Dining

Recycle

• Restaurant Technologies collects our used cooking oil for biodiesel and animal feedstock creation.
• We recycle computers, cell phones, printer cartridges and metals through UWM’s sustainability program. We also recycle our cardboard, paper products, plastic, aluminum and tin.
• We sell all out-of-date and old restaurant equipment to American Restaurant Equipment, a company that restores and resells the items to local restaurants to keep them in use longer.

Reuse

• We work in collaboration with UWM’s Food Recovery Network student chapter to fight food waste and hunger by donating perishable food that would otherwise be thrown away.

Compost

• We collect 2,000-4,000 pounds of pre- and post-consumer food and paper waste per week that we turn into compost at our Hoop House greenhouse and local recyclers. 

Wisconsin Products

• UW-Milwaukee Restaurant Operations focuses on providing affordable, quality local products. Our L.O.C.A.L. (Living, Operating, Consuming, Acquiring Locally) concept emphasizes using high-quality and economically just products, services and equipment from Wisconsin.
• We collaborate with local companies that use Wisconsin-based products to ensure we are not only getting fresh, local foods but also are supporting our state’s economy.
• We proudly serve items from Wisconsin companies like Old Wisconsin Snack Bites, Oh Snap Pickling Company, Wisconsin Cheese Company, Cedar Crest, Wenzel’s Farm, Milwaukee Pretzel and Rishi Tea.

Cleaning

• In all residential dining units, we use an environmentally safe wash called VeriPure for our fresh produce. The VeriPure system is chemical-free and environmentally friendly. It uses ozone to purify the water and kills 99.9% of bacteria. 

Nutritional Choices

• Our customers can use NetNutrition to locate nutrition and allergen information for the foods we serve.
• There are two campus Restor convenience stores that prioritize nutritional alternatives. Our fresh products and produce, made-to-order options and items that encourage cooking empower our customers to make healthy decisions by providing well-balanced offerings.

Just-in-Time Menus

• We have implemented a “just-in-time approach” to our menus, creating them with a focus on made-to-order items. In areas requiring larger food volumes, we use the batch cooking concept. This method prepares small amounts at a time with recipes that emphasize quality and consistency.

Seasonal Veggies and Reducing Waste

• We maintain records of wasted or spoiled products at every location and review them weekly to ensure we limit waste in every possible way.