Updated

There isn't much at your typical college basketball arena that qualifies as kosher food, aside from the soft drinks.

That's changing at the University of Illinois' flagship campus.

The Chabad (HAH'-bahd) Jewish Center has opened a kosher hot dog stand at the State Farm Center. There's also one at the University of Kansas, but otherwise it's a fairly rare treat.

Rabbi Dovid Tiechtel runs the center and helps staff the stand. He says it's an expression of Jewish life on campus.

Customers complimented the hot dogs on the stand's first night. Security guard Cory Coker said the kosher dogs taste good and have what he called a good "crispiness."

Tiechtel said he's already heard from a few other schools that are curious about it.