In addition to a new Starbucks opening in Newcomb Hall, University Dining has opened a sushi location called Wahoo Nori.
The fast-casual dining spot will join other favorites including Five Guys, Subway and Chick-fil-A in Pavilion XI in an attempt to diversify the available food options for students.
“We are always looking for ways to enhance the dining program,” Aramark Marketing Manager Scott Aebersold said in an email. “We heard loud and clear from our Student Dining Advisory Board that keeping a sushi restaurant on Grounds was important.”
With the closing of the University’s sushi haven, In the Nood, students would have been left with just the pre-packaged sushi in the cafes to satisfy their desire for the Asian dish. While Wahoo Nori is not a replacement of In the Nood, it will serve several of In the Nood's most popular dishes. Other menu items will include rolled sushi, sashimi, poke bowls and a variety of teas and kombuchas, all available in the fast casual setting.
“I was never completely impressed with In the Nood in terms of quality, if I’m being honest,” said third-year College student April Corwin. “But at least it was there to offer something different.”
With a name that combines the beloved fish used as a nickname for University students with “nori,” the Japanese word for seafood, Wahoo Nori has set the stage for being the place where students, faculty and staff get their sushi and other Asian-inspired dishes.
“By adding options like Wahoo Nori we create a dynamic environment on Grounds that serves different options to try and meet different taste preferences,” Aebersold said.
Despite Aramark’s publicity of Wahoo Nori via social media, the dining program and in the Pav, its opening has paled in comparison to that of the new Starbucks in Newcomb Dining Hall.
“We kept hearing that Starbucks was opening ... but we didn’t realize there would be a new restaurant,” Corwin said.
With the news of another Starbucks opening on Grounds, Corwin believed another replacement for In the Nood would have been better.
“I love coffee, don’t get me wrong, but even I can see that if you really wanted Starbucks, you could walk five minutes to the Corner,” Corwin said. “I would enjoy a variety of regional foods just to mix things up.”
Though first-year College student Helen Bechler appreciates the fast service of Wahoo Nori and its acceptance of Plus Dollars, she does not see Wahoo Nori as being her first stop for sushi.
“I don’t come to Newcomb that often so I probably wouldn’t go out of my way if they have [sushi] at Clark,” Bechler said. “I’d probably just go [to Clark] instead because it’s more convenient.”
Mostly, however, students are just looking for something different than their everyday meals and routines at the dining halls. Corwin sees the other restaurants as additions to an otherwise same-as-usual menu.
“I personally would like to see more diversity in terms of types of food,” Corwin said. “So I think there’s an increasing frustration about having the same food options every single day — you go here and get pizza, you go here and get some sort of meat and vegetable side and I just think the other dining options outside the cafeteria are looked at as an alternative to that.”
Wahoo Nori opened in the Pav when classes started and is open from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. They take cash, credit, Cav Advantage and Plus Dollars.
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