Skip to main content

Dining

Instagram photo of House tables
House tables in Cathey Dining Commons. Follow us on Instagram.

Each day, students gather in UChicago's dining halls to eat, relax, and build community over great food. Learn more about UChicago Dining, take a look at current menus, and see how dietary needs are accommodated.

House tables

Each House has a designated House Table in one of the four dining commons, a place for eating meals, but also for planning the next House excursion, continuing discussions that started in class, collaborating on assignments, and talking about any topic under the sun. From current events, to a tricky physics problem involving direct current, to the delicious currant scones you had at the last study break, it's all fair game in House table conversations.

Having a House table means that whenever you decide to head to the dining hall, you'll have a place to sit among familiar faces. In a practical sense, the House table gives you a chance to interact with an even broader group of your peers than you otherwise would on a daily basis.

Meal plan

The UChicago Dining program provides healthy, well-prepared meals while also providing the flexibility desired by students. All first-year students have a meal plan that gives continuous and unlimited access to the dining hall. After first year, students choose the meal plan that best suits their needs.

Instagram photo of Hutchinson Commons
Hutchinson Commons, home to a food court.

The meal plan has two components:

  • Meals eaten in the campus dining commons (Bartlett, Cathey, Woodlawn, and Baker Dining Commons)
  • Maroon Dollars that may be spent either for additional meals in the dining commons (for guests) or at select retail locations on campus

Menu options

The dining hall menus change on a daily basis and both venues offer a wide variety of entrees. Dining options include:

  • Vegetarian
  • Vegan
  • Gluten-free
  • Zabiha Halal
  • Glatt-certified Kosher stations
  • On your schedule

Students enjoy “continuous dining” seven days a week. You may come and go at any point, thanks to all-day at the dining commons from open until close. Saturday dinner is not offered in the dining commons; many Houses use this opportunity to plan House dinners and off-campus cultural events.