Late-night eating options cater to different tastes

Though the Princeton U-Store and C-Store, Studio ’34 and the Wawa all offer a mix of healthy fare and greasy snacks, students’ personal tastes and dorm locations send them to different corners of campus.

When the U-Store reopened in fall 2008, following renovations that saw its central operations relocate to Nassau Street, it sought to develop its food operation in order to better serve the needs of the student body, Jim Sykes, the president of the U-Store, said in an e-mail.

U-Store management has promoted its healthier options with a ‘Healthy U’ refrigerated section just inside its doors. Featuring fruits, vegetables, pita, yogurt and other light fare, the section makes the stores’ healthiest foods its most convenient to purchase.

“One of the major categories we worked on expanding was healthy foods like organic or vegan alternatives as well as more fruit and vegetables,” Sykes noted.

The U-store’s three biggest sellers of 2009 were bananas, apples and fruit cups from Tico’s Eatery and Juice Bar, located on Witherspoon Street. String cheese and three sizes of Poland Springs bottled water also made it into the top ten, Sykes said.

“The results have been very positive, with sales of food in total up over 10 percent this year,” Sykes added.

The healthier choices seem to please late-night customers. Molly Hamrick ’13 said she appreciates the U-Store’s offering of healthy foods.

“Even though I don’t obsess about what I eat, I try to stay on the healthy side, to stay in better shape,” Hamrick said. “I’m happy that the U-Store offers these choices to me when I’m hungry at night.”

When vegetarian Daniel Toker ’13 wants a late-night snack, he said, he always heads to the U-Store.

“Good vegetarian options are pretty limited as is, but the packaged meals at the U-Store like the fruit, hummus and vegetables are good alternatives, though pricey,” Toker explained.

The U-Store is especially popular among students living in Rocky-Mathey and other dorms close to the store.

Downcampus, Studio ’34, in Butler College, is the most convenient for many students and also offers unique fare.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

“Because I hang out a lot in Butler, I’m at Studio ’34 a few times a week,” Veronica Ciniglio ’13 said. “I like the mix-and-match candy station and the hot dogs. It’s something new that the U-Store doesn’t really have.”

Director of Dining Services Stu Orefice said he attributes much of Studio ’34’s popularity to the feedback customers provide to the store.

“We receive regular feedback from Butler College with respect to Studio ’34,” Orefice said in an e-mail. “Generally our customers tell us their preferences for products and hours of operation. They have provided feedback on the popular Tornados on the roller grills, and we look forward to the reaction of our quesadillas.”

Ciniglio said she finds Studio ’34’s commitment to students’ responses admirable. “I like how [Studio ’34] continues to offer its food products based on what the students want,” she said. “I usually don’t mind making the walk from my room [in Mathey].”

The most popular late-night items at Studio ’34 include Tornados, beverages and candy. Hot dogs cannot be found at any other convenience store on campus at night. Fresh pizza is served hourly at Studio ’34 after 10 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays.

Studio ’34 offers offers fewer healthy items than the U-Store, however.

“We offer packaged salads, sushi, hummus and yogurts, but they tend to not be as popular as the other snack items,” Orefice explained. “Our research tells us that customers seeking healthier foods tend to purchase products at Cafe Vivian and [at] the Food Gallery.”

Though many of the food products at the C-Store overlap with those at the U-Store and Studio ’34, the C-Store uniquely offers slushies and milkshakes.

“I’m usually studying at Frist, so I come here a lot,” Dana Flynn ’12 said. “I like the C-Store because it carries stuff that I want and stuff that the U-Store doesn’t,” she added.

“The C-Store is extremely convenient if you are already at Frist, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to pick something up here,” Hamrick said. “On top of that, the C-Store doesn’t have the healthier choices that I prefer.”

An additional option for students craving late-night snacks is Wawa. Its Built-to-Order Hoagies and Sandwiches counter makes the ‘Wa’ unique from on-campus convenience stores. Pastries, hot hoagies and an assortment of beverages are the most popular draws for the store and, at any given time, four or five students can be found waiting for their hot orders.

Daniel Becker ’13, who goes to WaWa three or four times per week, said the hot food options kept him coming back.

“I go to the ‘Wa, not because it’s convenient, but because I’m craving either a hot hoagie or a flatbread sandwich,” Becker said. “It’s definitely worth the walk.”