The final course of the meal, the “Love Heart”, consisted of appealing layers of vanilla biscuit, raspberry coulis, white chocolate mousse and hazelnut praline crunch.
CHRIS COLAVITO/COURTESY
By Jill Tuthill, Arts & Entertainment Editor
From chicken fingers and fries to firecracker salmon and rock shrimp, students celebrated Valentine’s Day with waited service and decadent three-course meals at Locke’s Loft.
Students arrived for their reservations in their Sunday best at the college’s dining hall and prepared to be seated in the often restricted Murray Room, where red tablecloths, folded napkins and floral arrangements welcomed them at their seats.
The menu, which consisted of flaky pot-pie style shrimp appetizers and chicken breast with arrabbiata sauce, among other novel items, proved to be a significant step up from Locke’s traditional buffet-style dining experience.
Students enjoyed catered service by dining staff as they were poured glasses of freshly brewed iced tea and lemonade alongside canned sodas to accompany their meals. The event cost one meal swipe per seat at a table.
The Locke’s staff held two seating times for the Valentine’s Day restaurant night: one at 5 pm, and another at 6:30 pm to allow time for the changing of tableware and food preparation.
In order to be admitted into the event and placed at a table, students were required to make a reservation on an online form, distributed to resident students via an email from Residence Life.
Chris Colavito, a junior biology major who attended the 5 p.m. seating, told The Quadrangle that he experienced some lapses in service throughout the duration of the event, but it did not drastically shift the tone of the experience.
Despite these inconsistencies in the service provided at the meal, the experience was worth spending an evening on, according to Colavito.
“The main entrees were salty, but other than that, the ambiance was good,” Colavito said. “All in all, I would say it was above expectations, but not by a lot.”
Analia Santana and Justin Atwater, junior communication majors, agreed with Colavito’s thoughts about the service and reached out to the dining staff to provide feedback regarding the issue.
In their email to the staff, they noted inconsistencies with menu options depending on which server they were speaking with and the excess saltiness of their entrees.
General manager Edward Gomez replied to their concerns via email after the event, writing, “We will be better for the next restaurant night as far as reservations, food and beverage options.”
Gomez also wrote that their team had since re-trained their staff to iron out the miscommunications regarding the menu.
“I hope they do it again because I thought it was very, very sweet,” Santana said. “And I think it’s a good option for students who don’t know where to go in Manhattan or the Bronx and want to do something special for Valentine’s Day with their friends or with their partners. The concept was really good. I think the execution could have been better.”
Atwater agreed with Santana’s hope for the continuation of the restaurant night series at Locke’s.
“I think the opportunity of the service was really nice,” Atwater said. “And it was really beautiful of Manhattan College to have that program. I just hope that they take advantage of this opportunity to make it better for the future.”