Stella Mackler '26
Wildcat Den, located on the ground level of the Baker Sports Complex, was a popular lunch spot for athletes and students with dietary restrictions. The space will be repurposed for concessions and storage in fall 2025.
Wildcat Den has closed as Dining Services focuses on staffing the new Chick-fil-A set to open this fall. The news, shared with student workers on Monday evening and later confirmed by Director of Dining Services Pinky Varghese, prompted concerns among members of the Student Government Association (SGA) about the lack of transparency in the decision making process.
One of the main reasons Wildcat Den closed, according to Varghese, is because Dining Services needs more workers to staff the new Chick-fil-A. “We have been working so tirelessly to make this happen, so we need the right people to open up the place, the right people to do the job, and we have to consolidate a little bit,” Varghese said.
Not many students dined at Wildcat Den, Varghese claimed, due to its restricted hours, limited seating capacity, and secluded position on campus. He expects the Chick-fil-A, positioned on Patterson Court Circle in close proximity to Field 76 and senior apartments, to be more heavily trafficked.
“Look at the number of people coming [to Wildcat Den],” Varghese said. “Everyone will navigate towards the Chick-fil-A and the Davis cafe, or the new dining locations coming on campus.”
The Baker space will be used for concessions and storage starting this fall. Varghese said that its future use is yet to be finalized.
Varghese acknowledged that hiring enough staff to maintain Davidson’s dining options has been a persistent challenge. But Abigail Przynosch ‘27, who chaired the SGA’s Food and Housing Committee in 2024-2025, says she was not led to believe it might impact existing services.
“Having labor for Dining and Auxiliary Services has always been a little bit of a concern […] but they didn’t really frame it as a significant problem in Wildcat Den, specifically with opening the Chick-fil-A,” Przynosch said.
She went on to say that Wildcat Den closing was not presented as a serious possibility. “I was really surprised, because this was a conversation that had only come up in one previous meeting,” Przynosch said.
“I had voiced against [closing Wildcat Den] and I gave a recommendation not to do this just because of the impact it would have on people with dietary restrictions and athletes that oftentimes use the Baker facility more than others.”
SGA President Connor Hines ‘26 said that the Chick-fil-A was never meant to replace existing dining options. “Never did it come to me personally that in bringing one location, they would be doing away with another. So it’s very disheartening to see,” Hines said.
The three full time workers at Wildcat Den were given the option of working at Vail Commons or Chick-fil-A. “I told them a Chick-fil-A is opening, and we have an opportunity there, and they were all excited to join. That’s what I felt, and that’s what we did for them,” Varghese said.
Hines and Przynosch, who led the initiative to bring Chick-fil-A to campus, found out about the change through word of mouth. They did not receive any official communication from Dining Services.
The Food and Housing Committee—chaired by Hines the year before Przynosch entered the role—was created to facilitate dialogue between students and Dining Services about potential changes.
Although Pyzynosch and Hines spoke positively of their relationship with Varghese and Dining Services and recounted consistently transparent communication throughout the process of bringing Chick-fil-A to campus, Hines said the decision to forego input from the Committee—or even notify the SGA of the decision—is frustrating.
“I’m still kind of in the information gathering stage,” Hines said. “It’s a bit unfortunate that we sometimes have to be playing a more responsive game [rather] than being included in discussions from the forefront, but we are committed to continuing to work with Dining Services.”
Varghese, who discussed Wildcat Den’s closure in the context of other initiatives including new options at Vail Commons and Davis Cafe, emphasizes that the decision was made to enhance the student dining experience.
“We are continuously expanding [options] and expanding doesn’t mean that we have to keep the old ones in the old state. We also have to continuously innovate, renovate and come up with new programs,” Varghese said.