Feast at Rieber makes dinner debut, will have extended hours Tuesdays through Thursdays
Students lined up outside of Feast at Rieber before it opened for dinner Tuesday afternoon. Feast is now open for dinner three days a week from 5-9 p.m.
Feast at Rieber's Dinner Hours
Tuesday through Thursday
5-8 p.m.
SOURCE: UCLA Housing and Hospitality Services
Compiled by Kylie Reynolds, Bruin senior staff.
By Erin Donnelly
May 2, 2012 1:34 a.m.
Correction: The original info box for this article contained an error. Feast at Rieber’s dinner hours are 5-8 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday.
The Hill’s pan-Asian themed dining hall, Feast at Rieber, drew students in on Tuesday night as they walked by and saw the restaurant was open for dinner for the first time.
The eatery, which opened during fall quarter, was previously only operating during lunch hours.
Starting Tuesday night, Feast is now open for dinner Tuesdays through Thursdays ““ the peak days for dinner traffic on the Hill, said Daryl Ansel, director of food and beverage for UCLA Housing and Hospitality Dining Services.
After reading about Feast opening for dinner on the Housing and Hospitality Services website, Kevin Rodvold, a third-year English student, came early to avoid the possibility of a line.
“I’m glad it’s open for dinner,” he said. “I will probably come much more often.”
Over rice and dumpling soup, Nadya Zolotova, a second-year neuroscience student, said she was excited about Feast’s new dinner hours.
“I was sick of eating at Covel and De Neve every night,” she said.
Feast delayed its dinner opening until this week because dining was not able to sufficiently staff the eatery, Ansel said.
Dining officials are searching for workers to supplement their staff and expand beyond just three nights a week. It is currently unknown when this expansion will happen, Ansel said.
Many students who live on the Hill, and specifically in Rieber Hall, where Feast is located, said they are looking forward to the dinner option.
“I didn’t like that it was only open in the middle of the day,” said Rachel Gildersleeve, a first-year psychology student and resident of Rieber Hall. “I only have two (meal) swipes per day, and Feast is usually not what I want for my first meal.”
But Angela Lam, a first-year mathematics/applied science student and resident of Hedrick Hall, lost her enthusiasm for Feast’s opening when she heard it might lead to the closure of Hedrick dining hall.
The number of patrons attending Hedrick dining hall have significantly decreased since Feast’s opening, due in part to the novelty of the new dining hall and its more accessible location, according to Daily Bruin archives.
Less than a month after Feast’s opening, Hedrick stopped serving lunch. Many residents at Hedrick said they are worried that dinner will soon no longer be an option.
“It is so convenient to have (Hedrick dining hall) right here, and Feast is too crowded,” Lam said.
Whether Hedrick dining hall will stay open or not depends on how many patrons continue to visit the dinning hall regularly, Ansel said.
While Feast remained closed for dinner during winter quarter, Hedrick began implementing new menu options, such as breakfast for dinner, to entice students to make the walk up to the dining hall for dinner. Its efforts have been successful so far, Ansel said.
