Local business provides USC students with food options all day, any day

Spudnuts Donuts isn’t lined with cardinal and gold. “Fight On!” signs don’t line the walls. Legends of Trojan football past don’t coax you inside.

But come by after a night out, before the work day or midmorning on the weekend, and you’ll find a staple of Trojan culture.

Open 24 hours on 30th Street and Figueroa, the cafe is “the one place that you go late at night,” said Chuck White, a sophomore majoring in journalism. It’s home to what sophomore Kaya Czyz calls that “funny moment” students have running into each other after a night out, recognizing the series of events that has them both seeking a cronut in the middle of the night.

As residential dining halls and most surrounding restaurants close at 9 or 10 p.m. and food options narrow, Spudnuts is one of a handful of restaurants open to fill the void.

“People just wind up at Spudnuts after parties,” Czyz said. “So I think it does have a little bit of a cultural significance.”

Hours later, the cafe is ready for the morning rush. Though most customers are USC students, according to manager Malivan Long, it also attracts many locals, especially before the work day. Balancing the needs of students with those of the locals is “a bit tricky,” she said.

“We have to price things just right for both the local customers — the business customers — and the USC students,” Long said. “So we can’t be too high up there, but we don’t want to be too low. So, we just try to price everything right in the middle to where pretty much, you know, everybody can afford and also, of course, providing the quality products or items along with that.”

Long also emphasized the weekend rush, led by USC students from fraternities and sororities.

“Groups of those students [from Greek row] come by and get breakfast and lunch sandwiches,” she said. “So, we have a rush, maybe around [10 a.m.] to sometime [in the] afternoon and then, of course, late at night. So weekends are definitely our busiest time.”

Long struggled to name a most popular item, noting the bacon, egg and cheese sandwich, strawberry banana smoothie and the classic cronut. Sophomore Edward Huang showed no hesitation: the ham and cheese croissant.

Junior Rory Burke has only ever gotten cronuts.

“It’s the perfect staple after night games,” she said. “My friends and I will always go there [to Spudnuts] afterwards.”

Whether you’re starting or ending the day at 6 a.m., Spudnuts has a donut, sandwich or coffee for the occasion.