Chinese food on campus?

It may sound like a far-fetched dream, but the new chef of the Crow’s Nest, located atop “Cardiac Hill,” has been serving it since March.

David Chiu serves curry chicken with rice and honey beef with rice, as well as angel hair pasta with chicken or tomato sauce, Greek salads with olive oil and lemon juice, and green salads with or without chicken, as well as other meals.

And there are also the usual ready-to-eat snacks, like bagels and croissants.

Everything on the menu is $5 or less.

George Delfabro, DVC’s food services manager, said the menu at the small snack-shack, located between the physical and life sciences buildings, was put together with input from students.

“Reasonable ideas can be communicated and done,” he said.

Sales have gone up, since Chiu began cooking there, what with the fragrance of honey beef and rice wafting across the small quad area.

Chiu said his favorite part of the job is the interaction with the students.

“I like the students,” he said. “My daughter is a student, so I like working with them.”

On a recent afternoon, two Inquirer reporters visited the Crow’s Nest to sample the new chef’s cooking. One had the honey beef meal and chicken curry, the other had a Greek salad.

The orders were prepared on the spot, and served straight from the pan. The portions had generous helpings of meat and rice.

While later eating the food elsewhere on campus, the reporters was bombarded with questions, such as “Where did you get that?” and “Is that Chinese food?”

The Crow’s Nest primarily serves students and staff in the science buildings, which are far from other food sellers, such as the cafeteria, Basement café, and Norseman. In its seven-year history, one or the other of the science buildings was under construction

“So we haven’t been focusing on developing it,” Delfabro said.

But now the kiosk has undergone several changes, including the transition from only selling ready-to-eat items like burritos and chips to its current fare introduced by Chiu.

“The food is delicious,” said frequent customer Rebecca Kung. “The food is more expensive in other places, and David is really friendly.”