Dining Services wins prestigious Ivy Award
Virginia Tech's award-winning dining program has been recognized again. "Restaurants & Institutions" magazine recently named Student Programs' Housing and Dining Services, a department within the Division of Student Affairs, a winner of the Ivy Award, which honors the best foodservice operations and restaurants in the industry.
Each year past Ivy Award winners nominate commercial and non-commercial foodservice organizations for this award — one of the most highly esteemed and coveted awards in the industry. Winners are selected by votes from the magazine’s subscription pool of 140,000 trade professionals, making the Ivy Award a prestigious symbol of acknowledgment from foodservice industry peers.
“We are truly honored to receive the esteemed Ivy Award,” said Rick Johnson, director of Housing and Dining Services. “This award is especially meaningful because each nominee must be selected by a past winner and our peers voted for us. This means that other members of the industry have recognized Virginia Tech for doing an outstanding job. The management and staff of Dining Services strive every day to provide exceptional service to students, and this award is a testament to their talent, dedication, and hard work.”
Virginia Tech’s dining program is no stranger to recognition for excellence in dining. The program has garnered numerous national honors, including a Best Concept Award from Food Management Magazine for the “Medieval Feast & Faire” special event and Gold, Silver, and Bronze Loyal E. Horton Awards from the National Association of College and University Food Services in 2008. Dining Services has also received national awards for D2, West End Market, and Deet’s Place dining centers, and for numerous special programs and events.
The winners of this year’s Ivy Award will be featured in the May 1 issue of "Restaurants & Institutions". They are also invited to attend an award ceremony on May 17 at the Field Museum in Chicago during the National Restaurant Association Show, when they will be formally inducted into the Ivy Society. The society was founded in 1971 to recognize and reward the top foodservice organizations in the business. Its membership includes representatives from the more than 300 winners since the award’s inception.
