Locations and Meal Plans
What are the dining locations and hours?
- Marquis Dining Hall: Monday – Thursday: 7 a.m. – 8 p.m. | Friday: 7 a.m. – 2 p.m. | Sunday: 8 a.m. – 9 p.m.
- Upper Farinon Dining Hall: Monday – Saturday: 8 a.m. – 9 p.m.
- Lower Farinon: Monday – Friday: 9 a.m. – 1 a.m. | Saturday & Sunday: 11 a.m. – 1 a.m.
- Gilbert’s Cafe: Monday – Thursday: 8 a.m. – 7 p.m. | Friday: 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Saturday & Sunday: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
- Skillman Coffee Shop Cafe: Monday – Thursday: 8:30 a.m. – 8 p.m. | Friday: 8:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. | Sunday: 12 p.m. – 8 p.m.
- ECO Cafe: Monday – Friday: 7 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Simon’s Market: 24/7, except Monday from 2 a.m – 6 a.m.
See a description of each dining venue, hours, and menus.
Have any new dining venues been introduced?
Yes, Cinco will open Fall 2024 introducing a Mexican-Inspired cuisine. Gilbert’s Cafe has been remodeled to introduce all day breakfast and specialty crafted drinks. “The Wok” concept is back at Lower Farinon!
How does the payment process at Simon’s Market work?
Guests can scan their Transact app at the entrance (or use a credit card), select a payment method, and then browse the freshly-prepared foods, snacks, and beverages available. The technology detects what a shopper removes from, or returns to, a shelf, so when the desired items are gathered, the person can leave the store and be automatically charged for the items selected without waiting in any line.
Have the prices in Simon’s Market been adjusted?
Prices on many items sold at Simon’s Market have been lowered and will continue to be reviewed and adjusted as necessary.
If I need assistance with a Simon's Market charge or meal swipe, who should I contact?
Please email dining@lafayette.edu with complete details and a copy of the receipt. Someone from the Lafayette Dining team will respond within 24 hours.
What food options are available in the dining halls?
Dining hall menus are customized by the Executive Chef on a weekly basis to provide menu options that change every day and for every meal period to ensure variety and quality. The weekly menus for each dining hall are posted to the dining website for easy access. Specifically, guests will find:
- Vegan and vegetarian options: These are available in each dining hall and are clearly labeled vegan or vegetarian.
- Halal options: All chicken served in Marquis and Upper Farinon dining halls is Halal.
- Comfort Foods: Thanks to student feedback, a variety of comfort foods returned to the menu in Lower Farinon the second week of this semester and are available via meal swipes, including chicken tenders, mozzarella sticks, green bean fries, tots, fries, and vegan ‘chicken’ tenders.
- Grab and go options: Additional options have been added to Lower Farinon.
In a message shared with students, faculty, staff, and parents on Sept. 1, 2023, Lafayette Dining provided information on this topic.
What other enhancements have been made to accommodate students’ dining needs?
The following improvements to the dining experience have been in place since the second week of the semester:
- Simon’s Market: This new market is open 24/7 and offers a wide variety of prepared meal options, grocery items, snacks, and beverages for convenient self-checkout with a meal swipe, Pard dollars, or credit card.
- Gilbert’s Cafe and Lower Farinon menu additions: Favorite campus items like chicken tenders, mozzarella sticks, green bean fries, and vegan ‘chicken’ tenders returned to the menu thanks to student requests.
- Mobile order app: Additional meal-swipe options have been added to the menu listed on the mobile order app for Gilbert’s Cafe and Lower Farinon.
- Meal swipes: Students can now use as many of their meal plan swipes within a meal period as they like. This is in addition to guest meal swipes.
- Grab and go options: Additional options are now available at ECO Cafe and Skillman Cafe.
- Improved labeling: Additional steps have been taken to ensure that labels clearly and consistently show if items contain allergens. Students with an allergen and/or dietary restrictions are encouraged to email dining@lafayette.edu so a member of the dining team can meet one-on-one, offer assistance, and develop a good dining plan best suited to the individual.
What locations allow the use of meal swipes?
Meal plan swipes can be used for a wide variety of meal exchange bundles at all seven campus dining locations (the number of meal swipes used by students to date this academic year is up 2.8% from last year). Thanks to student feedback, the previous limitation on using multiple meal swipes within a meal period has been eliminated so that students can now use as many swipes in a meal period or day as they like. In addition, starting in September, students can now use one meal swipe per week at Miss Jackson’s Kitchen.
In a message shared with students, faculty, staff, and parents on Sept. 1, 2023, Lafayette Dining provided information on this topic.
Can meal swipes be used for made-to-order and grab-and-go items?
Yes. Lower Farinon, Gilbert’s Cafe, and ECO Cafe offer a variety of both made-to-order and grab-and-go food items available for a meal exchange swipe. In addition, Skillman’s and Simon’s Market feature a variety of prepared, grab-and-go meal options available for a meal exchange swipe. Additional menu items have recently been added to meal exchange choices for both made-to-order and grab-and-go meals. Those additions also expanded the menu options available through the Transact mobile ordering app. See a description of each dining venue, hours, and menus.
Why is only one dining hall available on the weekend?
On weekends, campus dining venues typically see about a 60% reduction in meal swipes. In the past two years, only Upper Farinon was open on the weekend. Based on student feedback on a survey conducted this past spring, the College implemented opening alternating dining venues each weekend starting this semester. Specifically, Upper Farinon is open on Saturday and Marquis Hall is open on Sunday. Dining traffic in all venues is tracked and schedule changes are made as needed.
What special steps are taken by Parkhurst to ensure high-quality food preparation?
Here are a few of Parkhurst’s Gold Standards for food preparation:
- Entree meats and seafood are prepared fresh, including chefs doing the roasting, grilling, and baking in the kitchens.
- Soups and sauces are made from scratch using housemade stocks.
- All deli meats are sliced daily in the kitchens.
- Pizzas are made by hand with fresh, house-made pizza dough.
- All prepared salads and deli salads on salad bars are made in-house.
- Fresh, cage-free shell eggs are served every day.
- Dairy products are sourced from local and regional family-owned dairy farms.
- Third-party certifying organizations are used to ensure that it is sourcing the most sustainable seafood.
Why were the cubbies added to Gilbert’s Cafe and Lower Farinon?
Both locations receive a high volume of orders, particularly during the common lunch hour. The cubbies were added to decrease wait times and give students an easy, organized, and efficient way to pick up the food they order at the cafe and Lower Farinon. Wait times are tracked to provide the best possible level of service and have been significantly shorter this semester than last year.
