Post Classifieds
Off campus dining now an option on meal plan
Bengal Bucks accepted by local vendors
By Jennifer Waters
On September 26, 2012
For Buffalo State students with a meal plan, frequenting favorite late night and off-campus
eateries is now more convenient.
To help expand the dining options offered with a meal plan and to give students more
for their money, local restaurants and select pharmacies in the area are accepting Bengal
Bucks as payment.
"The program was added to the original dining program to give students as many options
as possible since they may not have a lot of funds to go out and eat with," Marketing
Director of Dining Services Marissa Dinello said.
Students can purchase Bengal Bucks whenever they want from the Bengal Card Office in
the library. They can then be spent at the retailer as cash would be, and Chartwells makes
the transaction for the student and reimburses the retailer.
Starting at the end of last semester, Dinello said Chartwells have invited suggestions from
students and allowed them to voice requests.
Chartwells is then obligated to check out the cleanliness and quality of the restaurant
before approving its addition to the participating retailer list.
Armend Islami, manager of Joe's New York Style Pizza on the corner of Grant and Amherst
Street, said he wants students to take advantage of the program since he thinks it's
appealing.
"We wanted to let students know that there's a New York style pizzeria around them since
we know lots of Buff State students are from New York City," he said. "They should come
try us out."
Joe's joined the vendor list at the end of last semester and serves roughly two or three
Buffalo State students a day, Islami said.
"Not all students use Bengal Bucks and not all know they have some. We even have people
who don't know about it but use them when they find out," he said.
Joining Joe's on the list is college student favorite Jim's Steakout on Elmwood Avenue.
Manager Frederick Goldsmith said most of the students he has seen in the restaurant have
come in late at night to take advantage of the new dining possibility.
"We thought about a way to make it easier for students," he said. "All they do is load money
on a card."
Although there is nothing set, Dinello said some locations that have shown interest in
joining the vendor list include Feel-Rite Fresh Market on Delaware Avenue, Tops and
Wegmans supermarkets as well as local convenient stores like Wilson Farms.
Owner of Dolci Café, David Simpson, said he is looking forward to joining the list of vendors
welcoming Buffalo State students.
"We'll get very excited about the students and I hope they love the food," he said.
Although Simpson said he is still in the beginning of the process, he has already been
working on drawing in students.
"We'll now have access to students we wouldn't otherwise," he said. "More students are
hanging out at places like Spot so we're trying to tap into that market as well."
Among the baked goods offered are cakes, cookies, tarts and vegan products, as well as
gelato and sorbet made on-location. All of the recently added cafe foods are made at the
cafe as well, including the bread and pesto for their sandwiches.
Simpson said he thinks Wi-Fi and reasonably priced breakfast items will be among the
most appealing products for students.
"We're full service and hope to soon offer beer and wine as well," he said.
One retailer, Mangoz on Forest Avenue, recently withdrew from the program.
Owner Julie Ramroop said despite the student traffic the program drew to her restaurant,
she was losing more business than she was bringing in.
"The type of kids it was drawing in wasn't the type of customers conducive to maintaining
my family environment," she said. "I would see four to five students on average come in
each day, but it got to the point where I was losing more business than the program was
bringing in because of the rowdy crowds."
Recently joining the list is Hong Kong Kitchen, located at 1120 Elmwood Ave.
Other participating locations include Chocolate Dessert Bar on Chippewa Street, and CVS,
Jim's Steakout and Subway on Elmwood Avenue.
Dinello said Dining Services is constantly updating the list and looking to add new
members.
"Overall we have only heard positive things about the program and we know students
really like the opportunity to use Bengal Bucks elsewhere," Dinello said.
A complete list of vendors can be found at www.dineoncampus.com/bsc, where
suggestions for future vendors can also be made.
--- Brandon Schlager contributed to this report.
Jennifer Waters can be reached by email at waters.record@live.com.
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