A look at Tulane’s new dining centerpiece

This month, Tulane University Dining Services is opening the Commons, its new three-story, 77,000-square-foot facility that will include a state-of-the-art dining facility called the Dining Room at the Commons. The dining venue occupies two floors of the building and offers multiple dining platforms ranging from a restaurant and a coffee shop to a food court, with a rotating menu of local and international cuisine plus the Chef’s Table demonstration kitchen.

In addition, the Commons brings together all of the operations and staff of the Newcomb Institute, which educates undergraduates for women’s leadership in the 21st century, under a single roof at the center of campus life.

With more than 1,000 seats for eating, studying and conversation, the Dining Room at the Commons is also designed to bring the entire campus together.

“Eating together reminds us of our shared humanity,” says Patrick Norton, Tulane’s senior vice president and COO. “It builds relationships, strengthens bonds, mentally nourishes us and serves up memories for a lifetime. That’s what the Commons is all about—fostering intellectual and interpersonal community at Tulane.”

The food at the Commons is fresh and healthy, offering significant variety like a marketplace, and Sodexo-managed Tulane Dining Services has created menus designed to accommodate the needs of all diners. Vegan and vegetarian options are available at every station throughout the dining room, while the Simplified station offers meals free of the common allergens milk, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, eggs or gluten.

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Staying open until 2 a.m., the Commons also houses a retail market called Provisions on the Thirtieth Parallel, which sells snacks, beverages and to-go meals.

Here’s a brief look at this new facility and its food offerings.