Author: Desroches, Rebecca

Spring Valley Farm Summer Housing App

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Spring Valley Student Farm (SVSF) sprouted in spring 2010 from a project planted by Residential Life. Since that time SVSF has blossomed into a year-round community for eleven student farmers living in two UConn houses 4.5 miles off-campus. The student farmers learn about sustainable community living, organic food growing methods and the business aspects of how food is harvested, processed and presented to the UConn dining community. As stewards and ambassadors of the farm, the student farmers support Spring Valley Student Farm as an educational destination where everyone may come together to learn and grow.

Spring Valley Student Farm exists as a collaborative venture between Dining Services, Residential Life, EcoHouse Learning Community and First-Year Programs, the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources, and the Office of Environmental Policy.

 Students who live at SVSF are expected to volunteer 10 hours per week of labor to qualify for a significantly discounted room rental rate.

Click below for the Summer 2020 Housing App. Apply today – only a few spots are available.

https://dining.uconn.edu/svsf-housing/

The deadline to apply is March 24th, 2020.

Hours of Operation: March 22 until Further Notice

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3/13/20

With the announcement of classes moving online for the rest of the semester due to COVID-19, Dining has made the following adjustments to our hours of operation and locations. We will share information as it becomes available and/or may change. Thank you for your patience during this time.

Residential Dining

Sunday, March 22nd until further notice.

South Dining Hall will be open with a limited menu for students that have been approved to reside on campus.
PLEASE NOTE:
  • Meals will be take-out only due to recommendations from the Center for Disease Control. Take-out containers will be provided at South. Please do not bring your own containers or drink bottles. Please review our guidelines for take-out food.
  • All meal plans have been shut off. Meals are being offered for only those students who have been approved to reside on campus.
  • Students temporarily on campus for moving out will not have access to the dining hall.
  • Summer Meal Plan information
Breakfast 7:00am – 9:30am
Lunch 11:30am – 2:15pm
Dinner 4:15pm – 7:15pm
Retail Locations & Hours
  • Beginning March 14th – Freshens closed until further notice.
  • Beginning March 22nd – All Dining Services locations in the Student Union are closed until further notice.
  • Beginning March 22nd – – All campus cafes will be closed until further notice.
  • Beginning March 19th – Dairy Bar/Dairy Bar truck/Food Truck closed until further notice.

Chef Profile: Angel Soto

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Angel Soto: Q&A

With almost four decades of creating menus and serving students, you could say chef Angel Soto is a familiar and welcome face in the dining halls at UConn. After graduating from the culinary arts program at EC Goodwin Tech, Angel got his hands-on experience serving large groups through food services in the Army. In 1996 he retired from the Army with 20 years of service, four years in active duty and the remainder in the reserves. After leaving active duty he joined UConn Dining Services and also returned to EC Goodwin Tech for a few years as a chef instructor for the adult bilingual education program.

Today you can find Angel in Buckley Dining Hall whipping up omelets for students to start their day. He also currently serves as the UNITE Here Steward and Executive Board Member.

What do you love about working at UConn?

What I enjoy about working at UConn is the interaction and service we provide to our students. The greatest satisfaction for me is receiving the many thanks and compliments from students on a daily basis and for that I’m grateful!

Working at UConn has allowed me to meet many people with skills that have influenced me in many ways. With skills gained along the way, I’ve been able to continue my passion for creating menus and keeping my love for the culinary arts alive.

I have achieved many accomplishments throughout my 39 years in food service here at UConn, but the two achievements that stand out the most for me was receiving the SUBOG Employee of the Month in 1985, voted on by the students and Employee of the Year in 2011, voted by my peers.

What is your favorite thing to cook at UConn?

I enjoy cooking all types of food, but my favorite would have to be whipping up omelets at the omelet station. We provide students with many options to create their omelets and working at this station allows me to interact with the students and for me, that is so rewarding!

What is your favorite thing to cook at home?

I cook many meals at the home front, but believe it or not I’m not the head chef at home, my wife is!  She’s a great cook and I appreciate her taking that duty on. But when I do cook at home my family would say that their favorite is my Puerto Rican cuisine dishes. I grew up in a very large family with six brothers and four sisters. You would often find my mother in the kitchen creating Puerto Rican dishes for my siblings and me. I would say she and many of my aunts influenced me to become a chef!

In The News: Spring Valley Student Farmer Dan Mitola

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Meet UConn Spring Valley student farmer Dan Mitola! He was featured in UConn Today.

Daniel Mitola has taken an interesting educational path, merging his love for both writing and the natural world. He’d love to pursue a career that includes sustainable vegetable production and beekeeping, while writing about his adventures. Read more about his experiences as a UConn student.