New SHU Dining Hall – Thea’s Abbey

Along with welcoming the new freshman class and all previous students back on campus for the fall 2021 semester, Sacred Heart University has also welcomed a new dining hall called Thea’s Abbey to their campus. The dining hall is located in the new residence hall, Thea Bowman Hall.

“I believe this hall, like the others, has distinct characteristics well beyond the setting itself. Pioneer Village has become another gathering place beyond the Chapel Quad,” said President Petillo, President of Sacred Heart.

This brand new dining hall offers Breakfast & Co. (grill all day), SONO (Latin- inspired menu), Deli on Park Ave. (New York deli-style sandwiches), a pizza and pasta station featuring handmade pastas, and stations for beverages. Also, to make things easy when students just want a quick grab and go, BOOST mobile ordering is available at select stations. 

“Our chef was very excited to bring in some different types of kitchen equipment for this dining hall. We built the plans for this space to allow for our new pizza oven, the Marra Forni that makes pizza in a rotating oven in under 90 seconds. We also made room for a pasta maker so that we could offer the freshest pastas on campus,” said Kayla Hawley, Sacred Heart’s Marketing Director. 

Along with Thea’s Abbey being a new and exciting place for students on and off campus to gather and eat, it is also a location with a new quad to gather on.

“I really enjoy the new dining hall,” said sophomore John Martello. “Since I live in Scholars Commons, it is very convenient having a dining hall so close to the dorm. Given this is my second year on campus, it is nice to have another food option with such great choices.”

Off-campus students are also enjoying the new dining option.

“Although I am an off-campus student, since I am required to have the commuter meal plan package. I have been utilizing the dining dollars this semester because of the new dining hall. As a senior living in a house off-campus, preparing and cooking after a long day of classes can be exhausting. I am very happy that the new dining hall has opened for this reason because of the healthier and tasteful food it includes,” said senior Gabriella Tamburri.

The Sacred Heart community is excited to experience this new dining hall and what’s to come with it in the future.

 “My team and myself are just more excited about offering another destination for dining for students,” said Hawley. “As we continue to grow over the semester, we are most looking forward to adding things to our program and introducing some trendy menus to the campus. We are excited to finish up the outdoor dining area and begin to use it for programming. With such great fall days ahead of us, outdoor dining still has a chance to happen this year.”

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