The biggest restaurant in town: Around-the-clock dedication makes campus dining ‘indispensable’ to Illinois State

The delivery truck pulls away from Illinois State University’s Culinary Support Center (CSC) at Watterson Dining Commons at 6 a.m. to drop off goodies at dining spots around campus, but chefs and bakers have been up and at ’em since 3 a.m., prepping and baking for the day’s first wave of hungry Redbirds.

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Illinois State: Summer 2025

When DesaRae Fowler, unit chef for Event Management, Dining, and Hospitality (EMDH), arrives at the CSC to begin her workday at 5 a.m., the first thing she does is change into her chef’s coat. That’s when she’s in her element—the kitchen—where for 23 years she’s helped feed tens of thousands of students.

You read that right, tens of thousands. For perspective, consider this: There were over 7,400 meal plan holders during the spring 2025 semester. Chances are that each of those customers stopped in for a snack more than one time during a typical day.

According to EMDH, on average there are 10,200 card swipes—swiping an ID is how students access campus dining locations—per day and 67,500 per week. It sounds about right that Fowler and her colleagues meet that demand by baking over 3,000 cookies and enough cake to feed 700 people every day.

Ursula Ganci has worked for EMDH for more than 17 years and has been a unit chef for four years. Serving meals to so many people has become routine.

“I have worked in residential dining for quite some time, so it’s second nature to think of production on the scale that we produce,” she said. “Providing menu variety is a constant challenge, but it’s one that we tackle with creativity and adaptability.”

Fowler said that despite the large clientele served by campus dining, she has become accustomed to preparing meals on a large scale.

“I think that when you are working within a commercial operation as big as ours, the sheer volume of items that we produce daily and the number of people that we serve becomes pretty normal,” she said, “But one thing that is always at the forefront of my mind is the heavy responsibility of not only making sure that we are serving a great product but to ensure that we are making a product that is prepared safely and in a clean space.”

Seeing customers excited about a menu is one of Ganci’s favorite things about the job. She gets a kick out of it when some of those customers aren’t students.

“My staff is great at what they do. I try not to insert myself into the middle of their production unless they truly need the help.”

—DesaRae Fowler

“I love seeing ISU faculty and staff come dine with us,” she said. “And I love sharing positive customer feedback with our staff.”

So, what’s it like to work at the biggest restaurant in town? Since desserts are Fowler’s specialty, it’s, well, a pretty sweet place.

“I love that we have creative freedom in the bakery and that we are able to add new desserts to the menus that excite our customers,” she said. “It’s not uncommon for a customer to walk up to one of our bakers in the dining center and tell them how good the dessert was last night.”

Jennifer Brandel, associate director of Culinary Arts and Dining Operations for EMDH, knows she has a group of true professionals running a complex department.

“EMDH is the most impressive operation that I’ve ever been a part of,” Brandel said. “Our dining team is a group of highly dedicated individuals committed to ensuring that our students have access to nutritious, delicious meals in an inviting environment.”

And all 800—full-time and student—staff members work hard.

“Hours vary across campus, but operations start at 3 a.m. with our bakers, culinary and sanitation staff gearing up for the day,” Brandel said. “Our last employee turns off the lights at 11 p.m.”

That’s a 20-hour day.

Just after Fowler arrives, she checks in with bakers whose shifts started an hour or two before hers to see if they need help. She then checks on bakery deliveries scheduled to leave the building at 6 a.m. destined for University High School, Marketplace at Linkins, The Landing at the Bone Student Center, Catering, and Watterson Dining Commons.

Fowler said those first two hours when she’s assisting with production and double-checking bakery menus and orders are a crucial part of the day.

“I am able to oversee multiple orders that are going out for the day and check them for accuracy, and it gives me the opportunity to talk to the staff about the menu for the next day and answer any questions they may have about recipes,” she said. “The first two hours are really where we establish our action plan for the day.”

Fowler will jump in to help speed up tasks that can be time-consuming for bakers, like pressing out dough in pans for cookie bars.

“My staff is great at what they do,” she said. “I try not to insert myself into the middle of their production unless they truly need the help.”

“One part of my job I find fulfilling is getting to know as many students as I can. I enjoy talking to them and seeing how college life is treating them.”

—Terri Jordan Lantz

Troy Tomlinson has been at Illinois State for almost three years and is currently an assistant executive chef intern. He has always worked in high-volume food service establishments and finds that feeding so many guests daily makes the job satisfying. A lot of his work is behind the scenes, but he’s aware that students—and their families—are counting on him.

“I feel that responsibility to make sure we are serving the freshest quality food possible,” he said. “It’s important that we make the students happy. Happy students equal happy parents, and that equals a happy staff.”

Fowler, Ganci, and Tomlinson appreciate the importance of the students they serve and the students they work with every day. “They are essential to our daily operation,” Fowler said.

Tomlinson agrees, especially since he interacts regularly with students working in campus dining. “Our student workers are the lifeline between the culinary staff and our student diners,” he said. “We rely on them to do the most important part—serve the food.”

Terri Jordan Lantz also rises early for her job as dining room supervisor at Watterson Dining Commons. She’s been at the University since 2021, and to students, she is the face of campus dining. She starts each shift opening venues and making sure all beverage and condiment stations—and student workers—are in place and ready for the start of the day. The first breakfast customers show up at 7 a.m. She’s also the lead troubleshooter.

“I am responsible for any issues that may arise at the cash register,” she said. “It may be a malfunction with the machine, or maybe a student has an ID card not working. I assist the customer in figuring out the problem.

“But the biggest part of my day includes creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for our guests and student workers.”

When her own daughter went away to school years ago, Jordan Lantz worried if she was eating well, meeting people, and having a good experience. She knows that many of the students she sees are away from home for the first time and facing a difficult adjustment.

“One part of my job I find fulfilling is getting to know as many students as I can,” she said. “I enjoy talking to them and seeing how college life is treating them. It’s important to me as a mom to let them know there is someone here who cares about them.”

Jordan Lantz also loves working with student workers, calling it the best part of her job. She has a special fondness for the international student workers who are so far from home.

“I love learning about their cultures, hearing about their families and how they are adjusting to living in the United States,” she said. “I’ve had the pleasure of meeting their families via FaceTime and in person when they come for graduation.”

Watching them leave, she said, is never easy.

“It’s always tough when our students graduate,” she said. “They are such a big part of my life, and I feel like I’m watching my own child fly the nest.”

Brandel said Fowler, Ganci, Tomlinson, and Jordan Lantz represent the quality of employees working throughout campus dining.  “Beyond providing delicious meals, they play a vital role in supporting students’ well-being, energy, and success,” Brandel said. “That makes them an indispensable part of the University experience.”