Community Building in the Dining Halls

Your most memorable conversations may well take place around the dinner table with your housemates. Students living in Manzanita, Branner, Wilbur, Stern, Toyon, Crothers/Crothers Memorial, Florence Moore, Roble, Lagunita, Yost, EAST, Murray, Sterling Quad and FroSoCo are required to enroll in one of the R&DE Stanford Dining meal plans, serving seasonal, healthy and culturally diverse food, with vegan, vegetarian, halal and kosher options. In partnership with Residential Education, this historic Stanford tradition of a living and learning environment in the residences and dining halls strongly fosters student community building. The dialogue that occurs with fellow students, faculty or advisors over a meal enhances social and educational opportunities, forms new friendships and builds community in a fun and relaxed environment.

R&DE Stanford Dining bridges multiple academic disciplines to create educational experiences around food in the dining hall. R&DE Stanford Dining promotes food as a multidisciplinary educational experience, as the dining department of the world’s premier research and teaching institution. We engage students in food issues such as those related to health, the environment, social equity and the global economy. Academic programs such as the Faculty Speaker Education Series and dinner lectures, as well as social activities like Midnight Breakfast and themed dinners, will take place at your dining hall.

To keep the atmosphere engaging and fun, the dining halls also feature theme events, just-in-time display cooking, special menus, student cooking competitions and many other festivities. With the help and support of the Student Dining Ambassadors, the dining halls are customized to the needs of each residence and promote two-way conversations between students and dining staff.