A Harvard Dining Services van was stolen but recovered by police two days later, according to a dining services official.

A dining services delivery man discovered the van missing from its usual parking place between Eliot and Kirkland Houses on the morning of September 21, and the theft was immediately reported to the police, said Richard Montville, assistant director of operations for dining hall services.

Police found the slightly scratched van in the Mattapan section of Boston two days after the theft, Montville said. The van was missing all its tires and two batteries, he said.

"It was strange. Someone on the spur of the moment decided to borrow it," Montville said. "My initial reaction was disbelief that anyone would want to steal a van with something as conspicuous as 'Harvard Dining Services' written across its side."

The dining services used the white Econoline van, one of four vehicles it owns, to cater functions and to deliver baked goods daily from the University bakery, located in the basements of Kirkland and Eliot, across campus.

Montville said on-going construction work uniting Eliot and Kirkland dining halls with a common kitchen made it difficult to keep track of people on the work-site. Montville said he suspects that the van was hotwired since the keys were locked away at the time of the theft.

"Nothing like this has happened in 25 years," he said.

The van is being repaired and should be back in service later this week, Montville said.

In the meantime, dining services has rented a van to fill in for the missing vehicle, he said.