As of this week, students with morning classes in DeBartolo Hall no longer need to get their coffee fix in another building and then rush across campus.
A brand new Au Bon Pain coffee cart opened in the middle of DeBartolo Hall on Monday. The coffee cart, located next to the 101 DeBartolo auditorium in DeBartolo Hall, delivers on a campaign promise Alex Coccia and Nancy Joyce made during their 2013 election bid.
The stand, known as the "DeBart Coffee Cart," is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., and offers both hot beverages and pastries to students and staff on their way to and from DeBartolo classes.
Student Government partnered with Notre Dame Food Services to make the coffee cart a reality, student body president Alex Coccia said. Coccia said he appreciates the support from Food Services and other University departments.
"Food Services has done a tremendous job putting together the coffee cart to ensure that it runs smoothly," Coccia said. "We cannot thank them and John Affleck Graves' entire office enough for their service to the students."
The manager of Au Bon Pain, Christina Ryan, said she was impressed with the success of the coffee cart so far.
"[Tuesday] is only the second day that the cart has been open for business, and we have already doubled the number of students served. We served 171 yesterday, which was pretty amazing," Ryan said. "As expected, we have been going through a lot of coffee, six gallons after only a couple of hours today."
Ryan also said students have voiced their appreciation and she hopes to add to the menu in the future to best serve students.
"I've heard a lot of good feedback from students," Ryan said. "We're here for the students. Maybe next fall we'll be able to offer more."
Coccia said the "DeBart Cart" is the result of a simple idea but has the potential to help a lot of people.
"In our 2013 campaign, we promised to get hot caffeine in DeBartolo Hall," Coccia said. "We proposed something simple but that would serve the needs of students who have multiple classes a day in DeBartolo and are stressed for time between them."
Student body vice president Nancy Joyce said any future changes or expansion of the coffee cart would be based on the student response.
"This semester's coffee cart is a pilot, which will be adjusted at the end of the semester to better suit the needs of students," Joyce said.
