Cuarto Dining Commons

Cuarto Dining Commons no longer provides a field-to-fork perspective for many of the items they serve, including miles from campus grown and any third-party certifications.

Cuarto Dining Commons at UC Davis has a downstairs and upstairs eating area. Cuarto is the only Dining Common that has a patio seating area!

Cuarto Dining Commons, formerly known as the Oxford Circle Dining Commons, is one of three Dining Commons (DC) at UC Davis. It is unique for several reasons:

• Location: Cuarto is the only Dining Commons located off the main campus, residing just north of Russell Blvd and west of Sycamore Ln (across from University Mall).
• Size: This DC seats 300 people, the smallest of the three by far.
• Sustainability: Cuarto has a focus on sustainability from several angles. The planners and chefs at this DC put much effort into providing ingredients which are local (many coming from Davis itself) and seasonal. There is an additional focus on education, including information about the origins of the food. Additionally, the building itself is LEED Gold certified.

Anyone with a meal plan may eat there. Typically, however, it primarily serves the Cuarto Residence Halls (Emerson, Webster (currently being rebuilt), and Thoreau), as the DC is roughly in the center of those three halls on Oxford Circle, distant from the main part of campus.

Cuarto's Happy Bowl recipe features in-season, fresh produce from the UC Davis Student Farm. Although it lacks some of the food islands of Segundo, the centralized food locations can be useful if one doesn't feel like walking across a huge areas just to get a second entree. It also contains Seasonality, a new showpiece platform emphasizing fresh and local ingredients which are, of course, seasonal. The salad bar here is unique, as well, as you have more options for lettuces and toppings .

Post-remodel, this DC has a different feel from Tercero and Segundo, and a different menu as well. The emphasis of this DC is on greater sustainability. The upstairs dining areas are nice and have lots of natural light, and potted plants at each table instead of cut flowers. The lights have sensors to dim when there is an abundance of natural light. The tables appear to be made of recycled materials. You can also choose to sit at one of the tables outside on the second-floor balcony.

History

Once the Castilian Dining Commons closed, this DC became the only DC in Cuarto. Student Housing proceeded to rename it to the Cuarto Dining Commons from the previous name of Oxford Circle Dining Commons. It was newly renovated and open for the 2010-2011 school year. To achieve its LEED Gold sustainability certification, the renovation of Cuarto Dining Commons reused more than 41 percent of its original interior elements. Approximately 40 percent of new building materials used in the renovation were manufactured within 500 miles of the site. These stats are reported here. It was renovated again opened for the 2021-2022 school year.

The old Oxford Circle Dining Commons had quite decent food. It seemed to make some people's clothes smell awful, but few in the 2005-6 school year noticed this effect. Old theories about the smell reflected on the fact that the building was not intended to be a food facility when it was built, so the ventilation was less than adequate. Perhaps some of those issues were resolved.

It had extra dining space upstairs, which was sometimes used for group lectures/discussions. The bathrooms were also located on that floor.

2007-01-18 11:07:36   This DC also has the most diverse taste in music. I was buying vitiman water and heard "amish paradise" the other day. I've also heard, funk, the who, terrible hip hop, indian music and my favorite, ELO —EmilyKleber

2007-02-03 13:32:24   Can't forget the Disney music for dinner or hardcore gangsta rap to go with breakfast. —JonathanWiles

2007-05-02 11:30:25   you know, you could request songs to be put on the ipod playlist for the DC! —CalvinCheng

2008-07-26 21:48:18   I hate this DC. My freshman year there was a girl that looked like a rat, and she acted like a female dog. They thought I was stealing silverware but I wasn't so I got caught. They didn't care that I was innocent and told me since I put myself in that situation I should be punished. The head guy at the time said I would be fine cuz he put a good word in for me, but he didn't and therefore I got in trouble. Food is ok. Workers are mean, except for Kevin, if he still works there. —N1fighter

2009-03-15 04:24:17   it lacks the initial awe of the larger DCs but it quickly makes up for that in terms of convenience when people figure out that the food is the same as in other DCs and that the menu is cycled

it's also much closer to its surrounding residence halls than segundo or tercero, which makes a meal even more convenient since you dont have to make a trip out of it —fredchen

2009-04-20 00:05:07   I really hate eating at the OCDC. The service here is pretty bad, once foods are gone, it would take at least 5 to 10 minutes before they bring out more. However, do I enjoy the centralize food area in contrast to Segundo and Tercero Dining Commons, where you would have to walk across the building to get food. —KevinC

2010-09-24 22:13:52   I got a chance to eat here while working with the move-in crew. As a former Emerson resident (2009-10) who would look wistfully as it would be ultra convenient to have a DC so close to home, I would have to say it was pretty good - the architecture and design, that is.

When I walked in, I was initially struck by how small it was - it's tiny compared to Segundo but not so much to Tercero. However, unlike the rest of the DCs, the new OCDC has two levels which really helps it in terms of space; unlike Castillian's DC which was so tiny that it was often hard to find seating, this place seemed a lot bigger. In addition to new(er) tables, it also features bar seating along the wall. Whether this is a plus (more seats!) or minus (harder to socialize compared to a normal table?) is really up to the visitor.

So how would I rate this? I would say that it's a great improvement over Castillian, but lacks the location of Segundo and Tercero. I can't comment on the food as it's more or less the same kind of food as the other DCs. Though I will say the days of running to the Emerson store because I didn't want to bike through the rain or walk to Castillian won't be happening for this year's Emerson residents; they'll have to walk outside to get their swipe meals. —HarrisonM

2011-05-17 17:24:02   I bike all the way from Tercero to go to this DC! I don't give a hoot about distance, it's worth all those 5 minutes not to be in a loud, cliquey, freshman-dominated food court. But that's just me, as I sit alone 90% of the time and could get labeled "loner" (by those who don't know about my club involvement). Anyway, this DC makes loner-ness a lot less noticeable or stigmatizing, and their food is better too. Also, they tell you exactly where its from, and avoid serving processed junk. —Chelsea744

2011-09-21 20:11:30   Food at this DC is really good IMO—but then again, I think any food is better than my mom's crappy cooking. The food here seems to taste better and fresher than the food at the Tercero and Segundo Dining Commons. They also tell you where they get their food from, so you know it's not processed. Also, I love how there are lots of small tables here, rather than the big tables found at the other two DCs —JenniferNguyen

2012-03-05 23:24:40   I am a service worker here and I think it's pretty great. I know that all the employees strive to keeping things clean and sanitary. And the chefs work very hard to make sure the food tastes just right and is up to quality. :) All the employees eat here, including me, and I think the food is very delicious with a nice variety. —EmilyHarris

2018-02-13 15:38:08   The older lady Betty who works there in the mornings is very sweet and knows a little sign language. If you sign with her, though, she will probably forget that by the next day (she sees a lot of people in the mornings). —SydneyJCardoza