Unbreakable

The history of Haus der Studentenschaft begins after the First World War. In 1920, lecturers and professors founded the student self-help organization “Studentenwohl Aachen e. V.”, the forerunner of today's Studierendenwerk. They set up one of the first dining halls in Germany in the Talbot Hall. Five employees catered for around 1,000 students returning home from the war. However, the temporary accommodation soon became too small. As the number of students grew, the plan to build a separate “Haus der Studentenschaft” in Turmstraße emerged. The new building not only offered a dining hall, which served 1,400 lunches a day, but also small student rooms.

In 1944, bombs completely destroyed the building. It was rebuilt under difficult conditions until 1950 - students often helped themselves in order to be allowed to enrol. After the reopening, the dining hall slowly flourished. For 70 cents there was “braised beef, red cabbage, potatoes and dip”, plus nut pudding for 25 cents. In the following decades, the building was remodeled several times to meet the growing needs of the Studierendenwerk. The dining hall developed into a cultural meeting place. Especially in the 1980s, events such as Fußgängerball and concerts in the theater hall shaped student life. However, cost-cutting measures by the state government repeatedly led to protests against high prices, monotonous food and disposable crockery.

Mensa Academica today

Today, the building, and Mensa Academica in particular, enjoys a good reputation. The refurbishment from 2012 to 2014 resulted in more seats and a more varied menu. Vegan, vegetarian and international dishes are on the menu alongside classics such as the popular Schnitzel Tuesday. In 2024, a total of 2.4 million meals were served in the nine dining halls in Aachen and Jülich, 1.2 million of which were served in Mensa Academica. Around 6,000 guests take a break there every day. The five employees from 1920 have grown to over 60.