Stanford's Florence Moore Dining Hall Renovated
STANFORD, CA—Stanford Dining, a division of Residential & Dining Enterprises (R&DE) at Stanford University, completed a major renovation to Florence Moore dining hall during the summer of 2013. This was the first significant dining hall renovation for Florence Moore, known as “FloMo,” since it was originally built in 1957.
It was Shirley Everett’s (Senior Associate Vice Provost of R&DE) vision “to create a unique design which enhances the student living-and-learning experience with an equally innovative, educational and sustainable dining experience.”
“I am extremely proud of the newly renovated Florence Moore Dining Hall which has enhanced our student dining program and set a new standard for exceptional culinary experiences, community building opportunities and an unprecedented design for students to dine together and build a vibrant community,” said R&DE Stanford Dining’s Executive Director, Eric Montell.
One of the more dramatic updates in the remodeling was the transformation to an open kitchen design, which invites students into the entire cooking experience. Students are able to have a dialogue with the culinary staff and customize the menu to their individual needs. Stronger relationships are built with this new design and it provides a sense of community and comfort as they dine in their home dining hall which is at the core of the Stanford based residential education program.
FloMo’s original stainless steel servery counters were replaced with “Copenhagen” alabaster granite serving counters, which include a functional heat source and provide a beautiful backdrop for the chef’s daily creations. In keeping with the original design intent of "California Living" and to create a modern, open feel in the servery, a stainless steel serving counter, which blocked a wall of floor to ceiling windows looking out onto the central courtyard, was removed to let in natural daylight. A ten-seat chef’s table, made from reclaimed 100-year-old teak railroad ties, was positioned near this newly exposed window and is now used for weekly chef inspired dinners, which provides a new and exciting dining option and supports community building opportunities for students.
Considerably the most dramatic piece of the transformation is the exposed kitchen, which now contains state-of-the-art, energy efficient equipment and maximizes the kitchen’s functionality and the culinary team’s talents.
The previous kitchen also had a very large single central exhaust hood, which took up much of the visual space. Smaller, station specific, modern new hoods were installed and they fit with the aesthetic design of the higher ceiling. The hoods were clad in brushed anodized bronze, which sparkle in the sunlight.
There are six main serving stations, including the Performance Dining station; a slim Montague island cooking suite which provides functionality, ease and customization of display cooking; a hearth oven for cooking pizzas, calzones and flatbreads to perfection; an exhibition rotisserie station featuring a Rotisol eight-spit rotisserie for slow roasting meats and seafood, which are then hand-carved and served to order; an Evo Grill for cooking menu items to order; and a kosher display station for a menu that includes Ashkenazic dishes such as Carrot and Yam Tzimmes as well as less traditional but equally kosher entrees such as coconut milk-based Chicken Tikka Masala.
FloMo creates an Indian inspired menu weekly on Sunday nights. This immensely popular dinner includes menu items such as chile-and-vinegar-spiced Vindaloo, creamy Korma curry, and Dal lentil curry. This dinner is extremely popular with students and has seen up to 900 students coming for dinner in a dining hall that typically serves 425 students.
Guided by R&DE’s core value to Build a Sustainable Future, R&DE Stanford Dining has made sustainability a priority in all aspects of the new dining hall design and operations, including the building materials and Energy Star-rated appliances.
Background
R&DE Stanford Dining, a division of Residential & Dining Enterprises, serves over 12,000 meals per day. Its operations include 11 undergraduate dining halls, two late night dining operations, athletic training table, and summer conference dining. As the dining department of the world’s premier research and teaching institution, R&DE Stanford Dining promotes food as a multidisciplinary educational experience and engages students in food issues such as those related to health, the environment, social equity and the global economy. R&DE Stanford Dining has been recognized for its culinary excellence by awards such as the prestigious industry Ivy Award by Restaurants and Institutions, and for its environmental leadership role by numerous awards such as the Acterra Award for Sustainability. For more information, please visit dining.stanford.edu.