Hobbs, NM — November 20th, 2024 — New Mexico Junior College (NMJC) announces the grand reopening of the Thunderbird Lounge and Grill, in collaboration with Genuine Foods, the college’s dining services provider. This updated dining experience offers a more modern, dynamic, and engaging space for students, faculty, and staff to gather. 

At the center of this transformation is a new espresso program (coming soon) that will make high-quality coffee and specialty drinks available to the campus community. Crafted by trained baristas, the expresso program will offer classic staple items alongside rotating seasonal specialties.  

In addition to the espresso program, the space has been thoughtfully redesigned to create an engaging guest experience. Rotating dining concepts, including Buddy’s Burgers, Chicken Shack, House of Fries, and Take Me Out to the Ballgame, will provide fresh and exciting new menu options daily.  

“Our goal with this transformation is to not only offer high-quality food but to create a dining experience that engages the campus community,” said Brian Printup, Director of Operations for Genuine Foods. “From the new espresso program to the rotating food concepts, we’re creating more opportunities for students to enjoy fresh, delicious meals.” 

“We are excited about the partnership with Genuine Foods and the positive changes happening at the Thunderbird Lounge and Grill,” said David Buckingham, Vice President of Student Services at NMJC. Sarah Edelbrock, Dean of Students, remarked “the new additions reflect our commitment to enhancing student life on campus, and we’re thrilled to offer such a diverse and appealing dining experience.” 

The Thunderbird Lounge and Grill is located in the Ben Alexander Student Learning Center, on the campus of New Mexico Junior College and is open 7:30 AM–3:00 PM Monday–Thursday and 7:30 AM–1:00 PM on Fridays.  

Join NMJC and Genuine Foods for the grand re-opening of the Thunderbird Lounge & Grill on Nov. 20 at 11:00 AM.  

 

About New Mexico Junior College

New Mexico Junior College is a two-year public comprehensive community college located in Hobbs, NM. NMJC is a full-service institution with student housing, athletics, and an aggressive range of traditional, transfer educational offerings. The mission is to promote success through learning, and vision is to achieve the college mission by building a culture that values and promotes excellence, effectiveness, responsiveness, access, and community involvement. 

About Genuine Foods

Genuine Foods is a leading national purpose-driven food service company seeking to bring much needed radical change to the food service experience. We deliver delicious, high-quality scratch-made foods using fresh, vibrant ingredients, an innovative people-focused team, and a deep commitment to reliability and integrity to colleges and universities, public and private K-12 schools, senior living and healthcare facilities, and specialty venues across the country. Food service management is what we do, but what we create together with our customers, our partners, and our dedicated team members goes far beyond the plate.  GenuineFoods.com 

 MEDIA CONTACTS:

Valerie Onsurez Gauna, Director of Outreach and Engagement, New Mexico Junior College (575) 492-2780 vgauna@nmjc.edu 

Paula Reichel, Chief Innovation Officer, Genuine Foods (202) 321-3584 paula.reichel@genuinefoods.com