Oct. 3, 2023

Hospital food has been the subject of jokes for years, but in the Avera Health system, they take it seriously.

That’s why for decades, the staff responsible for feeding the employees and visitors at the cafeteria at Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center have dreamed of an updated facility.

As of this week, that dream has come true. The updated Cafe 1325 officially opened today.

“The old Cafe 1325 was obsolete and outdated,” said Timothy Erickson, Avera McKennan manager of food and nutrition services. “It’s been many, many, many years — 50-plus — since anything was updated and done to it. The flooring was like Sixth Street, the old section with cobblestones. The equipment served its purpose for many, many years, and it was getting to the point where it needed to be retired.”

Originally designed as space for 500 to 800 people, the demands on the seating area were much greater.

“There were always people looking for seats, and we didn’t have other options,” Erickson said.

For more than 25 years, hospital officials had talked about needing an update and new space, said Amanda Viau Hopkins, who oversees food services across the Avera region. With so many demands on the hospital’s budget, plans for renovation kept being pushed back. About four years ago, it was decided to improve the cafeteria area, but COVID-19 spiked costs and drastically slowed the supply chain.

It looked as if the cafeteria remodeling would have to wait, Viau Hopkins said. Then, an anonymous donor stepped in.

“We were given additional dollars from a donor to make sure the cafeteria did not get pushed to the wayside,” she said. “The gift made sure it came to fruition. … I would hug them, literally, if I knew who they were.”

Hospital officials worked with the architecture, design and planning firm BWBR and other firms when designing the new Cafe 1325, named after its location at 1325 S. Cliff Ave.

“Tim and I kind of had a really interesting sketch-out — there were many napkins involved in our original thoughts,” Viau Hopkins said. “We shared our thoughts and what we really wanted. They heard what we wanted to accomplish and helped make it a better flow and a reality.”

The remodeled cafeteria has no more square footage than the old space, but users now can navigate it more efficiently. Most people who come in for meals are hospital staff or providers, Viau Hopkins said. They didn’t want to wait in line until a food station became available for service.

In addition, more segregated seating areas were established, Erickson said. That offers more privacy for family members who want to call home with updates on patients’ conditions while taking a break.

The cafeteria space has updated countertops, and the lighting, once harsh, now looks soft and inviting, Viau Hopkins said. She praised the design team’s choice of wallpaper, fixtures and the logo that now greets visitors.

“The pieces of equipment are intended for collaboration and communication between those we are serving and our staff,” Viau Hopkins said. “It’s engineered to create relationships and make friends and have the ability to see if anybody needs a bit of extra help.”

The food also underwent a remodeling of sorts. In the past, food was brought in from a kitchen about a block away. Onion rings brought over through an underground tunnel could not be kept crispy. To ensure the meals are fresh and hot each time, food is now prepared on-site.

Cafe 1325 also can cater to people with food allergies and issues such as celiac disease, Erickson said

Menus are rotated on a three-week basis, and the remodeled Cafe 1325 has a new “heritage station,” where food will be offered from diverse cultures, ranging from German and Bosnian to Mediterranean and Lakota. Staff will be able to submit recipes, such as food their grandmother used to serve, and it can be featured at that station, Erickson said.

In addition, there is a grill station, and new offerings will include items such as breakfast pizza. That’s because a dual conveyor oven will allow staff to set speeds to offer hot sandwiches and personal-pan pizzas in four minutes.

“We have a lot more opportunities to not offer the same thing,” Erickson said. “We’ll keep that excitement up. We can do fun things throughout the day. In the afternoon, we can run chocolate chip cookies for people and warm brownies.”

During the months of construction, kitchen staff offered an abbreviated menu in the former General Store, which combined with the gift shop.

“We utilized every square inch, and we had a variety of food like sandwiches that were pre-made,” Erickson said. “There was an hour and 40 minutes where it got cozy in the space, but the staff stepped up, and we’ve gotten through … (but) we’re ready for our new home.”

In the past, he said, people without hospitalized friends and family would drive across town when favorite recipes were being served at Cafe 1325. The cafeteria is open to the public, Erickson said.

Now, those fans of Cafe 1325 soups and chili, among other meals, can come to a newly renovated space.

“(I’m grateful for) the ability from a donor to create this space, to our leadership who is encouraging us to make it our own and to work with our resources to make it happen, and our team that has been completely upended for last nine months (and) are excited but nervous to come into a new space,” Viau Hopkins said. “They’re the ones leading this charge.”