Starting on Monday, Café Laura will be holding a series of midweek theme dinners through August 5.  The restaurant is designed to give students in the School of Hospitality, Restaurant, and, Institutional Management hands-on experience (required for their degrees) by simulating the kind of environment they will be working in after graduation.

Furthermore, students in HRIM 430 are designing the menus and themes themselves. Some of the themes are “An Evening in Paris,” “Dining Under the Tuscan Sun,” and “Food Libations.” Though under the supervision of an instructor, the students are in charge of planning the meals, promoting them, and making sure everything runs smoothly; often the latter is the most difficult.

Classing it up in State College, wines will be available; the school having decided this in order to be as authentic as possible in replicating what a restaurant or hospitality manager will encounter in day-to-day operations. (But no word on whether Natty will be sold by the case, or whether bartenders will be serving Vladdy tonics).

You can make reservations online here. Price ranges are listed on the site, and there is a link to change or cancel a reservations. Café Laura had a substantial number of no-shows last year, so the cancellation feature is crucial. They buy all of the food a week before and exclusively for each event—so if there’s one thing it’s better to have less practice at, it’s watching money being lost on food bought for no-shows, and putting your face in your hands as a result. As for everything running as intended, all you need to do is look at the menus to know it’ll be a good time.