Fast food now faster

GQ on Grubhub

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This past Wednesday, word began to circulate that The General’s Quarters on-campus dining option will now be partnering with Grubhub, a food delivery service. This news took many members of the ‘Berg community by surprise, prompting questions about who would use this service and how it would work. 

Peter Stark, Sodexo Operations Manager, recalled that this new service had been in the works since last spring, when the Student Government Association approached the Sodexo staff in response to student requests for an on-campus food delivery system. After some research and careful consideration of options, Sodexo ultimately decided on partnering with Grubhub because of their mutual partnership with Blackboard, the company behind the school ID system. 

Because of Grubhub’s partnership with Blackboard, the Muhlenberg community can pay with not only credit and debit, but they can also use their Dining Dollars and ‘Berg Bucks to get their GQ fix. While typically companies like Grubhub, DoorDash and more offer delivery services, Grubhub’s delivery of GQ is slated to begin after spring break. 

For now, Grubhub’s services of GQ will allow the ‘Berg community to order and pay for their favorite foods on the Grubhub app, and then pick them up from GQ once the app indicates that their order is ready, allowing customers to skip all of the lines.

In response to who would use this service, Stark said, “I think it will vary by time of day. Faculty and staff might use it more during the day and students at night and on weekends. I could see it being beneficial for groups ordering together and having one person go for the pickup. Customers on the run who want to get their food without waiting in line will also benefit.”

When asked about their thoughts on this new offering, some students said that they were eager to try the new Grubhub service, but a few remarked that they would not, especially not without the delivery feature. 

A number of first-year students did say that they couldn’t really see a point in the service, especially when used just to order ahead and skip the lines in GQ. 

“It’s a great idea, but I think it’s interesting because it’s such a small campus in the first place; but, when Grubhub delivers, I think it will be really good for people who are sick or tired that way they don’t have to walk over to GQ.”

“It’s a great idea, but I think it’s interesting because it’s such a small campus in the first place; but, when Grubhub delivers, I think it will be really good for people who are sick or tired that way they don’t have to walk over to GQ,” stated Naama Forman ‘23. 

Some denounced the service as lazy and said that it would seem that the app simply helped customers to avoid social interaction. While initially hesitant, Michaela Morgan ’23 did mention that she would consider using the service on a Friday or Saturday night when GQ sees a heavy crowd.

“I don’t have Grubhub, but I did see friends use it and it seems super convenient. They just had to go pick up their food, and it was ready for them by the time they got there,” said Vanshika Kumar ‘22. 

Giovanni Merrifield ‘23 said “To be honest, I don’t think GQ should be on Grubhub. I feel like people should just be able to walk to GQ, go get their food and leave. It’s a waste of money in a sense, GrubHub is making money, but it’s a waste of student’s money. It’s not that far, It’s not that deep. I just don’t like the idea.” Jordan West ‘23 added “When I first saw that GQ was partnering with Grub hub, I said ‘We’re getting food to our dorms? Like delivery? But, it turns out, that’s not even the case, I would rather just like go to GQ to get some food.” When West found out GQ could be delivering after Spring Break, Jordan said “Okay, now you’ve got my attention.” He said he would “probably” use it then, while Merrifield maintained that he would not.

“It’s not that far, It’s not that deep. I just don’t like the idea.”

While students who do live in the freshman dorms could not necessarily see the value, upperclassmen, particularly those living furthest from the heart of campus, including Ashleigh Correll ’22 and Sophia Caterina ’21, expressed that they thought Grubhub was rather useless without delivery, but were very excited to hear that they could expect deliveries offered soon.  

Stark also told The Weekly that though this service is running and will deliver after spring break, that yet another development will occur in the fall. By fall of 2020, Grubhub is set to merge both their public and campus interfaces, which will increase the number of delivery drivers for their latter program, ideally further streamlining the process.

Kyra Dates ‘22 said, “I have to admit that I haven’t looked into it a ton, but from a surface standpoint, it seems good for accessibility purposes, for people who can’t actively come to GQ everytime they’re hungry… but from a standpoint of people who are able-bodied, it’s a very small campus and I don’t feel as though it’s super necessary, and it does cause people to stay holed up and not doing much. It’s kind of dependent on how you’re looking at it.”

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