Dear Chapman Food Services and Sodexo,
When I matriculated into Chapman University in Fall 2017, the variety of amenities available for students to purchase food and drinks from amazed me. I have been a consistent customer in every store and restaurant on campus, except for one restaurant: SubConnection.
In the same building as SubConnection are restaurants like Qdoba, Einstein Bros. Bagels, and Jamba Juice. One day, around noon when students are purchasing their lunches, I tried out SubConnection. My primary motivation for deciding to buy lunch from SubConnection instead of Qdoba is because of the wait time or lack thereof. Compared to the line for Qdoba that comprised about 20 people, the absence of people at SubConnection, which is directly opposite to Qdoba, was glaring. I had heard criticisms about SubConnection from my peers, but had no experience to confirm or deny these claims. Thus, I skipped the line for Qdoba and bought a barbeque chicken sub at SubConnection to form my opinion on the matter. The quality of the sandwich was subpar because of the stale bread, flavorless chicken, and wilted lettuce.
As a freshman, the tasteless meal I purchased from SubConnection shocked me. I shared this experience with my peers, and they confirmed that the quality of food at SubConnection is incomparable to that of other restaurants like Qdoba and Einstein’s. “Although SubConnection puts more meat into the sub than Subway,” my friend Terrence states, “the bread is dense and the overall sandwich tasted bland.”
In the heart of Old Town Orange, it is difficult for Chapman to expand due to the surrounding neighborhoods and businesses. Thus, land utility is paramount. With Subway on the corner of Glassell, there is little incentive for me to buy a sandwich from SubConnection when I can walk the few minutes to Subway and buy a meal that is consistently satisfying.
Over the course of this semester, I pass by SubConnection on the way to my next class to see if there is anyone buying a meal there. Since the start of the semester, people who buy food at SubConnection purchase pre-packaged food, such as snack bags and fruit snacks, or fruits like bananas. I lived on campus for the past two years and did not have a car until this semester. Thus, my only food sources are the cafeteria, restaurants in Old Town Orange, the groceries my parents bring every other weekend, and the on-campus restaurants. I believe that the space, utilities, and resources spent on the maintenance of SubConnection can be better spent on another restaurant brand. Since Qdoba specializes in Mexican cuisine, the restaurant that replaces SubConnection could specialize in Asian cuisine to diversify the food options available on and around campus. In Old Town Orange, the only Asian restaurant within walking distance is the Thai Town Eatery.
Continuing to spend money and resources on SubConnection contributes to food waste. Compared to the Starbucks in Beckman that consistently runs out of beverage mixes by the afternoon, the food resources purchased for SubConnection that are not made into sandwiches are ultimately wasted at a greater rate than other restaurants like Einstein’s and Qdoba. According to Lam (2010), low food quality and oversized portions are the primary causes of food waste in UC Berkeley dining halls. Lam (2010) studied two dining halls and the rates of food waste. Students voted for which dining halls were considered the worst or best in terms of food quality. Clark Kerr, the dining hall considered the best in food quality, had the “least number of students who wasted more than half of their food” (Lam 2010). In contrast, students who ate at Crossroads, the dining hall voted the worst in food quality, wasted more than half their meal. Thus, if SubConnection either improves the quality of their food or is replaced by another restaurant brand that produces higher quality food, the amount of food and monetary waste will decrease as per Lam 2010.
When researching the ways Chapman reduces food waste, the lack of clarity on the means by which Chapman will meet the goals established stuck out to me. The website describes the Better Tomorrow 2025 initiative, which is the plan to minimize all resource waste. I recognize aspects of the plan in effect during my time living on campus and eating in the cafeteria. Although Sodexo restaurants commit themselves to the same initiative as the Chapman cafeteria, the poor quality of the meals produced by SubConnection counteracts the steps towards reducing food waste made by this initiative.
The availability of restaurants that produce higher quality food consistently, as well as the competition created by the presence of Subway on the corner of Glassell Street, are the two reasons why SubConnection is the least popular food store on campus. The money and resources spent on maintaining the restaurant is better spent on another restaurant brand that can produce higher quality food and cuisine that will not face competition from off campus restaurants. By replacing SubConnection with Asian cuisine, the cuisine is significantly improved by the variety of options available for students who live on campus. In addition, commuters will be more inclined to purchase meals from your restaurants due to the increased variety and confidence in the quality of food. Since I now commute from home, being able to buy food on campus instead of packing lunch beforehand or driving off campus to buy food would be a tremendous help and benefit.
Overall, the underperformance of SubConnection in delivering high quality meals to the Chapman population convinced me that an alternative should replace SubConnection. By replacing SubConnection, the local cuisine available for Chapman’s on-campus students would be diversified.
Reference List
Lam, Y. (2010). Why do UC Berkeley students waste food at dining halls? University of California Berkeley.
https://www.chapman.edu/campus-services/sustainability/programs-opportunities/waste-management.aspx
ENG 206 Blog 