Treetops adopts new biweekly quesadilla stance

By Joe Pelone
Collegian Editor
January 30, 2008

Students returning from winter break this semester may have noticed a significant reduction in cheese-related Mexican food in Treetops Café during dinner hours. That's right, the almighty quesadilla had been dumped from post-sundown meals.

Several students expressed concern over the quesadilla-less dinner menu.

“One of the reasons I go down to Treetops is to get a quesadilla, because it's something The Blue and Gold Dining Commons doesn't have,” junior biology major Joe Quintiliani said.

According to Director of Food Services Robert Nyce, not everyone reputedly enjoyed this food.

“The reason the quesadillas were removed from the cycle menu was for lack of interest,” he said.

Reports indicated that while the item showed great initial popularity at the start of the fall 2007 semester, the number of quesadillas made drastically fell as time went on. Nyce estimates that Treetops serves about 700 students for dinner every night, so when the eatery reported making as few as one or two quesadillas per night, they were discontinued as a dinner option.

However, just three weeks after the decision was made, questions from Collegian prompted Nyce to reconsider. Starting Feb. 2, expect to see tortillas and cheese for dinner back at the Mongolian Grill every other week.

“If you see the same item, it’s not variety. If we change that item, it makes it more desirable,” Nyce said.

As of press time, an alternate item for quesadilla’s off-weeks had not been named.

After dealing with the matter, Nyce and Treetops Supervisor John Williamson opted to add a “Napkin Board,” a message board where students can make suggestions for the dining commons by jotting down ideas on a napkin and posting them. A similar board had existed in the Blue and Gold Dining Commons three years ago, and then was brought back last year due to popular demand.

pelonej1@lasalle.edu