Best ever build-your-own concepts

Customers don't want to just build their own meals…they want to craft their own masterpieces.

“One thing that we try to verbalize is that it’s craft your own,” says Tiago Battastini, chef de cuisine at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD), where craft-your-own pizza and chopped salad concepts are fresh new features in the recently rebuilt Oceanview dining venue.

“You have more ownership when you craft something rather than just build it,” Battastini continues. “It strengthens our relationship with guests, and the generation we work with appreciates that very much.”

“Customization is definitely not the future—it’s the present expectation and on a very high level,” says Vaughn Vargus, CEC, executive chef at UCSD.

At Tulane, the Wall of Green Concept provides fresh salads, crafted quickly and packed to go.

Ironically, the best build-your-own concepts are by no means hands-off for operators. Operators are a guiding force behind the scenes, thoughtfully purchasing, planning, training staffers and setting customers up for success.

“As build-your-own stations increase in popularity, there are a few things to consider when chasing success,” says Julian Cover, director of operations with Aramark at Fordham University in New York. “Quality ingredients that provide a balanced plate are crucial.”

At Bamboo and BonMi, two standout build-your-own spots at Fordham, the menu boards are easy to navigate in a step-by-step fashion. Bamboo’s pasta-egg-rice-noodle stir-fry station is a hot spot all week at The Marketplace resident dining venue.

BonMi offers made-to-order takes on Vietnamese street fare, such as the namesake sandwich and rice bowls. Customers have a choice of signature dishes, or they can build their own, starting with a base (sandwich, rice and quinoa bowl, hot or chilled noodles or mixed greens) and then moving on to a premium protein (pulled pork, honey-pepper pork belly, 18-hour beef, chili-garlic tofu or veggies). Next comes a flavor, like lemon grass, barbecue or curry, and then all the fun add-ons: cilantro, jalapeño, fried garlic or fried onions.

“The flow of the line and how the final product comes together is key. These all impact speed of service,” Cover adds.

Speed of service can be an indicator of how smoothly meals come together, and ultimately, how successful a build-your-own station will be.

Whether they go rogue or classic, each customer at Rensselaer’s customizable pizza concept takes a number (the corresponding number is a heat-resistant metal tag on the pizza pan), waits for about three minutes for the pizza to bake, grabs the piping hot pie, adds an optional shake of Parmesan or pepper flakes, finds a seat and takes part in a timeless Friday-night ritual: feasting on pizza.

Pizza and chopped salad: Personalized

The craft-your-own pizza concept at UCSD’s Ocean View is Third Kitchen, where 800 to 1,000 pizzas are served each day. With that many custom orders coming through, efficiency is a must. But that hasn’t meant skimping on quality.

The pizza is premium stuff, starting with the flour, which is a specialty flour formulated just for pizza dough. There’s also a wheat-dough option. The dough is stretched by hand…no shortcuts here.

The luxury experience continues with the sauce options, where top-quality canned tomatoes are used to make a sweetly spicy Sriracha-marinara sauce. Third Kitchen’s version of white sauce is made with cauliflower purée whipped up with thyme, bay leaf and white pepper.

On Friday nights, a traditional pizza concept at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., goes DIY. Students choose their crust: traditional or whole wheat. And then the sauce: marinara, Alfredo or pesto. Many students even opt to mix the sauces together. The pizza moves down the line to a different staffer, and students choose their favorite combos of 20 toppings, including fresh mozzarella and feta cheese. There’s also the option each week of a different specialty pizza, like barbecue chicken pizza or Hawaiian pizza, cheeseburger pizza or the simple classic margherita pizza with sauce, mozzarella and basil.

Toppings like kosher beef pepperoni and chicken sausage are the crowning glory.

Two wood stone ovens behind glass give students a view of their creation getting crusty and chewy on the heat of the pizza stone, “crisp outside and chewy inside, almost like a baguette,” Battastini says. The big pizza stone takes a couple of days to completely heat up and stays between 600 and 900 degrees (“600 degrees is best for our bread,” Battastini says). 

The ovens can fit about 16 pizzas, but “the problem is finding someone who can cook 16 pizzas and not burn one,” Vargus says. On average, most workers can handle six pizzas at a time; managing the colder and hotter spaces of the pizza oven is a real art form.

UCSD’s chopped salad concept, 40 40 20, gets its name from a very healthful ratio that has been shorthand in the health-conscious dining program for a while now: 40 percent greens, 40 percent veggies and 20 percent protein. The green foundation is a choice between romaine, a spring mix and kale. Veggies and protein are chosen (a popular protein has been grilled tuna), and then a staffer chops the salad into bite-sized pieces using a mezzaluna, a half moon-shaped knife that works great to chop salads into clean, green squares.

The best menu boards, like this one at Fordham, don't leave the customer guessing as to what to do next.

The dressings are all made in house daily. Croutons at 40 40 20 are not from a bag; instead, they’re housemade “salad crackers” that are wholesome and appealing with sesame seeds.

“What’s nice about the salad station is the way we present the vegetables,” Battastini adds. “Cucumbers, cabbage, tomatoes, mushrooms and sweet peppers are all whole. What they see is the freshness.”

At the Erie Insurance headquarters in Pennsylvania, the working day starts with a build-your-own omelet station, but the most popular DIY concept is Bravo, which changes like a pop-up restaurant. One build-your-own entrée is a noodle bowl that comes with options for plant- and animal-based protein, lots of fresh veggies and housemade broth. “The best part is you can order this dish over and over again, countless ways,” says Metz Culinary Management Manager Rob Garber.

Nacho average Wednesday

A build-your-own nacho bar sounds a little chancy for school lunch, but Yael Iglesias, cafeteria manager at Coppell Middle School North in Coppell, Texas, has managed to crack the code.

“Organization is key,” Iglesias says. “Think about how you would top your own nachos and set the serving line up in that order. You wouldn’t want the chips to be last on the serving counter and have the toppings first.”

Every other Wednesday, students start with a 1.5-ounce serving of chips in a boat. From there, they can choose between shredded chicken and a beef-mushroom blend.

A nacho bar for kids runs very smoothly at Coppell Middle School, with some components preportioned.

The Coppell culinary team portions out the chips and protein and then it’s nacho fun time for the students with their own mix of lettuce, cheese sauce, pico de gallo, sour cream and pickled jalapeños.

The staff makes a point to check that the right serving utensils are on hand with each topping. This makes serving oneself easier and helps the line move quickly.

“For example, it would be difficult to pick up lettuce with a spoon or pico de gallo with tongs,” Iglesias continues. “These are basic concepts, but it’s definitely very important to ensure organization within the lunch line.”

Also, the build-your-own lines are only at middle and high schools in the district, so “the students are pretty good about serving themselves and not making a huge mess,” says Alicia Braun, RD, LD, dietitian/menu planner at Coppell Independent School District. “However, our child nutrition professionals always clean between lunches and switch out serving spoons to ensure food safety.”