WHAT'S NEW AT MASON DINING?

On the first day of classes in the spring semester of 2008, the Mason Community was pleased to see that one of their favorite lunch spots, George’s Restaurant on the third floor of the JC, had extended its hours into and through dinner. George’s is open from 11:30am to 7:30pm, and although its tables are almost always fully occupied, it still rates as one of Mason’s top 10 best kept secrets.

As the spring semester at Mason got into full swing, Charlie Chiang’s in the JC transformed into YaYa’s Asian Kitchen. Yaya’s brings fresh Asian and Pan-Asian cuisine that is as good as it gets on a college campus. The talented YaYa’s staff rotates in new menu items from Viet Nam, China, Korea, Thailand and beyond to keep the selection fresh and inviting. Yaya’s prepares sushi on the spot, which is packaged and available at the JC Food Court, the Express Convenience Store, the One Stop Patriot Shop, The Bistro and at Jazzman’s, and is moving as fast as it is rolled!

In Blue Ridge Building, the One Stop Patriot Shop opened in January to rave reviews. Nestled into the Chesapeake Resident neighborhood, this convenience store caters to the needs of the residential community and the commuter as well. Jeannie and her friendly staff are quickly making friends and becoming family to the students living above and around the One Stop, and are growing their inventory each day as they listen to suggestions from their customers. Here you will find a line of groceries, vegan, and vegetarian and kosher foods, fresh produce, sushi and Seattle’s Best Coffees as well as the large selection of snacks and sweets that long hours of study necessitate.

Mason is pleased to be one of the few Universities in the U.S. to have an award winning Campus Executive Chef. The January-February cusp signaled the arrival of Chef Peter Schoebiel to Mason Dining Services. Peter graduated 1st in class from the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, and joins us as we endeavor to reach new heights of food quality and great taste across the Mason campuses. His first project was Ciao Hall, and oh what a difference a few weeks can make with a rock star chef to lead and teach. If It has been a while since you were at Ciao, you’re going to have to come back soon to enjoy some great food.

In early March, expect to see the Charleston Market in the JC transform into Sangam, a culinary platform that will serve high quality Halal foods from around the world. This delicious fare is prepared by the same chefs that have been cooking in and serving delicious Halal from some of the most popular international restaurants in the region. Whether the cuisine is from India, Turkey, Iran or Afghanistan, these totally authentic dishes will be a hit with the entire community.

Also in early March, the ever popular Jazzman’s is being cloned once more! This version will find a new home at the Sandy Creek Shuttle Stop, and will be there for all who travel that path, to and from, classes and work. Hours of Operations can be found at dining.gmu.edu.

In the fall of 2008, SouthSide dining will open its brand new doors to the Mason community. Replacing Ciao Hall as the resident student restaurant, SouthSide will of course welcome the entire community to dine in style in this brand new, ultramodern venue. The look and feel of SouthSide is definitely un-cafeteria. Six self sufficient service points that look more like small restaurants than service platforms will feature on-location just-in-time cooking, exhibition cooking and cook to order sauté, resulting in fresh, high quality dishes. Each restaurant will be equipped with its own beverage line, plate ware and silverware, side dishes and style, so that a customer might enjoy and entire meal served from each individual venue. The atmosphere is warm, natural and comfortable, with a variety of styles of tables and chairs to suit individual or group tastes. Southside will be open from 7:30am for breakfast, switch over to lunch at 11pm, to dinner at 4:30pm and serve until 8pm. After 8pm, customers will get a full meal to go from a shop on the exterior of South Side.

Also in the fall of 2008, a full service Starbuck’s will join Sodexho’s popular lineup of national and regional brands on Mason’s Fairfax campus. Starbucks will be located in the base Northern Neck in the Chesapeake Resident Neighborhood, on corner of the building closest to Patriot Circle, and promises to be a popular spot for those arriving at work at 7:30am, and those still studying at 2:00am.

RESIDENT MEAL PLANS
FALL 08 & SPRING 09

All students with less than 90 credit hours earned who are not residing in Potomac Heights, Liberty Square, the Student Apartments, or Student Townhouses (residences with kitchens), are require to have one of the Resident Meal Plans. Students with full kitchens in any of the mixed design residences are not required to have a meal plan Meal plans re non-transferable.

In the Fall of 2008, a brand new dining facility will be introduced that will replace Ciao Hall. It will be known as SouthSide Dining in honor of the south side region of Virginia.

FLEX AND ULTIMATE PLANS
                                                                                                                                                              

 
The above FLEX AND ULTIMATE plans provide excellent value for those who choose to enjoy the variety, all-you-care-to-eat environment and opportunity for healthy, balanced dining that SouthSide features.

The price for admission to SouthSide, the all-you-care-to-eat dining location, is: breakfast-$5.95, lunch-$7.85, dinner-$8.95 for those not enrolled in any of the FLEX and Ultimate plans above.

