Kali Lingen

Have Easy-Mac and Hormel TV dinners burdened your appetite too long? If you answered yes, then maybe you should try the beef and broccoli stir fry, baked glazed buffet ham and chicken fettuccine at Café NFA.

In its fourth consecutive year, this dining program serves gourmet meals during the spring semester and is put on by SDSU’s Quantity Foods Production and Service class. Assistant Professor Lee Frantz said his favorite part about Café NFA is watching the students learn as the semester goes on.

“At the beginning of the semester, the students are kind of weary of it [Café NFA] but toward the end, the students are like professionals,” Frantz said.

Tim Goldammer is currently a student in the Quantity Foods Production and Service class and enjoys the experience.

“My favorite part is the joy on the faculty and students’ faces when they taste our delicious meals,” said Goldammer, a junior hotel and foodservice management major.

“It’s cool being in a class where instead of talking about doing something, we actually get to do it. We get to prepare real meals from start to finish for people,” said Kyle Kranz, a junior nutrition major and class participant.

Members of the class rotate between working at Café NFA and Larson Commons on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The cost for the meal is $7.50, which includes sales tax. The cost of the meal covers food, a dishwasher who is paid and a small margin for equipment and repairs. Next year, there is a possibility Café NFA could be accepting Hobo Dough and flex dollars from meal plans instead of cash or check only, said Frantz.

Café NFA can serve 40 people per lunch. Students in the class are docked five points per seat that is not filled during a lunch service.

Professors deduct points because in the restaurant business, an empty seat means no money is coming in. Filling the empty seats is something that Frantz said he wanted to teach the students.

Café NFA’s first meal was held on Feb. 17 and the class served 33 people. In past years, most meals were sold out with all 40 seats filled. Frantz said he expects this year’s Café NFA to be similar to years past.

The gourmet meals are served on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Reservations must be made in advance by calling (605) 688-5656 and leaving name and phone number. To confirm the reservation, someone will call you back. At reservation time, parking passes and vegetarian entrees can be requested.

In March, there are five dates which Café NFA will not be serving meals. To see when those dates are and a list of menus for each meal, go to Café NFA’s Web site, www3.sdstate.edu/Academics/CollegeOfFamilyAndConsumerSciences/CafeNFA/.

The meal on Feb. 26 includes fresh fruit, baked glazed buffet ham, baked sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, dinner roll and a peanut butter cookie.

#1.881892:2292441030.JPG:DSC_0124.JPG:Junior economics major Jesse Gosselin and junior consumer affairs major Katie Norman enjoy their lunch at Café NFA.:Pavan Kulkarni