Although GW is an impressive school with its own hospital, auditorium and state-of-the-art athletic center, one of the things it lacks is a true dining hall setting that students can rely on for good, cheap, affordable food, at anytime of the day.
However, J Street has recently been doing impressive things to take the mantle as the head of GW cuisine.
I’ve heard it all the time: students complaining about the money they are forced to spend at J Street and the terrible food that is overpriced and inedible. Yes, I’ll be the first to say it, in my time at GW there has not been good food at J Street, and it is certainly not worth the price. But J Street has made incredible strides in trying to satisfy the student body this semester.
One major noticeable “reform” in J Street has been the lower prices that have been implemented since we returned to campus. With enormous posters and signs, J Street and Sodexo are heavily promoting the first of, hopefully, many changes. And J Street’s choice to lower prices is a promising sign of diplomacy between Sodexo and the student body.
J Street has also demonstrated it is willing to alleviate the concerns of the student body by consistently answering the comment cards left for the management of J Street to read. By posting on the “Rants, Reviews, and Raves” board with positive feedback and possible solutions, the management of J Street is trying to address students. They even leave direct contact information for students to reach them and further voice their opinions.
Despite these attempts to change J Street into a high-quality eatery, there are of course still many things that need to be done. First, J Street needs to have extended hours allowing students who are jonesing for Chick-fil-A at 10 p.m. to be able to pick up food. Also, J Street should be open every day so students have the option to eat there on weekends. If J Street wants to be more welcoming to students, what better way than to open itself up to students seven days a week? Finally, J Street needs to work on improving the quality of the food as well. J Street needs to make food that is at least on par with what is found in other restaurants.
No, I don’t think slightly lower prices and good customer service are going to bring students out of the woodwork. But we need J Street. It’s a centralized place where you can grab food on the go and know that you can get it quickly. It’s where you can eat with your friends. J Street is one of the only places on campus that can unite GW students for meals, studying and important events. J Street is the epicenter of GW and, in that sense, you can’t compare it to any other building on campus.
Eric Su is a freshman majoring in political science.
