Citrus quinoa salad featuring bitter herbs and a balsamic drizzle — part of the tasting menu created for Appalachian’s Terra Verde dining station. Photo submitted
BOONE, N.C. — For Campus Dining at Appalachian State University, sustainability is a priority but so is creativity and flavor. With Terra Verde — the newly revamped dining station in Appalachian’s on-campus Rivers Street Cafe — creativity and sustainability go hand in hand.
Terra Verde, which means “green earth,” features inventive culinary options for diners who appreciate and/or follow a plant-forward diet — which Campus Dining defines as a diet that focuses on, but is not limited to, healthy and sustainable plant-based foods.
Early reviews have been positive. Dr. Tonya Coffey, professor in Appalachian’s Department of Physics and Astronomy and director of the department’s physics-secondary education program, took time to write Campus Dining after sampling the food, saying it was of the same quality as food served in local restaurants noted for fresh, health-conscious menus.
“Campus Dining is a self-operated facility that provides creative, intentional and dynamic meal options for the Appalachian Community,” said Pam Cline, director of campus dining.
This polenta cake — a dish made by Terra Verde chefs — features jalapeno corn relish, local vegetable gazpacho and tarragon oil. Photo submitted
Through its partnerships with the university’s Office of Sustainability and local nonprofit Hunger and Health Coalition (HHC), Campus Dining has worked to further purposefully sustainable practices in Appalachian’s dining facilities. Terra Verde is just one of many examples:
- In 2016, Campus Dining replaced all Styrofoam products with paper to-go products.
- Unserved food at Appalachian is donated daily to HHC.
- Campus Dining employee uniforms are made from recycled plastic bottles.
- In the 2018–19 academic year, Campus Dining reduced single-use plastic straw usage on campus by 444,000 straws, as compared to the 2017–18 school year (August 2017–March 2018).
Operating hours for Terra Verde are 7 a.m.–7:30 p.m. Monday–Thursday and 7 a.m.–2 p.m. Friday.
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About Campus Dining
Campus Dining is owned and operated by Appalachian State University and offers dining services tailored to the campus community’s specific needs. With three dining facilities and daily catering events, Campus Dining provides opportunities for nourishment and also building and fostering relationships over shared meals and experiences. Campus Dining is committed to serving the Appalachian Community using sustainable practices such as local sourcing and contributing to campus composting and a constantly evolving partnership with the Office of Sustainability. Learn more at https://dining.appstate.edu.
About Appalachian State University
As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls nearly 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.
