“Choices, you get lots and lots of choices” could be the theme song for the newly renovated food establishment here, formerly called the Post Restaurant.
“Choices,” an upscale food court, opened amid much fanfare – a ribbon-cutting ceremony, fireworks, free meals and give aways!
DJ Jo Jo Russell played music and provided some comic banter to make the morning very entertaining.
Barbara Kraus, fund manager and Jeff DiPietro, director of Food, Beverage and Entertainment welcomed everyone. Paul Malmberg, the new Choices manager, thanked the crew who worked on the food court – DPW employees and Imperial Construction.
“We want to be your first `choice' in dining,” DiPietro said.
TACOM-ARDEC Garrison Commander Lt. Col. Roger Behringer and John Llewelyn of Imperial Construction cut the green ribbon to officially open the food court. An arc of purple and teal balloons stood in front of camouflage netting that hung across the entrance to the new area hiding it until the official opening.
After the ribbon cutting, the net came down to reveal an artistic ice sculpture that spelled out “Choices.” Then, four streams of sparklers shot up to announce the exciting opening.
The brightly-lit food court in green and peach colors has a slightly Southwest look about it.
Everyone on post was invited to come and witness the grand opening and try the food. With the theme of B.Y.O.B. – e-mails invited everyone to “Bring Your Own Fork . . . we'll do the rest”! And, that they did.
According to Kraus, more than 2,728 free servings were handed out, not including the self-serve salad bar and sandwiches made to order.
“Approximately 1300 people went through the new food court,” Kraus said.
“It's a great marketing strategy to get people here by offering complimentary lunch to bring them back as regular customers,” said Denise DiMatteo from the Acquisition Center. “I missed the Post Restaurant while it was being renovated and will be coming here again.”
“The food is very good with quite a variety to choose from,” said Rudy Roehrich from Fire Support Armaments Center's Direct Fire Team.
“I like that there are healthy choices here,” said Carol Sitroon from Quality Assurance Directorate.
The Post Restaurant was redesigned into an upscale food court featuring several stations and a salad bar. There's a pizza/pasta station, a deli station, a grill station, a sweets and treats station, a soup station and a daily delight station; plus the salad and soup bar. Fresh baked bread and pastry are offered also.
The changes were made in response to customer surveys indicating that more choices were needed.
In the first week after the opening, sales went up 8.8 percent according to Kraus. She also revealed that plans are underway to convert the “dish” room to a conference room so employees can have “working” lunches or breakfasts.
She also announced that the hours have been extended until 2 p.m. “Choices” is open from 7 a.m. – 2 p.m.
“Until 1:30 p.m. full service will be available and then for a half hour after that, we will remain open for “Grab and Go foods,” Kraus said.
“This project was truly customer driven,” said
Kraus. “You asked for it and you got it . . . Choices!”
