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Iowa State’s Tearoom located in 23 MacKay Hall serves up more than piping hot cups of Earl Grey. It doubles as a learning lab for students pursuing careers in hotel, restaurant and institution management and dietetics.

Janice Dana, adjunct assistant professor of hotel, restaurant and institution management, said the room serves as a testing ground providing students with applicable experience. She provides the menu, and students provide the rest.

“The purpose of the Tearoom is a teaching laboratory that gives students in the class hands-on management experience in the preparing and servicing of the food,” she said.

Students in Hotel, Restaurant and Institution Management 380 attend a lecture and two labs per week, which meet in the Tearoom.

Working in the Tearoom is not limited to students majoring in hotel, restaurant and institution management and dietetics, however.

“Students tend to be hotel management and dietetics majors, but there are students from other majors that are involved,” Dana said.

The Tearoom provides students with a “food production environment and the servicing that goes along with it,” said Marcia Flaugh, senior in dietetics.

“We also learn how to cost food and how to run equipment properly in the kitchen,” she said.

Students take turns filling the role of kitchen manager and are responsible for staffing the kitchen, ordering food and supervising other students as they prepare the dishes.

“[Kitchen managers] have to do all of the planning, such as what garnishes will be served and how the food will be presented,” Dana said. “They will order all of the food, adjust recipes and will supervise the carrying out of the plans.”

Working in the Tearoom has been a valuable learning experience, Flaugh said.

“It has taught me efficiency and work skills and a better idea of what it would be like to run a food service institution,” she said. “I also learned that it takes more skills and work than I thought it would.”

The Tearoom receives 75-95 patrons daily, but the clientele varies.

“Our clientele is faculty, staff, students and townspeople,” Dana said. “There are special groups that wish to have lunch, some of them are from the Ames area and some are from around the state. Everybody is welcome.”

Though patrons rely on menus sent through the mail or posted on bulletin boards around campus, managers at the Tearoom are in the process of creating a Web site that will display the constantly changing menu.

The Tearoom serves lunch from noon to 1 p.m. Lunch costs $3.95. Reservations are needed and can be made by calling 294-3330.