JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph's Rendezvous Dining Facility has endured cost-cutting measures and faced the possibility of closure in recent years, but a renovation project scheduled to begin in early June will transform the facility.
After closing nearly six months for the project, the DFAC will reopen sometime this fall with a new look and a wider range of food offerings while accommodating a more diverse customer base - anyone with access to JBSA-Randolph. The DFAC's last day of operation is May 31.
"We're one of five Air Force dining facilities that will go through a transformation this year," Robert Murray, 802nd Force Support Squadron food operations officer, said. "We will be closed for a short period of time and when we reopen, we'll have a more college campus-style atmosphere with food stations."
The project is part of the Air Force Materiel Command's Food Transformation Initiative that began in 2010 at bases that included Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark., McDill AFB, Fla., and Travis AFB, Calif. This year's round of renovation projects will affect facilities at JBSA-Randolph, Dover Air Force Base, Del., Cannon AFB, N.M., Minot AFB, N.D., and Goodfellow AFB, Texas.
In 2012, budget cuts forced the JBSA-Randolph DFAC to limit use to pay grades E-5 and below and to authorized members on temporary duty and the facility faced closure last year, Murray said.
"It's very difficult to close a DFAC and even harder to open it back up, so we kept it open," he said. "The Air Force found there was a need to keep the DFAC open, especially for the mission."
The $1.5 million renovation project under contractor Sodexo USA will replace the serving lines and seating area and add several food stations, John Creel, 802nd FSS food operations manager, said.
"It will bring the facility more in line with what you would find on a college campus," he said. "More colors will be added to brighten up the facility and enhance the decorum."
Murray said the food stations will offer deli items, pizza, desserts, bakery items, drinks and a variety of other choices.
"The project will allow us to increase the amount of variety we have in the dining facility," he said.
Creel said he believes Airmen will like the new concept "because of the food variety and flexibility it provides."
Greater access will be another plus, he said.
"While we haven't coordinated the exact operating hours of the DFAC, they will significantly increase to allow customers greater access," Creel said. "Our goal is to more than double the operating hours. More food variety will be added to the menu as a 28-day menu cycle is rolled out versus the 21-day cycle we currently use, and of course we'll continue to provide nutritious meals."
Pricing will be different as well, Murray said, though it won't affect Airmen who have a meal card.
"It will be more comparable to off-base prices," he said.
One of the biggest benefits of the transformed DFAC will be its access to all ID cardholders, including retirees, Murray said.
"We're now averaging 100 to 125 diners a day, but we expect to at least triple that," he said.
Creel said the change will allow entire work sections to dine together regardless of rank or status.
In addition, he said, "families will be able to enjoy a meal in the DFAC whenever they like."
Creel said he visited Beale AFB, Calif., one of the 13 locations where the FTI concept is already in operation, and had the opportunity to speak with a few young Airmen about their experiences.
"All of them raved about the quality of the food, DFAC hours, decorum and the flexibility campus dining brings," he said. "This is a fantastic concept and one of the best changes to the Air Force Food Service program in many years."
Murray said customers will be "amazed" at the changes.
"I'm really excited for the Airmen," he said. "They're the reason for the dining facility in the first place."