Bonus Dining Dollars: Accepted at all Sodexo operated venues including the full-service component of Damon’s Restaurant on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays (15% gratuity will be automatically added for tableside service). Bonus Dining Dollars will not roll over from semester to semester.
 
Flex 10 & 15 refresh weekly on Friday morning. For example; if you had a 15 FLEX, and had 1 meal left when you went to sleep on Thursday night, you would wake up with 15 meals available for the next seven days.

Flex plans are accepted everywhere except the full-service component of Damon’s Restaurant, JC Express, One Stop Patriot Shop.
Flex 10 & 15 refresh weekly on Friday morning. For example; if you had a 15 FLEX, and had 1 meal left when you went to sleep on Thursday night, you would wake up with 15.
Flex 150 & 230 represent the meal allocation for the semester. These meals can be used at any time and at any number throughout the semester. There will be no rollover of unused meals from one semester to the next.

Flex meals can be used at any time and in any number (when not used at SouthSide), at the cash equivalency rate, and are accepted at all Sodexo operated venues except the full-service component of Damon’s Restaurant, the JC Express, and the One Stop Patriot Stop.

• The Equivalency Rates for Flex meals used at locations other than SouthSide are $3.65 for the breakfast meal period, and $5 for lunch and dinner meal periods
• The meal periods are: breakfast – 5:00am to 10:59am, lunch – 11:00am to 4:29pm, dinner – 4:30pm to 4:59am
• The equivalency for a meal cannot be divided, and one meal is deducted from the plan balance whenever the equivalency is used, no matter what the exact cost of the meal is.  

When used at SouthSide, breakfast, lunch and dinner period respectively each require the use of one meal.
 
ULTIMATE PLANS: are only accepted at Southside Student Dining Hall and provide the plan holder with an unlimited number of admissions to SouthSide.

All meal plans are available for use at dinner before the first day of class.

FREEDOM PLANS                                                                                                                                                    

FREEDOM PLANS provide the convenience of a tax-free dollar-for-dollar declining balance fund for purchases of food at retail prices.

FREEDOM FUNDS: Accepted at all Sodexo operated venues, including the full-service component of Damon’s Restaurant on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays (15% gratuity will be automatically added for tableside service).

FREEDOM RINGS: All funds in this plan must be used during the semester of use. There is no carry over of funds into a subsequent semester.

FREESOM FORWARD:  Allows up to $300 carry forward into the spring semester provided the Forward plan is chosen for the spring semester. The carry forward is a credit to the Student’s Account for the spring semester. No balance can be forwarded from spring to fall semesters.

• Freedom Funds and Bonus Dining Dollars will be available for use on the first day of class.
• The retail price for admission to South Side, the all-you-care-to-eat dining location, is: breakfast-$5.95, lunch-$7.85, dinner-$8.95 for those enrolled in Freedom Plans.

VOLUNTARY MEAL PLANS
FALL 08 & SPRING 09

VOLUNTARY PLANS provide students whom are not required to have a meal plan with the same opportunities for excellent value. Voluntary Plans offer the same option as Flex Plans. These meals may be used at any time and in any number (when not used in South Side) at the cash equivalency rate*. The Voluntary Plans may be purchased in blocks of 25, 50, or 75 Voluntary meals, are not linked to an academic calendar, and unused balances roll over from any semester to the next. The PLUS version of these plans bundles a block of meals with Mason Money - Food** as starter plans for a convenient option. At a later time blocks of voluntary meals can be purchased “a la carte” at any time, as can Mason Money - Food.

The *Equivalency Rates for meals used at locations other than SouthSide are $3.65 for the breakfast meal period, and $5 for lunch and dinner meal periods. The meal periods are: breakfast – 5:00am to 10:59am, lunch – 11:00am to 4:29pm, dinner – 4:30pm to 4:59am. Equivalency cannot be used at full-service component of the Damon’s Restaurant on campus, the Express convenience store (located in the Johnson Center), and One Stop Patriot Shop (located in the Blue Ridge building). The equivalency for a meal cannot be divided, and one meal allotment is deducted from the plan balance whenever the equivalency is used. 
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**Mason Money - Food is a tax -free declining balance dedicated to food purchases that can be used in any Sodexo operated venue, and can be used at the Damon’s full-service restaurant on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. It useful for smaller purchases (below the $5 equivalency) and for covering the amount above the equivalency that is less than the $5. Mason Money - Food rolls over from any semester to the next. These funds are non-refundable when the student leaves the university, but can be transferred to a sibling attending George Mason University t the time. Mason Money - Food can be purchased bundled with a block of meals in the PLUS version of the Voluntary Meal Plans, or purchased separately online in any amount at masonmoney.gmu.edu

Voluntary Plans may be purchased at the Meal Plan Office on the ground floor of the Student Union Building #2, or by faxing an electronic form found at mealplans.gmu.edu.