees will also train for nine days in the unit at the Commons. He said people can also apply to work at Chick-fil-A by going to Sodexo-Balancetrak.com.
Maines said he and others at Vandal Dining expect a large amount of student engagement with the unit. He said he has observed a lot of positive feedback and knows Chick-fil-A puts a high value in satisfying their customers.
Maines said he hopes students will be able to utilize Chick-fil-A”s quick service and save some time for what really counts – their education.
“This is their university,” Maines said. “We value their input and we want them to know their voices are heard.”
Erin Bamer can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @ErinBamer