For a substantial period of time during the early years of Trinity College (at that time known as Washington College) there were no dining facilities provided by the College. During the school’s first year, students were required to find room and board in nearby houses that were approved by the school. Students slept and ate in these boarding houses, and were then expected to go to campus for their classes.

From the 1830s until around 1845, a student organization called the “Franklin Club” existed as a way to help provide food for students. Roughly twelve students rented a building across the way from the College for the purpose of dining and living, and hired a steward to “superintend” the cooking.

In the 1870s, plans were in place to build a dining hall with the construction of Trinity’s new campus. Students, though generally upset about the move from the original campus in downtown Hartford, were excited about the prospect of a large dining hall, one that potentially resembled the likes of those seen at Oxford. Unfortunately, due to budgeting issues, the dining hall was cut from the list of buildings to be constructed first on the new campus. Students were instead forced to rely primarily on local Hartford eateries for their food. Local places like “Mother’s Bacon” and the “Clinton Lunch” were staples of Trinity students’ dining experiences.

In 1878, the Trustees reluctantly agreed to build a College Commons in the basement of Seabury Hall that would provide meals for students. The food was not great according to students, and many students turned to alternatives despite the low price of meals in the Commons.

In search of alternatives to the food served at the Commons, some students made meals in their dorms. They used two-burner gas stoves to cook meat and vegetables that they had brought from home and then stored in the janitor's cellar. Other students turned to the more expensive alternative of eating out for meals. “Eating/Dining” clubs also formed as student organizations for students to eat in town together throughout the year. In February 1897, the class of 1899 formed the Sophomore Dining Club, and their meals of choice were found at places like Heublein’s and Merrill’s.

Over the years there have been many dining locations on Trinity’s campus. In addition to College Commons installed in the basement of Seabury in 1878, in the early 1900s, a building named “Stickney Hall,” located where McCook Hall now stands, was used as a dining structure. Cook Hall, completed in 1931, contained a dining hall used by students for a number of years, as did Hamlin Hall, completed in 1932. Haight Dining Hall–dedicated to Frederick Everest Haight, Trinity class of 1887 graduate and trustee of the College–was completed in 1941 and located inside Ogilby Hall.

The Cave has existed in some form on campus since the 1940s, originally located in the basement of Hamlin Hall. It remained there until the building of Mather Hall in 1960, which then contained both the Cave and the school’s main dining hall. In 1992, the Bistro opened as a relaxed dining space following the renovation of the Koeppel Center’s cafeteria. By the late 1990s, Trinity's main three dining sites were Mather Dining Hall, the Cave, and the Bistro. In 2023, Mather Dining Hall and the Cave underwent extensive renovations in order to provide a broader range of healthy food options for students, including a new performance kitchen; an allergen awareness kitchen which avoids the use of nine major food allergens; an all-access meal plan which allows unlimited meals in Mather and meal exchanges and dining dollars for use in the Cave and the Bistro; a virtual kitchen where orders may be placed online and picked up in food lockers; the use of QR codes for ordering meals; and extended dining hours in Mather.

In the late 1800s, meals at the dining hall located in Seabury Hall cost $4.50 per week. The dining hall itself was managed by students who formed a “Dining Hall Committee” or “Dining Hall Association” which made suggestions about how money was collected, when meals were served, and who the steward was.

Over time, meal plans offered for students became more varied. The 1966 meal plan, for example, allowed upperclassmen to choose from three options: 18 meals per week for $450 per year, 20 meals per week for $520 per year, and a third that would allow them to simply buy their meals at the established rate found at Mather Dining Hall.

Contemporary meal plans have offered students a variety of options in both the number of meals included as well as location, with prices varying by plan type. Participation in a meal plan is mandatory for all residential students. Those students who live off campus or who participate in an authorized eating club are not required to purchase a meal plan.

*The price of a meal plan as of 2023 is between $2,500 to $3,000 per semester.

OLD INFO: [The most recent meal plan offers students three options, as well as a plan reserved for members of the senior class. The Traditional Plan, which all freshmen are automatically enrolled in, costs $2,940 per semester and includes 19 meals at Mather Dining Hall. The 15 Flex Plan is $3,385 per semester and allows 15 meals per week at either Mather, the Cave, or the Bistro. This plan also provides $300 in Meal Plan Dollars, which can be used in any location. The 15 - 5 Flex Plan allows 15 meals per week at Mather, five of which can be used in the Cave or the Bistro. This plan is $3,055 per semester and also includes $50 in Meal Plan Dollars. The Senior Plan provides 10 meals per week at any dining location, as well as $400 in Meal Plan Dollars. It costs $2,260 per semester and is offered to seniors, commuters, students living off campus, and students who are members of eating clubs authorized by Trinity.]

Early Dining at Trinity

The History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, pp. 34, 99, 181-183, 185, 197, 219-220.

The Trinity Tablet, February 1875.

Dining Sites

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, pp. 32, 47, 72, 124, 494.

Paying for Dining

Meal Plans

The Trinity Tripod, 05/03/1966.

Trinity Tablet, October 15, 1881.

Catalogue of Trinity College (Officers and Students), 1880-1881.