For the last five years, Kevin Henzel has owned Charlie's Restaurant in Cuba, N.Y. When he bought the restaurant, the business also came with catering and vending services.

"I've just sort of taken it over and expanded it," said Henzel.

Crews prepare fresh vending items daily and store them in large coolers before they get delivered, on top of the regular snacks and beverages he stores for those machines as well.

Henzel supplies a hundred machines across 35 locations, including those with healthy options.

"It's something a little more than just a candy bar, or a bag of chips,” Henzel said. “It's food, it's nourishment,”

One of those machines now resides in the cafeteria at the College Center inside Jamestown Community College's Cattaraugus campus in Olean, which for the first time offers a number of fresh options like salads, fruit, veggie bags and wraps, to compliment the more traditional vending machines.

Campus executive director Paula Snyder says the food service industry still hasn't fully recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown.

"We're delighted to have fresh new options in addition to our snack machines,” Snyder said. “An entree that's more nutritionally balanced than just getting you through the next couple of hours of food is important.”

Snyder, a nurse by trade, says equally important, the college is looking to cater to those who may be working online or juggling busy schedules.

"So we want to provide a food service that accommodates their needs and their schedules as best as possible on campus while still serving our faculty and staff too," said Snyder.

Henzel is also available to cater events at JCC, but until then, he says his machines are good alternatives to grabbing food off campus.

"So, I think this is a good way to keep kids on campus, keeping them wanting to come to campus," said Henzel.

A second fresh option vending machine is located in the Manufacturing and Technology building.