UAB Media Relations
UAB Hospital’s Food Court, the North Pavilion Market Place, will observe its official grand opening starting at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 21. Features will include raffles, giveaways, discount coupons and food samplings - and a visit from the Chick-fil-A cow. The food court is modeled after those in malls, with a variety of dining options.
The dining venue, located on the second floor of the hospital’s new main building, covers 19,000 sq. ft., with room for expansion. Its hours of operation are 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday.
In addition to Chick-fil-A it includes Starbucks, Freshens Smoothie Company, pasta, pizza and salads by Pandini's Italian Cuisine, hot meats and vegetables from Charleston Market and a grab-and-go selection of salads, wraps and sandwiches.
“We wanted to provide something different than the usual hospital food offerings for the several thousand staff and visitors who want quick, quality food and service,” according to Anthony Patterson, UAB Hospital associate vice president. “There are plenty of nutritious options and also a lot of comfort-food choices, so there’s something for everyone.”
The hospital signed a lease agreement with Sodexho USA - Healthcare Division, which assembled the food concepts based on input from a hospital committee of faculty and staff.
Gary Wells, Sodexho’s general manager, said, “Sodexho Health Care has invested in the food court to make it one of the most unique food service offerings in the health care industry today. We have relationships with other large teaching hospitals, but this is unique in that we rent the space and own and operate all of the food formats.” All food is cooked fresh on the premises with much of that food being made to order in front of the customer.”