UNC Greensboro students walked out of Fountain View Dining Hall with matcha smoothies they knew they’d like. UNCG Spartan Dining hosted the vibrant Matcha Smoothie Bar Teaching Kitchen, serving more than 350 handcrafted matcha smoothies to students.
This special event on Feb. 18 came together thanks to Littlefoot Matcha, a Greensboro-based small business owned and operated by UNCG alumna Anna Sullivan ’14.
Coming back to UNCG felt like coming full circle for Sullivan, who earned a degree in consumer, apparel, and retail studies with a minor in business. “When I was in school, I drank a lot of coffee and Red Bulls,” she says. “It felt good to introduce something to students that I love, with a healthier version of caffeine.”
Jennifer Domingo Candelario, a double major in accounting and marketing, enjoyed the opportunity to add a twist to her usual menu. “I tried the mango smoothie, and I honestly loved it,” she says. “It was my first time trying a flavored smoothie, so it was a fun change from what I usually get.”
The collaboration brought more than just a refreshing, antioxidant-rich beverage to campus; it showcased the power of supporting local businesses and celebrating Spartan success beyond graduation.
Good Taste Meets Benefits
Through the interactive teaching kitchen experience, students came away with a high-quality product sourced from a local, woman-owned business and new knowledge about the origins and benefits of matcha. Sullivan explains, “Matcha has different properties similar to other teas, and it has more of a bell curve with your energy versus a ‘crash out’ you get with espresso.”
Spartan Dining’s partnership with this alumna-owned company is part of its commitment to fostering meaningful community connections while highlighting entrepreneurship within the UNCG network. The overwhelming turnout reflected the growing student interest in menu options and experiential dining events centered on wellness. Sullivan says she would have loved to have this kind of program when she was still a student.
“It seemed all the students really enjoyed it,” she says. “It’s nice to be able to teach that you can enjoy matcha in many different ways other than just a latte, which a lot of people are now ordering from Starbucks.”
Spartan Dining looks forward to continuing to elevate campus dining through collaborations that celebrate the Spartan community, both on campus and beyond.
Story by Des St. Cyr, Spartan Dining
Photography courtesy of Spartan Dining
