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This story appeared in the .

The best part of the old Letchworth Dining Hall was always the basement — the bar, in fact — where you could get subs and suds with your meal coupon on Saturday nights.

Upstairs, Lisa Robinson Schmitt ’82 used to walk past a line of stainless steel fixtures, buffet style, and into a massive dining hall—bench seats, rows and rows.

What she remembers was “plain and utilitarian.” “The food was OK,” she says, “but the atmosphere? Not so great. This is really awesome to see.”

Lisa barely recognized the new Letchworth Dining Complex, fresh after a two-year complete gut and renovation, as she dipped truffles into semi-dark at a chocolate-making class during reunion. Alums in the next room sipped full-bodied reds crafted from local grapes in a wine-tasting workshop.

Letchworth is that kind of place now.

On the second floor of Letchworth is Food Studio North, a pay-one-price restaurant with grilling, dessert, Italian, kosher, gluten-free and vegetarian stations, with meals plated a la Iron Chef masterpiece. Downstairs, students can grab a sandwich, or a fruit tart handmade by the pastry chef.

Right — a pastry chef.

It’s indicative of �鶹��ý�Ŷ� dining now as a whole. There’s a commitment to culinary arts and serving what students seek — from Kosher to local foods and a good place to spend the time, all served up by 10 professionally trained chefs. �鶹��ý�Ŷ� has received two national recognitions — for residential dining and for gluten-free options.

Sometimes dancers leap in for an Indian-inspired number, or you might see a flamenco dancer.  You can watch the cooks and chefs prepare your food, all fresh. Have it in a booth behind the grill bar. Have it while you’re wired, so you can work or surf.

“When I first visited campus, Letchworth had just opened,” says freshman Rebecca Hoppy. “When I walked in and saw all the fancy, gourmet options, I was so excited ... I knew there would always be something interesting and healthy for me to eat.”

Not your mom’s dining hall. The top things about the new Letchworth, serving some 1,000 students a day:

• Pastry chef Andrew Zalar bakes fresh tarts and other confections in Max Market.

• Tired but gotta work? Put your legs up in the cozy seating designed for laptop use.

• Guest chefs from cook up special dishes.

• Arugula features all vegetarian and vegan cuisine.

• Wanna travel the world? Dine at Roma’s for all-Italian creations, or the Lemongrass Asian station.

• Cooking classes teach kitchen skills and tips like boosting flavor without adding fat.

• Head chef Chris Mejia’s Asian-inspired flank steak recipe won second in a national competition.

•Nabali Kosher Kitchen offers non-dairy meals, with methods overseen by a rabbi.

• Need it gluten-free? Visit Kasha Gluten-free.

•Pizza and pasta sauce is made only with tomatoes from New York.

• Got milk? Ours comes from Upstate Milk, a cooperative of 360 family-owned farms in New York.

• Have your green and eat it too: Letchworth is certified for its sustainability for energy use, water efficiency, building materials and other features.

•Turn up the heat! The hot-pepper tasting event with a flamenco dancer for entertainment is one of several “in-house” impromptu shows and events.

•Food Studio North, the pay-one-price upstairs restaurant, was awarded the Gold Medal for residential dining by the National Association of College and University Food Services.

•�鶹��ý�Ŷ� is ranked number 2 in the country for gluten-free options by Boulder Brands, a maker of gluten-free foods.

— By Kris Dreessen

— Photos by Keith Walters '11