For some, searching for late night food is fundamental to college life. The pickings may be slim, but when it nears midnight and most places on the Main Line have shut down, there are still a few local stops that students can count on.
Minella’s (often pronounced ‘manilla’s’) is a 24-hour diner on Route 30 that often has more than one Eastern student hanging around on any given night.
Junior Ashley Kanaly explained that she and her friends often head to Minella’s.
“It’s cheap. But don’t take any sort of games with you because one time they kicked us out for playing cards,” Kanaly said.
Juniors Sarah Shea and Sara Anderson both enjoy the Tom Jones Diner in Springfield. Though it is farther than the more local choices (about 15 minutes from campus), Shea and Anderson like heading to Tom Jones because of the low prices.
For under three dollars, the “Blue Ribbon Special” includes pancakes, sausage, bacon, juice, toast and eggs.
Though diners are popular, Wawa is also praised by junior Sean Watson.
“My friends and I go to Wawa because it’s the best store ever,” he said. “The hoagies are amazing and there is a great selection of drinks. We even have this ritual called the Wayne train where we walk to Wawa around midnight just for fun.”
Watson also explained that frantically searching on the residence hall for food is another popular choice.
Sophomores Michaela Grunert, Emily Woods and Becky Hope do not go out too much for food; instead, they like to order in from Wingers and Campus Corner.
Grunert explained that night classes often prevent her from catching dinner, so ordering in is a good alternative, especially when the item ordered is a milkshake from Campus Corner.
Since she takes her late-night meals seriously, senior Zoe Ulle sometimes drives all the way home to Lansdale just to go to a good diner.
“I don’t go to Minella’s,” Ulle said. “I go to the Villanova Diner instead because Minella’s has become the ritzy dining capital of the midnight hour.”