USC students are hangry.
Forced to wait in lines up to an hour long for a meal at USC Village, students say they are battling between missing class or missing a meal.
“I’ve waited even though I’ll order ahead. It’s annoying because I can order 20 minutes ahead and still be waiting,” said USC senior Adelina Hudson.
Hudson says that she and all of her friends have been late to class at least once due to the wait times at The Village.
The Village consists of several popular restaurants including CAVA, DULCE, greenleaf, Stout Burger, Trader Joe’s and Starbucks, among others.
Hudson suggests that The Village should send more timely notifications.
“What they can do is have a way that has updated waiting times at specific times when you go to order,” she said.
At CAVA, sophomore Valerie Aronhalt says the longest time she’s ever waited was an hour. She hasn’t gotten food from there since.
Another student, Katrina Beschloss, is also irritated by the wait times. “Some of the places do get a little busy and it’s annoying,” she said.
When reached by Annenberg Media, CAVA said they “never want to keep people waiting” and would be looking into how to reduce queue times.
At another favorite location, DULCE, student Emily Fitzner said she waited 10 minutes for a matcha drink, but she doesn’t mind.
“I think it’s worth it and honestly the line is the longest part. Once you get in and order your drink it takes like maybe a minute or two minutes to get,” she said.
In 2019, students petitioned for Trader Joe’s to change its line system. According to an article from the Daily Trojan, the new line system forced students into a long queue that “[stretched] through the freezer section and sometimes [wrapped] around to the shelves of alcohol in the next aisle.”
Drink orders that are ready to be picked up at The Village Starbucks. (Photo By Piper Vaughn)
Dylan Luden, a barista at Starbucks, says that student surges can be really hectic but the store is well prepared.
“We have a lot of baristas and kind of shift leaders on the floor, so we’re pretty prepared,” he said. Luden says that the mornings are the busiest times for the store.
“It’s pretty crazy. There is no standing room,” he said.
Regardless of the wait, students continue to stand in lines that are out the doors for their favorite bites at The Village. Even if that means jeopardizing their attendance in class.