Students have already shared that the new Hamiltons dining space feels open and inviting.
Credit: Ellie Anderbyrne’05

On a chilly mid-January day, students in coats, hats, and scarves reentered Hamiltons Café for the first time in months. The Powerhouse eatery reopened as the main dining hall on the first day of the spring semester with expanded kitchens and eating area.

Its first student customer, Ryan Ulmen’28 of Los Angeles, was greeted by the college’s Chief of Staff Ellie Anderbyrne’05 and VP for Facilities Dan Schooff, and balloons to celebrate the opening.

Ryan Ulmen’28 was awarded a balloon as the first student to dine in the newly renovated Hamiltons.
Credit: Ellie Anderbyrne’05

Students continued to file in, dropping off their winter gear off in new cubbies at the entrance to Hamiltons. The space still has coveted high-top seating and cozy booths, as well as traditional tables and chairs. A main dining area is enclosed, while additional seating surrounding the Powerhouse’s first floor is expected to help ease foot traffic in Hamiltons and visually fill out the space.

The new dining hall is already garnering admiration from students, especially as the windows in Hamiltons showed the sun coming up over the Rock River. “I like the view,” said Sam Feldman’24 of Brooklyn, New York. Juan Calzada’27, from Madison, was happily surprised with the new layout. “It works — it’s spacious. The variety of food is a big upgrade from Chapin.” Evan Miranda’27, from Oregon, said, “I think the layout for getting the food is more open.”

When asked what’s best about the new Hamiltons, Danae Jaggard’26, who’s from the central Illinois area, said, “I liked the bacon. It’s always a good day when we have bacon.”