As UCLA continues to overhaul its restaurants, it finds itself
among several schools that are doing the same. But UCLA’s
approach differs because it is including several student-run
businesses in its on-campus dining choices.
The restaurants on UCLA’s campus are a fairly unique blend
of student-run and privately operated enterprises, but many other
schools choose to contract with private businesses almost
exclusively.
UCLA’s eateries such as the Cooperage in Ackerman Union,
Shorty’s Subs on Bruin Walk and the Bombshelter in the Court
of Sciences are managed entirely by the Associated Students of
UCLA, which is responsible for all aspects of the
restaurants’ operations, including staffing, menu selection
and pricing. ASUCLA retains all of the profits earned from these
restaurants.
Other dining establishments, such as Panda Express and Sbarro in
Ackerman Union’s food court, are contracted by ASUCLA with
private companies, which subsequently open and maintain the
restaurants on campus.
According to the contracts, these private companies then pay
ASUCLA a percentage of their sales, said Roy Champawat,
UCLA’s associate director for operations and business
management.
From a business and financial standpoint, it is usually better
for a school to operate its own restaurants, Champawat said.
Profits are often higher, and operations are simpler when managed
by the university. Champawat affirmed that ASUCLA prefers to be an
operator of its own restaurants, rather than a contractor for
private businesses.
The reasons for making the decision to contract with a third
party can vary. In certain situations, a third party or private
contractor can bring in a unique expertise or direct familiarity
with customers, which can drive up sales, Champawat said.
But in UCLA’s case, the main reason ASUCLA contracted the
restaurants in Ackerman was that at the time they were established,
a substantial renovation of the first floor was needed ““ an
undertaking for which ASUCLA did not have sufficient funds.
“They were capital partners,” Champawat said.
One exception to these two categories exists: the newly
established Espresso Roma Café, a fully autonomous restaurant
in the Anderson School of Management operated independently from
ASUCLA.
In this case, when the restaurant was established, ASUCLA
decided that it did not want to make the investment and allowed the
Anderson School to go outside and find a client itself, Champawat
said.
UCLA’s restaurant model is actually an exception to more
uniform plans employed by other universities. Most schools choose
to contract most or all of their on-campus restaurants with either
one or many companies.
UC Irvine, like UCLA, is currently revamping many of its
restaurants. But almost all of the on-campus retail food operations
at UCI, which include restaurants like Subway and Carl’s Jr.,
are contracted by Associated Students UCI with several different
companies.
UCI is closing down the one student-run restaurant that is open
there and plans to replace it with another private
establishment.
Affectionately named the “Pub,” it is similar to the
plans that were once proposed for UCLA’s Cooperage.
“It’s pretty simple here … and temporary,”
said UCI Operations Manager Pat Fuhlrodt, regarding the fact that
UCI is in the process of privatizing almost all of its on-campus
dining.
These changes at UCI have had mixed reactions.
First-year electrical engineering student Saad Enam said
privatized restaurants are generally operated better than
student-run ones because private companies are more experienced in
the task of operating the restaurant.
“Students come and go; owners stay,” Enam said.
First-year informatics student Mariko Carandang said that she
likes the idea of having some student ownership of the restaurants
on campus. There is even a petition being circulated on UCI’s
Associated Graduate Students’ Web site calling for the UCI
Anthill Pub to be kept open and student-run.
Largely similar to UCI’s model is that employed by
Georgetown University in Washington D.C.; it has further simplified
the system by contracting all of the restaurants on its main campus
with one company, rather than having several different contractors
manage individual restaurants.
All of the restaurants on Georgetown’s main campus are
managed by Marriott International, which oversees most of the food
service operations there.
The student-run corporation manages a small convenience store
and a few on-campus coffee shops, which despite Marriott’s
larger presence do quite well, said Margie Bryant,
Georgetown’s associate vice president for auxiliary
services.
But in most cases, even if a restaurant has been contracted
privately, the university still retains the final say over business
conducted on campus, Champawat said.
ASUCLA always has the basic rights and jurisdiction to all cash
and food sales on the core campus, with a rare exception in a case
like Roma Café’s, where the decision was made to turn
this authority over to a third party.