What You Need to Know in Fall 2025: Dining Services

As tasty as a late-night burger at the South Campus Market. As nostalgic as a Testudo-stamped waffle. And as rich in variety as the Chef’s Corner at the Y: Dining Services is welcoming back students this fall with classic favorites and new dishes to appeal to all palates. 

Serving 25,000 meals each day across three dining halls, 12 cafés, two markets and more, Dining Services constantly innovates to serve the University of Maryland community. This fall, it’s unveiling a revamped lounge in South Campus Dining Hall, a retro look for the 251 North ice cream parlor and a new menu at Rudy’s in Van Munching Hall. 

“We hope students can treat our dining halls as their own home kitchen,” said Assistant Director of Marketing and Communications Bart Hipple. “Come and find what you want—and if you don’t see it, reach out to us and we’ll see if we can make it happen.”

Dig into these updates about where to chow down and chill out this fall:

The New Testudo Lounge Opens

Located just steps from the main dining area in South Campus Dining Hall, the new Testudo Lounge (formerly a regular dining room) features a century’s worth of mascot illustrations decorating its walls. The space includes cocktail tables and black leather couches, giving diners unique areas to gather with friends and enjoy their meals.

“We wanted a different type of dining experience on campus,” said Hipple, who hinted that there more spiffy spaces may be in the works.

South Campus Dining Hall also features a larger salad bar and reconfigured dessert area for improved traffic flow.

[UMD Honored With 5 National Awards in Collegiate Dining]

Sweet Treats and Halal Expansion

At 251 North—the only dining hall that serves Maryland Dairy ice cream—the Chillz station has been transformed into an old-timey ice cream parlor with stools, tall tables and black and white floor tiles. And the halal station, added last school year, has been expanded with a hot well to provide sides and sauces in addition to main dishes, more than doubling food options for students. 

Menu Updates at Yahentamitsi and Rudy’s Café 

Mediterranean aromas will be wafting through the biggest dining hall on campus, with new dishes inspired by Greek, Moroccan and Lebanese cuisine. Developed by new Yahentamitsi Executive Chef Mor Thiam and his team, these could include souvlaki (skewered and grilled meats and vegetables), bamya (a hearty okra stew), lamb tagine (a slow braise traditionally cooked in a clay pot) and shakshuka (poached eggs in tomatoes, onions and peppers). 

At Van Munching Hall, Rudy’s is getting a wider variety of hot lunch options, including recipes like butter chicken, pot pie in puff pastry shell and beef stew with roasted red potatoes. 

Chick-fil-A Gets Bigger

Your wait for chicken nuggets and waffle fries is about to get shorter with Chick-fil-A’s move across the Food Court in the Adele H. Stamp Student Union to a space double its previous size. Ordering kiosks, like the ones at Panera upstairs, have already made operations at the Food Court’s most popular restaurant faster since August, said Hipple.

More Terp Farm Produce is On the Way

UMD’s own produce farm, just 20 miles from campus in Upper Marlboro, now has a room-size walk-in cooler, enabling its staff to get more out of its harvest and increase deliveries of veggies and herbs to the dining halls. Look out for signage indicating Terp Farm products in various dishes, including basil pesto, tomatoes, acorn squash and microgreens.

And if you’re looking for a splash of color to brighten your dorm room or your office, Terp Farm is offering a sunflower CSA this fall with six weekly bouquets for $80.

Family-Friendly and Grab N’ Go Concessions

Bring your littlest Terps to cheer on the football team this fall at SECU Stadium, where a new family-friendly concession stand offers kid favorites like baskets of chicken nuggets and mini corndogs. Fans who don’t want to miss a minute of the game can visit Grab N’ Go locations to quickly get beverages and pre-packaged chips and candy. As always, Terp classics like the Chessie Crab Pretzel and Maryland Dairy ice cream will be available around the concourse.