St. Thomas Dining Services is in the process of purchasing a food truck, which is expected to be on campus in early August, to spice up food options in concessions and on campus.

The rotating menu food truck will be used for both outdoor sporting events and for events on campus, including food truck Fridays and events held by St. Thomas groups and organizations throughout the year.

“We want to start food truck Fridays so we will bring the food truck to different parts of campus every single Friday, changing the menu between Fridays to make it a fun, engaging piece for campus to have,” Associate Vice President of Auxiliary Services Mitchell Karstens said.

Students cannot use meal swipes for the food truck, but may be able to use dining dollars to purchase food truck items.

“One of our driving forces is we want to be able to add eXpress and dining dollars. Cash and credit will always be an option as well,” Karstens said.

Dining services wanted to upgrade the food options next year at St. Thomas’s Division I sporting events with the food truck.

“We really want to elevate the concession experience. We’ll be able to use the food truck for the concessions for any of our outdoor sports like football, baseball, softball, soccer, events like that,” Karstens said.

First-year student Zack Utschinski said the food truck would be a great addition because “the dining halls often have repetitive meals.”

“I like the food at the dining halls, but the repetition of meals makes the dining options bland at times. I would definitely wait in a long line for new food options offered at the food truck,” Utschinski said.

Dining Services understand long lines might be a possibility.

“We have a plan to scale the truck’s ability to serve based on the number of people we expect,” Karstens said.

First-year student Mariah Michalski typically purchases at least one food item at each sporting event she attends and would be willing to wait in a line for a new food option.

“I think a food truck will offer a unique and accessible option at sporting events and something I am really looking forward to,” Michalski said.

The menu on the food truck will be tiered, so the menu depends on how large the audience is or the group that is requesting the food truck, ranging from candy to fried cheese curds.

St. Thomas students will also be able to help out with the food truck.

“The catering team is going to be the group that handles the food truck, and they hire student employees all the time. Students will be working the cash register, working inside the truck and working with the professional staff,” Karstens said.

Dining Services hopes the new food truck allows students to have more variety in their dining options.

“We want to create something fun and exciting that students can engage with in totally different ways and keep it interesting, providing different types of food that students can engage with,” Karstens said.

Natalie Hoepner can be reached at hoep8497@stthomas.edu.