New affordable dining options come to Hofstra
Ongoing promotion for the $7 value meals can be located in the Student Center, highlighting the various cost-effective options present in the café. // Photo courtesy of Camryn Bowden.
Over the past couple of weeks, students have seen a new promotion offered at the Student Center Café and Bits & Bytes. The $7 value meals program introduces a range of different meals from a variety of cuisines served to students for $7.
“The creation of these meals is in response to our ‘you spoke, we listened’ campaign where we asked students what they wanted to see more of in dining,” said Lexis Meehan, the marketing manager for Hofstra Dining.
The program applies to meals throughout the day, including breakfast sandwiches, pizza, tacos and chicken tenders. Meehan also said that the creation of this program came directly from student involvement. “Students with limited dining dollars desired access to composed meals at a lower price point in order to stay within their daily budget,” Meehan said.
“I’ve been having a really hard time keeping track of all my money, and I feel like I spend so much,” said Reagan Pearce, a freshman filmmaking major. “There’s no portions lined out [for how much money to spend on a daily basis] … So I’m having a hard time managing money and getting food I actually need. But I feel like with the little $7 value things, they already do it for you.”
John Ferreti, a junior film studies and production major, recognizes the positives of the program. “It sounds like it just makes it a lot easier for a lot of students who can’t put as much money on their card as they otherwise could,” Ferreti said.
“Within the first week of this program, over 800 meals were sold across campus,” Meehan said. “We are grateful for the feedback provided by the Hofstra community and are excited to see this program evolve.”
“I didn’t expect to, as a commuter, be here for three meals,” said Giovanna Georgy, a freshman psychology major. “That was very unexpected to me … to be able to at least get something for $7, I think that … they seem cool.” Georgy said there are some complaints that she has for the program. “In terms of variety, it is a little bit limiting … different people have different needs.”
Another one of the complaints from students was that the program took so long to arrive at campus. With the higher cost of food on campus, many students are glad that a solution has been offered.
“Personally, I do think it took a long time to be implemented, just because, from my perspective, my dining dollars are done,” Georgy said.
“It’s been two years since the real spike [in prices], ever since post-COVID is usually when it got a lot worse from what I’ve noticed,” Ferreti said. “I would say a lot of students who complained the most are also definitely on their way out, so they’re more frustrated.”
“It’s a cheaper option than normal … this semester is more expensive food-wise than other semesters,” said Kyleton Quach, a sophomore film major.
