Written by: Nicki Sanchirico Exsc/Kines ’18, DPT ’21
The University of Scranton offers a wide variety of food options for its undergraduate and graduate students! There are a few main areas for students to grab a bite to eat: “3rd floor” (The Fresh Food Company), “1st floor” (1st Floor DeNaples food court), “big P.O.D.” (the Mulberry Street P.O.D. Market and food court) and “Einsteins” (Einstein Bros. Bagels).
The 3rd floor of the DeNaples Center is considered the main dining hall on campus. This provides students with an “all-you-care-to-eat” style of service for a single meal swipe or price. There are many different stations with meal choices changing at each meal and individual plates made to order. This provides students with an ever-changing variety of choices and the ability to customize their meals. There is always one station that is for students who require a gluten sensitive diet and a station for students who are vegetarian. Fan favorite meals include the raspberry chicken and the chicken parm sandwich. Two of my personal favorite meals are their poke bowls and chicken enchiladas! At the beginning of fall 2020, a new option called “Fresh Food Co to Go” was introduced. Through this option, students pick up food through a to-go line and can enjoy the food outside or back in their residence halls.
The 3rd floor isn’t the only food area on campus that introduced new to-go options! The 1st floor food court, big P.O.D. and Einsteins were always known as areas where students could grab a quick bite to eat, but now it is even more convenient for students to order food. Students now have the option of ordering via a mobile app! This is a convenient way for students to order and pick up food quickly on busy nights. The 1st floor food court includes Which-Wich, Chick-fil-A, Zoca, Oath Pizza, a pasta station and Grill Works. My go-to meal on 1st floor is always a Zoca bean burrito bowl! In big P.O.D., you will find a sandwich station, a salad station and a station called Road Trip America. Road Trip America offers students a taste of food from various regions! My personal favorite place to grab a quick bite to eat is at Einsteins. Nothing beats grabbing a warm bagel sandwich or a breakfast burrito between classes.
As a graduate student, you can pay for meals as needed, or you can participate in a meal plan. Full meal plans and commuter meal plans are offered. There are three options for the full meal plans: 10 meals per week, 14 meals per week or unlimited. There are two options for the commuter block meal plans: 30 meals per semester or 60 meals per semester. During my graduate school experience, I opted for the 60-block meal plan. This allowed me to get a couple of meals a week on campus with friends and grab a couple of quick meals on busy test days! Whether you decide to get a meal plan, or just pay for meals as needed, you’ll always have plenty of options available on campus!