Billiken Grill, located in the Busch Student Center at SLU, has drastically gone downhill since the COVID-19 pandemic. SLU students and staff have expressed disappointment in the changes that have been made in recent years, which prompts the need for improvement.

One issue that people have expressed is their limited menu. In previous years, they had offered toasted ravioli, quesadillas, Bosco® breadsticks, and Pepsi Wild Cherry cans, which have disappeared from the menu. Some of the removed items are still listed on their menu (if the screens at the cashier are even working), so you never know what they actually have until you’re ready to order. They have also seemingly stopped serving alcohol, which makes the “Billiken Bar” located within the facility completely useless. To help improve Billiken Grill, they should add new/previous items to their menu and bring back alcohol, which would be good for business.

Another raised issue is the minimal amount of entertainment being offered. They rarely host events, even though they have a stage that would be perfect for things like karaoke, live bands, and comedy shows. Their games have been reduced to just a couple pool tables, arcade machines, and shuffleboards, whereas they have plenty of room for other items, such as a pinball machine or basketball arcade game. They even have the capability of bringing back darts, as they still have the dart boards hung up (but don’t have the darts available). If there was more entertainment, this would bring more people into the restaurant, and thus increase profit.

A third problem that students have discussed is in regards to the ordering system. Billiken Grill used to enter in the customer’s phone number and would message you when your food is ready. However, they stopped that somewhat early into the pandemic, so they now just call out the order number printed on the receipt. They should either bring back the phone number system, or use one of the TV screens to display the order numbers that are ready or still in progress (similar to what Panera does).

This petition is important because Billiken Grill has so much potential that is not being used. If these changes can be made in the near future, it would help improve the culture, finances, and overall happiness at SLU.