GABRIEL GONZALEZ
Special to The Leader
As a senior business administration management student, I have witnessed several issues with campus dining since my freshman year.
Starbucks, being the only place that I prefer to go, always has enormous lines out the door. This not only creates issues for the people waiting in line, but it also makes it more difficult for the staff to prepare orders.
As we all know, FSA has made the decision not to extend their contract with Tim Hortons due to the extensive amount of money that would have to be spent. But why don’t they develop better menu alternatives for Willy C’s and Cranston Marche?
I haven’t been able to enjoy one good meal here at SUNY Fredonia since I started here. All of the food has been pretty subpar, and it’s disappointing knowing that we pay for this food.
I am constantly trying to work on my health, and it’s very hard to do that if we are only exposed to fried foods and unhealthy options from everywhere on campus.
Meal plans are starting to be something that I regret getting involved with while being a Fredonia student. These have not only taken my hard-earned money away, but they have made me eat food that is not the best for my health.
In the morning, most people just want a cup of coffee to start the day, but this is close to impossible unless you have time to wait.
On Aug. 29, I waited from 12 p.m. to 12:58 p.m. in order to get my venti iced matcha green tea latte. These drinks take less than two minutes to produce, so it’s sad that I had to wait that long for such an easy item to make. Not to mention, Starbucks is very expensive to begin with. So not only do we have to wait in a long line, but we have to pay double the amount of money that a normal cup of coffee would cost.
It is very disappointing to me that we haven’t figured out how to cut down the line yet, as this has been an issue since I got here four years ago.
My suggestion is to implement some type of pre-ordering system. There should be a way for students to order their drink ahead of time while using their FredCard to purchase their drink. Look at Chipotle for example: They have a shelf with alphabetical order for pre-orders by time. This would definitely make it much easier for college students to get the proper amount of product for the right amount of time.
Every time I go to Starbucks, I see at least three or four people step out of line due to the wait time that they are experiencing. It is just a hassle all around for the workers and the students.
We need a much better system of production. Using the space where the Tim’s location was before as an express kiosk might be a great way to separate the congestion that Starbucks faces each day.
I think everyone can agree that the hours for Starbucks are a little disappointing as well. This is the only Starbucks within miles. So not only are there college students buying from there, but there are people from Fredonia and around the city of Dunkirk, too.
I truly believe that we can get this under control if we put our minds to it. Starbucks is a great place to get coffee and get some work done before classes, so we just need to eliminate the stress factor. Afterall, business functions and operations are what I love to focus on, so why not express this point of view. There are many ways that we can eliminate this line and provide a more efficient process for the employees and the students.
On Sept. 4, I went to the Starbucks on UB North Campus as a test to see what their line would be like. I waited less than a minute to be helped and my drink was ready within less than a minute. To put it into perspective it is the weekend; however, I interviewed a student who comes to that location very often. They stated that “they never have to wait more than five minutes for their order to be ready.” Their Starbucks is open from 6 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. on weekdays, and our Starbucks is open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Not to mention UB has plenty of other food options on their campus, and they have gluten free and vegetarian options available.
I am not here to just write a negative article about our meal plans. I want to offer ethical ways that we can fix our issues with time management and the amount of food options available on campus. Together, we can make a change that will help benefit future students and hopefully current students as well.
Some solutions for the future could include coffee vending machines, pre-made drinks at the C-Store, an express checkout line for just drinks and a pre-ordering system for quick pick-up.
The opinions voiced by writers and artists in the Opinion section of The Leader reflect those individuals’ opinions, not those of The Leader as a whole. Only stories clearly marked as Editorials reflect the opinion of The Leader’s executive staff.