Students at the Martin J. Whitman School of Management now have a new way to grab a hot meal between classes, thanks to a Campus Dining initiative that swaps traditional vending machines for a lineup of smart, food-tech-driven kiosks.

The reimagined café space (now known as Olsten Market) is designed to serve students whenever their schedules demand it—whether that’s breakfast before an 8 a.m. lecture, a quick lunch between classes or fuel for a late-night study session. Rather than the usual prepackaged snacks, the new setup offers meals prepared fresh at the touch of a button. The space, which was formerly named Olsten Café, will continue to bear the name of the donor, Stuart P. Olsten ’74.

The rollout includes several branded machines:

• A Just Baked smart oven that heats fresh entrées on demand
• California Pizza Kitchen pizzas, ready hot in minutes
• A Carlo’s Bakery machine from celebrity baker Buddy Valastro P’27, P’29, dispensing fresh cake slices
• Pico Smart Coolers stocked with grab-and-go meals, snacks and healthy options, including salads and sandwiches from local favorite Brooklyn Pickle
• Bean-to-cup coffee systems serving espresso drinks, lattes, cappuccinos, iced coffee and hot chocolate

The new layout offers speed and flexibility, letting students build the café into their day (and nights) rather than working around long lines and limited hours. Machines accept ‘Cuse Cash and all major credit cards.

These improvements are the product of multiple rounds of focus groups and conversations with students, addressing requests for greater selection, healthier options, coffee and round-the-clock access—complemented by a microwave for students who wish to heat their own meals and ice machines for added convenience. The renovated market answers the student requests for a reliable “go-to” for meals within Whitman, so they no longer need to leave the building, no matter the time of day or night.

Free Sampling Event Sept. 30

Members of the campus community are invited to a free sampling event on Wednesday, Sept. 30, from 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at Olsten Market. Products from Just Baked, Carlo’s Bakery and California Pizza Kitchen will be available to try, along with fresh salads and sandwiches from Brooklyn Pickle. Coca-Cola representatives will also be there to offer free samples of their products as well.

A Syracuse Connection Behind the Machines

The technology arrives at Whitman by way of Servomation Refreshments Inc., a vending and micro-market company founded by Brian Bruno. In 2025, the University awarded Servomation the contract for its campus vending services, adding SU to a client roster that has helped land the company on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies for five consecutive years. Bruno is also the new operator of Varsity Pizza, a University Hill staple that was transferred to the Bruno family in September 2026.

The company’s ties to Syracuse run deeper than vending. Bruno’s father, Mark, is a graduate of the Whitman School’s Executive MBA program. The elder Bruno came to the program during a turning point in his career: after helping steer the family’s vending business through a period of crisis, a sale to Howard Johnson and a subsequent shift into management under Marriott, he enrolled in the newly launched EMBA program on the encouragement of a friend, Dr. John Blasi.

The elder Bruno has credited the program—with its mix of full-time work, weekday study groups and weekend sessions—with giving him the confidence, credibility and skills to later manage more than 100 industry acquisitions across 22 states. He has called his Whitman MBA a cornerstone of his career.

Years later, his son launched Servomation, and the elder Bruno said he was thrilled to assist in realizing his vision. That family venture has now come full circle: the company built in part on lessons from a Whitman classroom is now supplying the technology reshaping how Whitman students eat.