Chatter filled the Westside Bistro on Oct. 10 as Asian cuisine week came in full swing, offering Asian specials while inviting people to enjoy the newly opened patio to enjoy the fall weather.
The Westside Bistro, located at 940 E. College Drive at the end of Gerald Thomas Hall, operates as a student-run learning lab where Hotel, Tourism, and Restaurant Management (HTRM) majors at New Mexico State University practice skills they’ll need in their professions. The restaurant is open every Friday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., serving quality food for low prices.
“The café is run entirely by students in a controlled setting,” Logan Norton, the current front of the House manager at the Bistro said. “We are learning to be chefs and to be servers at the highest level, so we are essentially making gourmet cuisine for the price of a Whopper from Burger King.”
The restaurant’s menu changes weekly based on themed specials chosen by the students with the help of their professor. For Asian cuisine week, the specials were pork egg rolls and chicken banh mi, with a few familiar fall flavors filling the rest of the menu.
The event marked a milestone for the Bistro, as the outdoor patio opened for the first time in a year and a half. The space had remained closed due to a combination of weather changes and staffing limitations.
“It was a struggle to open the patio, so we’re all pretty excited to have it open,” said Norton.
The class typically has a limited number of students, and with all students equally split between the front of house and the back of house. With enough students this semester, the bistro was finally able to accommodate guests who preferred al fresco dining in the fresh fall air outside.
For students like the kitchen entrée lead, Connyr Moor, the kitchen represents more than just a grade. As a nutrition major with health concerns, Moor sees the restaurant as a means of promoting better eating habits.
“I really enjoy cooking. I enjoy coming to the class, making food,” Moor said. “I don’t enjoy a lot of processed foods, and I have health issues, you know, stomach issues, so I’d rather not deal with that. I’m a nutrition major, too, and I just want to spread awareness, and the best way to do that is through food.”
The experience gained at the Westside Bistro learning lab proved valuable across multiple disciplines. Morgan Anderson, a server at the bistro and future dietician, emphasized the importance of understanding food preparation beyond textbooks and lectures.
“I think it’s important as a future dietitian that we learn how foods are actually prepared, rather than just in theory. That’s why we have to take these courses. We learn customer service skills, working with people,” Anderson said.
The weekly operation gives, according to students, irreplaceable hands-on learning experiences, offering experience in every aspect of restaurant management. The class functions on a rotation system, where every few weeks the students switch from front of house to back of house and vice versa. The front requires students to wait on tables and gain customer service skills, while the back focuses on preparing food from shipping boxes to plates. This way, every student gets to experience every part of what it takes to run a functioning restaurant.
Norton expressed how crucial diners are to the functioning of this learning experience.
“I want to see [the Westside Bistro] succeed. This is a learning lab, so when people come in to eat, they are giving us a learning experience,” Norton said. “Plus, you know, having good food. People need to know that by coming here, they are helping us learn, all while getting to eat affordable food.”
NMSU students and people in the Las Cruces community looking for a bite to eat can all look forward to Italian food on Friday, Oct. 17, with the specials including chicken piccata and chocolate ganache cookies. The prices at the restaurant improve for NMSU students, with a 10% student discount on meals. A drink is included with the purchase of every meal. Weekly specials and other Bistro news can all be found on the Westside Bistro Instagram and all future dates can be found on the Visit Las Cruces website.
![NMSU Dream Team Organizers [from left to right] Jovanny (he/him/el), Alberto (he/him/el), and Sarai (she/her/elle).](https://nmsuroundup.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Image-1.jpeg)
