RCC Café feeds students where they learn

HAMLET — The Richmond Community College Café is now open for breakfast and lunch not just for students, but for the whole community.

For years, Brent Barbee said that the number one complaint RCC received from students was a lack of food on campus apart from vending machines. A food truck has been available for the past few years, but they were limited in the amount of students they could serve and poor weather conditions meant students couldn’t wait in line.

“We knew that we had a need for a café,” Barbee said. “Our goal was to try to have something that was more than a cafeteria.”

Construction took between 12-14 months. The RichmondCC Café was funded from the ConnectNC bond referendum. It received $7.22 million for facility improvements and renovation. Local grant funds from the Richmond Community Foundation and the Cole Foundation were also used.

The café had a soft opening two weeks ago, and officially opened its doors last Monday.

“We’ve been steady so far, even with COVID,” said Chuck Watson, manager of the café. “We’re still doing 115 some people a day.”

Watson has experience working at Fatz Café for seven years, along with some time at Cook-Out and Chili’s. He was also the quality inspector at VBC Manufacturing for a year, and served in the military for three years.

The menu includes burgers, chicken wings, sandwiches, chicken tenders, quesadillas, baked potatoes, fries as well as many other items.

Watson said they expect to serve over 200 students a day once the college is back at full capacity.

Watson called the “smashburgers” the best burgers in town. They patty their own meat and smash it down, which sears the sides.

He also mentioned positive reviews about their thin, Cauliflower pizza, that has a “real good crunch.” He said the menu is intended to provide students with food that they will find the most appetizing.

“I think it’s a great thing to put on this campus,” second-year student Kaitlynn Williams said. “The prices are good.”

Williams, along with second-year student Dawson Leviner, both described how convenient the location was. They’ve been there four times already, trying chicken tenders, pizza and wings.

“It’s freshly cooked, not microwaved, seasoned well,” said first-year student Matthew Deese.

Students can order through an online app anywhere on campus. Nothing on the menu takes longer than 10 minutes to cook, said Watson.

“We have a quick, fast menu that’s easy to execute with the best quality,” Watson said.

Barbee said that it’s been difficult to figure out the demand with the limited number of students on campus, but said the café has been exceeding their expectations. During the opening last week, students were lined up and ready to try the new food, according to Barbee. So far, burgers are a crowd favorite.

Watson said they take pride in everything they serve, and his favorite thing on the menu is either the burgers or the sausage and bacon breakfast burrito.

“(RCC) educates them through the mind and we’ll feed them and keep them going,” Watson said.