Brandeis dinning hall seems to always spark up debate among Creighton Students. Whether it be friendly arguments over it’s food quality or heated Brandeis vs. Becker debates, people seem to be heavily opinionated when it comes to “B-deis”. And with it’s recent 2.5 million dollar renovation over the summer, disagreement about the dining hall seems to be at an all time high.

I should start by saying that I totally understand the desire for renovation. The high-school-cafeteria look of old was more than a little dated. Something a little more eye catching is not only refreshing for those of us returning or new to Creighton, but also more impressive for potential students. But even where the renovations are refreshing, it feels like we could have spent less and gotten more.

The first and most obvious change is that it undoubtedly looks a lot better. The whole dining hall looks much sleeker and modern, with partitions and booths making it feel more cozy by cutting down on sound and making it more “restaurant style”. The huge problem with this though, is that it comes at the cost of seating. This is by far the biggest problem with “New Brandeis.” At peak hours, there just aren’t enough seats, making everything feel very claustrophobic and busy. This problem becomes even worse when you come with a group of friends that you’d like to sit with. It seems like every time I’ve eaten at new B-deis, my friends and I have to make at least two laps of aimless wandering and conferring before we find seats, if we find them at all. But the space issues don’t end there. All this is made even worse by the fact that there’s no longer a place to set your bag at the front, leading students to: 1. Put the bag on a chair and take up more seating or 2. Put the bag next to where they’re sitting and clog up walking lanes even more than they already are.

The new plates, bowls and cups are awesome. In fact, if there’s one thing that I’m most happy about with in the new Brandeis, it’s the bigger drinking cup sizes. I now only have to fill my glass up once, whereas at Old B-deis I usually had to make 2 to 3 trips for drinks. As far as the actual food is concerned, on the whole I’d say it’s mostly improved as far as taste and selection, the Grab and Go especially. The addition of hot entrees and more options for Grab and Go definitely make it more appealing. But if by improving Grab and Go, Creighton thinks they’ll make up for the cut in seating, I think they’ve got another thing coming. The long lines leading out of Brandeis everyday speak to that.

Creighton prides itself on it’s, “community feel,” but I feel like we’ve lost that with “New Brandeis.” I just find myself wondering if a simple update to Old Brandeis would have been the better way to go. We easily could have gotten rid of the high school cafeteria look with some new tile, paint, carpet, tables, etc, without having to sacrifice practical issues like seating, and presumably spending less money in the process. And where the aesthetics of the New Brandeis are great (Honestly, who doesn’t like huge chunks of rotisserie meat to stare at), I miss the community feel of the large, family style tables and seating. I miss people-watching and not having to fight to find a place to sit if I come with friends. Overall, I miss the practicality and substance of “Old Brandeis” that we seem to have traded for style in the new.