Kiva Café undergoes changes in menu

It is a cozy, quaint place in the Indiana Memorial Union that few students are aware of.\nIt is Kiva Café, an alternative eatery that offers students variation from the Market and Burger King.\n"You won't find anything that Kiva offers anywhere else in the Union," said Steven Richards, retail operations manager of the IMU.\nThe cafe features soups, vegetarian and vegan options and is most known for its salad bar. The health food-based cafe has been around for at least 20 years, Richard said, but was previously called The Garden Patch. \nUnion food managers decided to change Kiva's menu this year in order to attract students who want more healthy choices when eating on campus.\nBut Kiva is only open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday in order to accommodate the lunchtime rush. Richards said they have extended its hours in the past, but it lost money because of a lack of business. \nThe café only features three items from the old menu: the salad bar, the portabello mushroom wrap and the vegetarian chili. Other items have been revamped or replaced with higher-demand items.\n"The most popular items right now are the Ciabatta Club, the Margherite and the Tuscan and California Wraps," said Joanna McWhorter, prep cook at Kiva.\nSenior Isaac Kinsey said he had only visited the cafe a few times last year, and was pleased to hear about this year's menu changes.\n"The changes were much needed," Kinsey said. "Last year it seems like there weren't many options."\nDespite the new menu and signs, many students are still hesitant about going down the winding steps in front of Burger King to see what Kiva has to offer. \n"I have never been," freshman Warrior Lamar said. "It is secluded."\nHowever, Richards said the students who have stepped outside their comfort zone and ventured down the stairs are now regulars.\nJunior Tyler Glick eats lunch at Kiva at least once a week. \n"I don't want to eat fast food all the time and there aren't a lot of other options," he said. "It's a good change and there's usually not much of a line here."\nThere are more aesthetic changes in store for Kiva. But for now, Richards has one primary concern. \n"I would like for students to give it a try," he said. "Know that it is here and that we do try to accommodate student needs and wants."\n-- Contact staff writer Eboni Gatlin at egatlin@indiana.edu.