The construction should be completed late spring 2021, and the building be open and accessible in August. Pritchard Dining Hall will open for the 2021 fall semester.

The hours haven’t been finalized yet, but it will be open 7 days a week, early morning to late evening.

Pritchard will be open for anyone on campus to eat. Anyone not on a meal plan will pay at the entrance, and they will then have the same access to all-you-care-to-eat (AYCTE) while in the dining hall.

For 2021/22, in conjunction with the opening of the Pritchard Dining Hall, the meal plan at UBCO will be changing from a declining balance meal to All You Care To Eat (AYCTE).  What’s the difference?

• A declining balance meal plan works similar to a debit card. The value of the meal plan is determined by which meal plan is purchased, and each time a purchase is made the cost is deducted from the meal plan.
• An AYCTE meal plan does not have a declining balance. With this meal plan a student can go to the dining hall at any time, eat what they want, and not have to worry about cost. They are not limited to the amount of times they can enter the dining hall, or what they want to eat when in the dining hall.

No, it's open to all students. Students living in suite-style residences or off campus can purchase a meal plan. They also have the option of purchasing a set number of meals that are then added to their UBCcard. Each time they enter Pritchard, a meal is deducted.

The AYCTE portion of the meal plan is only for Pritchard Dining Hall. Due to the nature of the dining plan, there are no takeout meals. For those looking for a quick breakfast on the way to an early morning class, there will be fruit, some baked goods, and coffee available to take outside of the dining hall. If you are looking to dine outside of the dining hall, then flex dollars can be used at those locations.

There will still be flex dollars and they can be used at any of the other dining locations on campus, including those operated by the UBCSUO and the off campus partners that we currently have.

Any money that you have in Carryover from prior years can still be used at all dining location on campus, including those operated by the UBCSUO, and the off campus partners. Carryover can also be used to pay for an AYCTE meal at Pritchard.

There are several reasons for the change.

• Food Security is a growing issue with society as a whole, but it’s even greater with students. With a declining balance meal plan, if it is not budgeted for use spread out over 8 months, students can run low on money.
• Healthy food is generally more expensive, which results in people being more likely to ‘not splurge’ on something that they would rather have in order to save money. We want to remove this obstacle to healthy eating.
• Eliminate buyer’s remorse. When in restaurants people are less likely to try something new, since they may not like it and still need to pay. Students will have new and different options to try, with the option of choosing something else if it’s not for them.
• While not a direct reason to change to AYCTE, an additional benefit is sustainability. Having meals only available in the dining hall eliminates takeout packaging, plastic bottles, disposable coffee cups, and the smaller portion size (since you can go back for more food) ensures that less food is discarded.

There will be a wide selection of food, spread across a half-dozen stations, each specializing in a different type of food. This will include plant-based options. The stations will have their favourites that are always available, but also rotating options that change daily.

We will have a wide range of vegan/vegetarian and gluten-free options. We will also have non-dairy alternatives, and pay close attention to the top allergens. The nutritional information will also be available on Nutrislice.

We also have a Manager of Nutrition & Wellbeing that can help with finding the right items for you.