The Olam Café is empty.
After losing $20,000 on dining operations last year, the cafe is becoming solely an online ordering system, said Avie Friederwitzer, owner of All Star Caterers and The Olam Café at UF Hillel.
“It’ll help me because I won’t be over-preparing,” Friederwitzer said. ”I won’t be cooking for 20 when I have six orders.”
The new online system, which will be integrated into The Olam Café’s Web site this week, will release weekly menu options every Sunday, and customers can place orders for the day or the week.
The menu items will consist of an entree, two sides, soup, salad, a drink and dessert.
The system will require customers to order lunch by 9 a.m. and dinner by 3 p.m. each day. Lunch is served from noon to 2 p.m., and dinner is served from 6 to 8 p.m.
After ordering online, customers can pick up their orders within those times.
Some complain that the lunchtime deadline could be inconvenient, but Friederwitzer stresses the flexibility of the online system.
“We’re trying to get everyone to order online,” he said. “However, we understand that there will be people who can’t, and I know that we’ll do our best to accommodate them.”
