Norman Regional Hospital Opens Newly Renovated Cafeteria

Norman Regional Health System is thrilled to announce the grand opening of Café 46! After more than 18 months of renovations, the cafeteria at Norman Regional Hospital is complete. Café 46’s first day in business is Wednesday, February 4, 2026, opening at 7 a.m. just in time for breakfast.

Café 46

The hospital’s newly renovated cafeteria is named after the year 1946, which was when Norman Regional was founded as a hospital.

The sleek and inviting space of Café 46 welcomes hungry patrons through the flow of food counters, all situated in a round-about layout. The light and crisp colors of the café provide the perfect backdrop, enticing and surrounding guests with more delicious food offerings than ever before.

Café 46 is home to various food stations – there’s the Grill with the crunchiest french fries and the tastiest burgers, the new Action Station where customers can build their own special of the day and watch a cook prepare their order right in front of them, a hot line of scrumptious signature selections, savory, sippable soups, a fresh salad bar stocked to the brim with crisp produce, a make-your-own deli sandwich bar where your biggest decision will be “toasted, or not toasted?”, and customizable, hand-tossed, oven-baked pizza by the slice.

Ian McRee, Executive Chef for the health system, is looking forward to opening Café 46 with their new expanded menu. “Our team has worked hard to create a refreshed menu to go along with our new space,” said McRee. “We will be serving lots of new and exciting dishes, and of course, we’re bringing back many fan favorites.”

The cafeteria also offers soda fountains with options for flavor add-ins, a top-of-the-line coffee bar, prepackaged snacks, drinks, and eats, and ice creams, desserts, warm cookies, and specialty snacks that are sure to satisfy any craving.

Optimized Workflow

The entire kitchen and dining area at Norman Regional’s flagship campus now has an expanded footprint, with an optimized back kitchen layout that improves the workflow for the Food and Nutrition Services staff at Norman Regional.

The Kitchen

There are two full kitchen set-ups, one for cafeteria dining at Café 46 and the other for patient room service dining. The kitchen also houses an expansive cold food prep area, tons of storage, brand new walk-in refrigerators and freezers, a food prep area for Meals on Wheels of Norman, and a dish washing room big enough to hold a hospital’s worth of dishes.

Amanda Jones, Director of Food and Nutrition Services, had a hand in the initial designs and layout of the entire kitchen and dining space. “Before, our back kitchen layout was less than ideal. We had cooks running into each other, ranges and ovens on opposite ends of the kitchen, and tight corners to navigate,” said Jones. “Now, our kitchen is open and allows our teams to work together seamlessly without issue.”

The Dining Space

The dining room for Café 46 patrons was designed for comfort and connection. Customers can sit and have a meal with loved ones or co-workers, find a quiet corner to enjoy the pond view outside, or claim space for a larger group in the back room.

With cozy seating and natural light, the dining room offers Healers and visitors a place to relax and refuel. Equipped with booth and table seating at both standard and pub heights, device charging tables, and a back room that can be made into an area for gatherings, the dining space was designed for any purpose.

Goodbye, Temporary Kitchen…

Since Norman Regional Health System consolidated campuses in July 2024, the cafeteria and patient room dining staff have been working out of a prefabricated, temporary kitchen at Norman Regional Hospital to provide meals to patients, visitors, and Healers while renovations were taking place.

“The department had to get creative on how we were going to still serve the hospital and the Meals on Wheels of Norman program throughout renovations,” said Vanessa Tiger, Operations Supervisor of Food and Nutrition Services. “Our staff has been so patient waiting for their turn to enjoy their new workspace. Now, it’s finally complete, and we can’t wait to see them thrive in their new space!”

Hello, Café 46!

With friendly faces behind the counter and delicious meals prepared fresh daily, Food and Nutrition Services at Norman Regional hopes you will come experience Café 46 for yourself! We can’t wait to see how this new space becomes a visitor- and Healer-favorite for food, conversation and comfort.

Find Café 46 located at Norman Regional Hospital on the Garden Level of the campus. Customers can access by taking the tower elevators down to G, or by taking the main open stairway next to the Medical Records front desk, down to G.