Moravian just rolled out two new dining features, one of them being the Yo-Kai Express machine.
The Yo-Kai Express serves ramen and other styles of soup, specifically udon and pho. The soups are prepackaged and stored frozen within the machine and heated as ordered to maintain freshness.
The machine is located in the Sally, down the hallway leading to DeLight’s Cafe.
“Moravian and Sodexo chose to add a ramen/soup cuisine to add diversity to the meal options on campus,” said Christine Bell, marketing manager of Dining.
The machine is relatively quick and is very easy to use. There is a screen where you select your order, which shows what each soup/ramen looks like. Once you have completed your order, you pay on the pin-pad and wait for your meal.
While your meal is being heated, there is a loading bar on the screen showing how far in the process your meal is to be ready. It took about five minutes for mine to heat.
Once it is finished, a small door will open to reveal your container. Be cautious, as the container is very hot. You can also find silverware packs stored under where your food comes out.
The silverware containers have a plastic spoon and fork, a set of wooden chopsticks, and a single napkin.
The silverware and food containers are made out of cardboard, which helps to minimize waste. However, along with the silverware, there is a plastic film on the soup bowl.
To fit different dietary restrictions, the machine offers vegan options. Unfortunately, there are no gluten-free options because of the way the machine functions. “There is cross-contact with gluten and soy, so we cannot say they are gluten-free,” Bell said.
Each soup costs between $10-$13. The machine accepts debit and credit. Currently, the Yo-Kai Express machine does not accept cash, HoundBucks or Dining Dollars.
“We are working through some technology issues to make that happen soon,” Bell said.
Improvements are still being made to this newest addition to dining options on campus. The biggest is adding meal plan payment options.
Levon • Sep 16, 2023 at 9:49 am
Technology has come so far I can’t believe automated ramen is real !!
Sara • Sep 15, 2023 at 10:26 am
Interesting. Thank you so much for sharing this info!! How was the quality of the food?
Lola Offenback • Sep 20, 2023 at 5:29 pm
I thought it was pretty good! The only critique I had was that the noodles were a weird texture for a ramen, they are not traditional noodles. But I credit this to the way the ramen has to be stored.