On Saturday mornings, there’s nothing more I’d like to do than go to my favorite nearby coffee shop on campus, Littlefield Patio Cafe. However, if I do so, I’ll arrive at the door only to face the disappointment of it being closed. 

Many on campus restaurants and coffee shops like Littlefield Patio Cafe and Beyond Burrito are closed on the weekends, leaving students without a meal plan or who don’t like dining hall food to have to venture off-campus to eat. UHD should ensure more on-campus restaurants are open on the weekends.

Design freshman Dorian Villalba said that for some students, the on-campus restaurants and cafes are where they get the majority of their food.

“I feel like some people rely on some of the cafes (because) they don’t like the dining room food,” Villalba said. “So I feel like some people would benefit if they have the cafes (and) restaurants open (on the weekends).”

For picky eaters, the dining halls can be a tricky option for meals unless you want to live off of pizza and burgers. 

Villalba said that many of her peers will choose not to eat at all if the restaurants they usually go to are closed.

“I know I’ve heard some of my peers (say) ‘oh, I was going to go eat somewhere on campus and then it was closed’ so they don’t end up eating,’” Villaba said. “I feel like it would help people.”

Director of dining operations Mynor Rivera said that on-campus restaurants and cafes are often closed on the weekends because they are short-staffed. UHD does, however, have a plan to reopen Jester Java, PCL’s Prufrock Cafe and Kins Coffee on December 1.

“That’s the goal,” Mynor said. “We always have a goal in mind, right? We set the date and everything but sometimes, you know, equipment or the facilities or something (goes wrong). That’s why (Prufrock Cafe) isn’t open yet, because (it) was supposed to be open two weeks ago, but we got an issue with the plumbers.”

If UHD has the staff to reopen other cafes, why can’t they fully staff the ones that are currently open for the entirety of the week? They should be focusing on making sure restaurants that serve actual food are fully open every day, rather than dedicating staff to open new coffee shops. 

UHD keeps reopening restaurants but neglects the closed hours of on-campus restaurants due to short-staffing. While it is exciting that they are trying to make everything normal again, UHD shouldn’t be opening new restaurants and cafes if they can’t keep the ones currently open fully staffed. 

Harrison is a journalism freshman from Dallas, Texas.