For those of us who have been here a while, the “New Location Coming Soon!” sign in the Kennesaw campus student center is nothing new.
The old Mediterranean-style eatery is out, and a new wave of anticipation and uncertainty is back. The spot became vacant shortly after the fall 2016 semester ended. Before the Mediterranean shop took over, a sandwich shop that served Boar’s Head meat offered its services.
The cycle of changing food options at KSU feels unending, confusing and frustrating. I would say sarcastically that food trucks would be a more reliable option, but the university has even used these before during construction on new restaurants.
This latest vacancy comes after Freshens in the Burruss Building was replaced with the sandwich shop Stacks prior to this semester. Two other on-campus food options were closed in fall 2016: the Village Skillet on the Kennesaw campus and Papa John’s on the Marietta campus.
Yes, budget deficits coupled with a lack of student business are massive factors when deciding whether to continue operating a restaurant. Money does make the university operate.
Business could increase, however, if there were more appealing options that catered to student’s needs and desires. Those needs and desires cannot be met with a never-ending conveyor belt of changes to campus eateries.
Many students at KSU are commuters or just have a busy schedule, and we want to grab our food and go. We don’t always have the luxury of sitting to enjoy the multiple options which The Commons or Stingers have to offer.
My suggestion for the vacant food shop is an Einstein Bros. Bagels. The Starbucks locations provide good coffee stops for students needing a morning jolt, but those looking for a fast, full breakfast are left to fight the long breakfast lines at Chick-fil-A or the lack of quality options offered by the Market.
No, the new restaurant doesn’t have to be Einstein Bros. Bagels. That’s not the point.
But students do deserve to see a consistent, recognizable restaurant that won’t change every semester. We deserve a simple and affordable food option. Why do we need fancy-sounding places like Hissho Sushi and Burrito Bowl when we could have something as common as a Taco Bell or Arby’s?
The metal gate that blocks the empty food stand has stood closed for long enough. As the KSU Dining Services mission states, it’s time to “commit to providing the highest level of quality food and service to the KSU campus and community.”
