Another vendor has entered the race to become the successor to Dame’s Express on Central Campus.
Erik Dailey, owner of Picnic Basket Catering, was the second and last candidate to present a replacement to the outgoing Dame's Express—The Devil’s Picnic—to the Duke University Student Dining Advisory Committee Tuesday. Dailey is currently the owner of the Terrace Café in the Duke Gardens, Café Smith at Smith Warehouse and Café Duson in the Nursing School.
The proposed menu includes all three meals of the day in a Divinity Café tray-style service, Dailey said. The target price of a lunch entrée would be around $10, whereas the maximum price for dinner would be $15.
“As far as service and eating times, we have to have speedy service and get the food out quickly, no matter what time of day people are eating,” Dailey said.
For breakfast and brunch, the menu included make-your-own biscuits, Nutella-stuffed crepes and tofu scramble. Dailey emphasized that pizzas would be a focus of The Devil’s Picnic, which would serve a variety of toppings including fig, bacon, bleu cheese and arugula. Rounding out the proposed menu were a number of sandwiches, soups and salads.
Director of Dining Services Robert Coffey noted that the grab-and-go nature of breakfast would be important for a Central Campus eatery, especially when students are in a rush to get to class in the morning.
When some DUSDAC members mentioned that a good coffee menu would also be essential to the eatery, Dailey expressed interest in the idea.
“That would be a natural transition,” he said. “At Café Duson over at the School of Nursing, probably about 70 percent of our sales come from coffee.”
DUSDAC co-chair Julia Medine, a senior, questioned Dailey about the ability to customize the menu, especially for vegetarians, vegans or those with gluten allergies. Dailey explained that 100 percent of the menu would be customizable to suit a variety of dietary options and that any pizza or sandwich can be made with gluten-free bread or crust.
The committee members then compared The Devil’s Picnic to Trinity Kitchen, a vendor that presented its concept to DUSDAC last Tuesday.
Several members cited the pricing of The Devil’s Picnic as a major concern, noting that students would prefer to eat at cheaper restaurants located on West Campus.
“The way I look at it, the job of this place is to prevent you from going to West Union. [Trinity Kitchen] was more focused on that idea,” said sophomore Aryaman Gupta, a committee member. “This guy was wondering about whether he should have entrees for dinner—I feel like that should be an expectation if you want people to come there instead of West Union.”
Senior Kate Scandura, a committee member, noted that the items on The Devil’s Picnic menu were “well-crafted” with “interesting ingredients,” which would distinguish it from competitors. However, she echoed others’ concerns about pricing and added that students don’t usually go to Dame’s “for a really nice, well-done meal.”
Senior Quinn Steven, co-chair of DUSDAC, worried that the “interesting” nature of the menu would scare off some college students, some of whom are picky eaters.
The committee ultimately decided to send a series of questions to the owners of both Trinity Kitchen and The Devil’s Picnic, and may make a selection during their meeting next Tuesday.
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