These were difficult times when, in November 1922, students in Friedberg – at that time, all but one of them were men – took action to establish a student kitchen. Life just a few years after the end of the First World War was hard enough. Inflation was rampant and would reach hyperinflation the following year. It was then that the idea arose to offer a reliable, hot, and affordable meal at least once a day at the Polytechnic. Peter-Christian Hennig, a retired senior building official, THMalumnus, and donor of a commemorative plaque that now hangs in the cafeteria, recalled this at a small ceremony.

In the presence of Vice President Prof. Dirk Metzger, numerous members of the "Association of Friends and Supporters of THM in Friedberg" led by Chairman Prof. Dr. Lars Heinert, several staff members, and students, Hennig, alluding to Goethe, spoke of "commendable endeavors": This was the establishment of the cafeteria back then, this was the operation of the cafeteria by the Giessen Student Union today, and above all, this was the case during the 100 years in between. For 64 years, until the takeover of operations in the 1980s, the cafeteria had been self-organized – by and for students.

Hennig, in a sweeping account of the history of the Friedberg THMcampus, recalled that he himself, as the student union representative for the cafeteria in the late 1950s, was responsible for purchasing supplies. "We had to procure the potatoes ourselves. And the coal, too," he said. Fresh vegetables from the Wetterau region, baked goods from Friedberg bakeries. "And all without any government subsidies," he remembered.

He also touched upon the various locations of the "student kitchen," from the old monastery building to its current location, a point further elaborated upon by Prof. Metzger, presidium responsible for construction, who added a perspective on the present and future. The building in the heart of the Friedberg campus can no longer be used. Structurally, it has reached the end of its lifespan, and the cost of renovation and expansion would make it completely uneconomical compared to constructing a new building. Therefore, a new building is planned for the same site. "That's good. But it's also a shame, because the cafeteria has a character that a new building will have to acquire," he said.

Before the building's planned demolition in spring 2024, the commemorative plaque, recently installed in the cafeteria foyer to mark the anniversary, must be removed. The Friends of Friedberg Association commissioned the plaque and installed it with the help of the facility management team; it was donated by THMalumnus Peter-Christian Hennig. The plaque will also serve as a reminder in the future cafeteria that Friedberg's sense of community was already remarkable back in 1922.