A new food and catering service staffed by hospitality management students at K-State opened for business Feb. 20 in Justin Hall. Lacy’s Fresh Fare and Catering is an addition to the College of Human Ecology, open Tuesday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The restaurant in Hoffman Lounge serves a diverse menu with items ranging from ham and Swiss cheese paninis to Thai peanut salads. Lacy’s has coffee and breakfast items in the morning at affordable prices for college students.
The food production class, composed of 18 students, has not begun catering yet.
Kevin R. Roberts, undergraduate program director for hospitality management, talked about how the department has had a vision for years to open up a service like Lacy’s.
“This is something that I have always had on the back burner I would love to see for K-State, so I think it’s great for the program,” Roberts said.
According to Roberts, the class used to be taught in the dining centers on campus, but limited the opportunities for people who wanted to go into a commercial-type setting.
“What they do is very good, it’s just limited in the fact that it’s so different than what you would experience in a full-service restaurant,” Roberts said.
Stephen Hager, junior in hospitality management, was prepping food in the kitchen of Lacy’s Tuesday morning a week after the first opening. Hager said he has already managed a restaurant before but said this new program gives students time to learn in a restaurant setting from other students who come into the class with different experiences.
“There are always people there to help you or teach you something you don’t know,” Hager said.
“We have people who haven’t worked in a restaurant before all the way up to people who are managing a bar and grill right now,” Hager said.
Lacy’s Fresh Fare and Catering will start to provide catering in the future in the Manhattan area. You can find the menu online.