Several Emory University students and faculty are disappointed with the new Atlanta campus food trucks due to their “20 to 30 minute” long wait lines, increased prices and smaller portion sizes.
Emory brought food trucks and “Swoop Eats” mobile vendors, which include old Cox Hall Food Court locations such as Twisted Taco and Raya, to Asbury Circle to replace Cox Hall’s food court while it undergoes renovations throughout the 2024-25 academic year. According to Senior Director of Campus Dining Chad Sunstein, Emory Dining partnered with the mobile food company Food Fleet to organize the assortment of food trucks.
However, in the first few weeks of returning to campus, several students and staff members have said that while the food trucks provide variety, the food is overpriced, and lines are much longer than last year at Cox Hall. During lunchtime, Asbury Circle fills with lines of people waiting to order their food.
Emory Dining worked with multiple student groups in the creation of this year's dining plan, Sunstein wrote in an email to The Emory Wheel. He added that Emory Dining launched a survey yesterday to allow students to give feedback about the current dining options.
“We will continue to use the information we gather to increase the volume of food trucks as necessary and work with vendors to expedite their processes and minimize wait times,” Sunstein wrote.
Nicholas Hobbs, a cardiac device engineer at Emory Healthcare, said he often spends 20 to 30 minutes waiting for his food in line, which takes up most of his 30-minute lunch break. He added that he waits much longer in line at the food trucks then he used to at Cox Hall.
“It’s frustrating for us because it definitely makes it where our lunch break is spent waiting in line rather than eating,” Hobbs said. “It makes it a little harder for us to get our food day to day.”
Sunstein said Emory Dining is working to speed up the process of getting food as well as possibly increasing the volume of food trucks. He added that both faculty and students can buy food from the Eagle Emporium, which includes former Cox Hall staple Nom station. Additionally, Banjo Coffee at Robert W. Woodruff Library has increased its selection this year, according to Sunstein.
“We are constantly making tweaks and adjustments to our dining plans, especially in these first few weeks, as we are learning which cuisines our campus community likes and what times they are showing up for meals,” Sunstein wrote.
Although Hobbs had complaints about the food options this year, he added that the quality and variety the food trucks provide is better than that of Cox Hall. However, he said the prices for food are about $5 to $10 more, leading Hobbs and his colleagues to get lunch in Emory Village more often.
Another Emory Healthcare worker agreed that the lines were long but said that if he gets lunch when undergraduates are in class, it does not take too long to get his food. He added that the food is “delicious.”
Sonali Wagh (26C) agreed that the variety of the food trucks is nice but said the wait lines were “a lot longer” than what she was used to. While standing in line for a food truck, she said that it takes 15 to 20 minutes to order and receive her food.
Tai Jackson (27C) said that he would prefer more options in the $10 to $12 price range.
Jackson said that at certain food trucks, an entree can cost up to $20, which according to him “is way too much.” He added that he waited almost 20 minutes in line at a food truck during dinnertime for someone to take his order. Jackson said with the price and wait time, he did not feel like the meal was worth it.
According to Sunstein, Emory is trying to keep price increases “minimal” while providing “top quality food and service.”
“We are continuously monitoring the variety the food trucks offer and are working with each individual vendor on menu items that balance price, speed of delivery and quality,” Sunstein wrote.
Prices at trucks in Asbury Circle are higher than many alternatives that can be found within just a few miles of Emory’s Atlanta campus.
One of the food trucks that has significantly higher prices than competitors is Five Finger Philly, which charges $17 for its 10-inch Philly cheesesteak. Competitors such as Woody’s CheeseSteaks and Philly Cheesesteak Place sell their cheesesteaks for under $10. Additionally, alternatives within walking distance include a 7-inch or 15-inch cheesesteak at Emory Village’s Jersey Mike’s Subs for $9.75 or $16.95, respectively.
Comparing the prices of the food trucks at Asbury Circle to similar restaurants in the Atlanta area, the Wheel found that most food trucks priced their food at rates about 10% to 25% higher than similar options, with Flavor on the Fork’s Chicken and Waffles being the cheapest entree relative to options found in Atlanta.
At some food trucks, a burger can go for nearly $20, Kosi Udochukwu (25B) said. He added that that is far too expensive for a lunch meal.
Though he didn’t reference a particular food truck, at A Little Nauti Food Truck, a surf and turf burger costs almost $17. A regular cheeseburger and fries at the same truck costs $14, making it the cheapest entree available at the truck.
Geoff Point-Du-Jour (25C) said that the cost of the food trucks deterred him from buying there.
“Just seeing the prices are like $15, $20 when I used to be able to go to Cox and just pick something up for like $10 to $12, it just really turned me away,” Point-Du-Jour said. “I might as well just go in my car and go off campus or go to Emory Village and get Chipotle or Cava.”
Udochukwu expressed concerns with whether food trucks would be sustainable in the colder months or on rainy days. He added that he wished the renovation’s timeline was shorter so that Cox Hall could reopen during the spring semester.
Ashley Yeung (23Ox, 25C) said another oversight with the food trucks is the seating. She said that during the most popular lunch times, there are very few seating areas available for people to eat their food. Young added that Asbury Circle had become overrun by large crowds. Activities normally held on Asbury Circle, like Wonderful Wednesday, had to be moved up closer to Few Hall, she added.
The lack of a central meeting point to eat lunch has a socially disruptive element, Isabel Vélez (23Ox, 25C) said. While she used to simply ask her friends to meet her at Cox Hall, now she has to plan ahead and find other places to meet for lunch. Velez said that it’s not “a huge obstacle” but that the prices are enough to make her bring more food from home.
To provide more seating options, Sunstein said that Emory invested in expanded seating options in the Emory Student Center and Dobbs Common Table for students.
Josh Slate (26B) said that while he missed Cox Hall for its convenience, he was excited to see how the renovations would look.
“I'm also curious to see what the remodeling looks like and how it's different,” Slate said. “I feel like campus keeps changing. There’s a lot of change each year.”
