Texas Christian University’s renovation of its 18-year-old Market Square dining facility has produced BLUU Dining, an eight-platform hall in the Brown-Lupton University Union that is now averaging 4,000 meals a day. That is double the meal count recorded when the facility closed for construction in December 2025, according to Jude Kiah, associate vice chancellor for student affairs business and operations.
The project was part of a $17 million overhaul of the union and opened in August 2026. BLUU Dining covers about 13,000 square feet, with another 4,500 square feet for food platforms and back-of-house space. It seats 550 indoors and 120 on a patio. Its peak day so far has reached about 5,700 meals; Kiah said the operation could probably produce 8,000 meals a day if pressed.
TCU’s goals were to create a destination dining spot and raise meal-plan participation ahead of expected enrollment growth. Planning began in 2022 with surveys of student satisfaction. The research found that students disliked the old facility more than the food and valued made-to-order meals over quick service, even when customization meant waiting. Kiah said the team conducted at least six surveys and focus groups before trusting that result.
The design reflects that finding. A salad, deli and to-go platform was moved away from the main servery to a wall of arched windows overlooking campus. The relocated area has become the most popular space, Kiah said, because it is bright and offers a view of the stadium. Its separate to-go window, called Dash, opens into the entrance hallway so time-pressed students can pick up a premade sandwich or salad without entering the servery.
Behind the scenes, the team replaced a narrow passageway with a wide service hall that has individual entrances to each platform, reducing competition for space. The support kitchen received epoxy flooring and a one-for-one replacement of most equipment. A new 800-square-foot walk-in cooler lets staff roll pallets directly inside, unload them onto carts and route product to its destination.
Equipment choices emphasized capacity, flexibility and maintainability. A rotating pizza oven can produce 116 pizzas an hour and bake casserettes on a lower level, while allowing one worker to load from the front and another to unload from the side without reaching into a 550-degree oven. Other additions include a customer-facing soft-serve machine, a round griddle that doubles as a plancha and a pasta station that can switch to breakfast. In general, the team favored low-tech, durable equipment over computer-controlled units, and it consulted its service company on future repair costs and parts availability.
The university opened East End, a dining hall on the opposite side of campus, in January 2025. The same core team—Kiah, facilities and operations director Miles Oller and Sodexo district manager Scott Majestic—led both projects, with Webb Foodservice Design and CannonDesign involved in BLUU Dining. Meal-plan enrollment is now 6,300 and is expected to exceed 8,000 in the coming year. TCU also plans to add 2,500 campus beds next fall.
Kiah said BLUU Dining needed to have “some gravity” compared with East End and is doing so. The next task is operation. “It’s off to a very good start,” he said.