Quinnipiac Univ., a private, co-ed institution in Hamden, CT, and Chartwells (an operating div. of Compass Group), have been "partners" for the past 16 years. Working closely with the Charlotte, NC–based contractor, Dr. Patrick Healy, the university's sr. v.p. of finance and admin., recently determined to effect changes and improvements in the quality of student life—mainly in the caliber of food and service provided to the 4,700 undergraduates and 2,000 graduate students enrolled.
Following several renovations, there are now two additional dining rooms plus a more inviting and open servery/dining room in the original unit: Cafe Q, the main dining hall; the Rathskellar, a coffee house/restaurant cafe; and the Law School Cafe, a limited-offering snack bar.
With a declining-balance meal plan put in place at Healy's suggestion, more than $5 million-a-year in sales is reported for the combined operation—and that's without offering nationally-known branded food chains which Quinnipiac eschews. Chartwells' Profiles in Good Taste—"food made fresh everyday"—is offered instead.