Senior broadcasting major Cheryl Catera walked into the Caesar Chavez Student Center and saw the same food she sees everyday, she turned around and walked out, unhappy with the food offered.

“The food is all right, but it would be nice to have more options than the same places that have been here a while,” said Catera. “I try to bring food from home rather than eat here.”

The student center committee is currently in the process of re-doing the West Plaza (the back side of the building towards Burk Hall). The renovations would include three locations, two of which would involve moving Bark-N-Bun and Carmelina La Petite to the new location, said managing director of the governing board, Guy Dalpe.

The third kiosk, which would include a full kitchen, is reserved for the other new eatery planned. Through student surveys and discussion during board meetings, the new cuisine being offered has been narrowed down to three possibilities: Japanese, Filipino and Thai, said Dalpe.

Junior English major Danny Miller also isn’t satisfied with the current food being offered on campus.

“The food here is edible, but it’s kind of bland and over priced,” said Miller. “I like the idea of having Japanese or Thai because I like spicy food. At least this place is better than community college food.”

The student center governing board, a 16-member, student-chaired committee, has projected plans to open two eateries by the Fall 2005 semester. A soul food, southern-homestyle cooking vendor will open in the vacant area adjacent to the Pub, while the other eatery construction remains under design. The addition of the new eateries would give students 14 vending and eatery options in the student center alone, according to the SF State website.

The governing board has a history of soliciting local and private businesses to become part of the SF State community versus corporate chains. Although the board is in the process of sending out and receiving proposals for both new vendor sites, they have yet to decide on a specific vendor.

When considering which vendors, the governing board looks at the menu to verify that it reflects only the type of cuisine the board is asking for, rather than a mixed cuisine menu. They also look at the pricing of items in relation to the portion size and quality of the food offered. The preparation pace of the food is also important when evaluating. Because the vendor would be serving a campus environment, the food needs to be made fairly quickly and be affordable, said student center retail commercial service manager Edina Bajraktarevic.

Senior sociology major Conor Groome, likes the selection offered, but doesn’t think the quality of food is very good.

“I’d like to see Thai or a barbeque joint, but soul food sounds like a good idea,” said Groome. “ It’s good that they took the students opinions into consideration. I’ll be happy if they have any barbeque.”

The decision to have a soul food vendor is final, but the cuisine for the new eatery will be based on the proposals that different businesses submit. The proposal that meets the board’s criteria will determine if the cuisine will be Thai, Japanese or Filipino, said Bajraktarevic.

Christina Slaker, a junior psychology major, thinkd that the food in the student center is good and was surprised at the good quality and taste of food that some of the vendors offer.

“I think it’s good that they are going to offer more variety,” said Slaker. “It’ll be good that there’s going to be more ethnic food because it gives students a chance to try something new.”