Idaho State extends campus-dining partnership with Chartwells

The contract extension was approved by the Idaho State Board of Education during their meeting on Wednesday.

After collecting feedback from campus focus groups and reviewing student surveys, Chartwells, operating at Idaho State as Bengal Dining Services, announced Wednesday that a Chick Fil-A location will open on the Pocatello campus in Fall 2021, and a Starbucks will open in 2022. 

Bengal Dining Services will continue to provide a food service program emphasizing quality, made-to-order food, menu customization, variety and value.

The Bengal Dining team is also welcoming Solon Pietila as the new dining services director. A culinarian with more than 15 years’ experience in higher education dining, Pietila is dedicated to evolving the guest experience to meet the dynamic needs of students and the Idaho State campus community. 

To continue the student-centric program approach, Bengals will experience several enhancements across campus, including:

• Boost mobile ordering – Available now for cash and credit card purchases. It offers convenience, increased speed of service and food pick-up.

• New point-of-sale system – Faster technology that will offer touchless payment options with Apple Pay and Samsung Pay for safe, contactless checkouts.

• Enhanced meal plans with additional dining dollars and meal equivalency available.

• New Carved & Crafted catering menu – More variety, stress-free ordering and contactless service options. Bengal Dining Services was awarded second place for Idaho’s Best Caterer in 2019.

To bring the dining experience to life in a hands-on way, students will continue to enjoy fun, engaging culinary education with Teaching Kitchen events featuring Chef Chris, and guest chefs, streamed online so guests can experience a delicious good time from the comfort and safety of their home. Past events included overnight oats, breakfast mugs, dalgona coffee and ramen. Stay tuned for upcoming events throughout the semester. 

For more information, visit dineoncampus.com/isu or follow @bendaldining on Instagram.

About Chartwells Higher Education Dining Services

Chartwells is the recognized leader in contract food service management, hospitality and award-winning guest service in over 300 campuses in the United States. Chartwells' nutritious cuisine not only satisfies the unique appetites, lifestyles and dietary needs of every guest dining on campus, but it also brings people together to promote the high-intensity relationships that will prepare students for the future. For more information, visit ChartwellsHigherEd.com.

Idaho State University, a Carnegie-classified doctoral high research activity university and teaching institution founded in 1901, attracts students from around the world to its Idaho campuses. At the main campus in Pocatello, and at locations in Meridian, Idaho Falls and Twin Falls, ISU has nine Colleges, a Graduate School and a Division of Health Sciences that together offer more than 250 certificate and degree programs. More than 12,000 students attend ISU. Idaho State University is the state's designated lead institution in health professions.