On April 2, the beloved campus coffee shop Zime will no longer carry food. This includes the York Street Market grab-and-go options, as well as the mac and cheese, easy risers and other pastries. After criticism from students that the coffee shop was always out of food or did not have good options, Sodexo chose a surprising option: shutting it down altogether. “If you guys aren’t happy enough with our incredible diversity of food choices, you honestly don’t deserve it,” said Scott Lofland, manager of Sodexo.
This decision follows a string of decisions at Zime to reduce or change food options. At the start of the year, they introduced vegetarian/vegan-friendly bowls with choices of grains, proteins and sauces. After complaints of food poisoning from the rice, they changed it to the controversial mac and cheese, which some say is not really mac and cheese at all. “I mean, it’s pasta with cheese sauce,” said junior Selah Curcuruto. “Don’t call it mac and cheese if that’s not what it is.”
Additionally, Zime faced shortages of the York Street Market foods which could be bought with flex dollars. The easiest way to solve this shortage, Lofland said, was to stop purchasing them altogether. “When you look at the bottom line, those options may have been useful for students rushing to class, but it was too much work to constantly stock them,” Lofland said.
Another reason to discontinue food is the lengthy line each day. Eastern has grown significantly in the past five years, and the campus coffee shop has only changed slightly to meet that need. After trying to start up the mobile ordering program several times in an attempt to keep the line moving quickly, a more simple solution was floated out: eliminate food altogether.
“This way, our baristas will be able to focus on what they do best, while our cooks can stay in the dining commons to ensure a full Sodexo experience,” Eastern Dining said in an email announcing the change on March 29.
This marks a return to the Jammin’ Java era of the Eagle’s Nest, where food options were very limited. According to alumni, this is closer to what previous students had as options. “Kids these days are too spoiled. We just ate the DC and got terrible coffee from Jammin’ Java and we were happy. I don’t even understand what an easy riser is,” said alumni Ruby Baker. Some students welcomed the decision. “Honestly, those easy risers were kind of a health hazard anyway. I can’t even remember the last time I saw the York Market grab and go options – most of the time the cabinets are just closed. Plus that mac and cheese had me on the toilet for hours once. Never again,” said senior Hannah Bonaducci.
However, not all students are happy with the decision. “I eat an easy riser on an English muffin every morning. Sandy knows my order like the back of her hand. What am I supposed to do now? Go to the dining commons? That’s somehow worse than not eating in the morning,” said junior Vesa Pema. The York Street Market foods can still be found across campus, at Breezeway. But some students say their hours and location don’t compare to those of Zime. “When I’m running to class, I sometimes need to just grab something and go, not go across campus to Breeze. But this won’t be a tremendously big change, given that the last four weeks I haven’t seen any of those products anyway,” said junior Stephan Philemon.
This new change is sure to bring both disappointment and quicker lines. Only time will tell if Sodexo is correct that this will solve the ever-present problem of long lines at Zime.
