Being a student at The Peddie School is demanding. Courses are rigorous, schedules are packed, and life on campus is always bustling. Food is an absolute must, which is why many Falcons often find themselves craving a snack or two, whether in between meals, during study sessions or simply as a means of keeping their energy levels and spirits high throughout the day.

But where exactly do Peddie students like to snack, and why? Read on to find out opinions from members of the Peddie community on the best locations and underrated items, and learn a little about what makes each of these snack stands such special and valued services here.

Location, Location, Location

The main places students buy food are The Grille, Annenberg Library and The Peddie Store. Both The Grille and the Store are located in the Caspersen Campus Center, which houses the dining hall and is also known as Stud (short for ‘student center’). The library is located on the first floor of Annenberg Hall, Peddie’s focal building centered around academics, admission and administration. Due to the integral purpose of these buildings, they are visited multiple times a day by students and faculty alike, and all three snack locations get a lot of daily foot traffic. 

However, it was still quite easy to discern a crowd favorite. When asked where their favorite place to buy snacks on campus is, 70% of students chose the library, citing various reasons such as a wide variety of snack options, friendly staff and affordability. But one of the biggest incentives is that, for most students, the library is at the heart of their daily Peddie routine. Not only is Annenberg Hall and its library in the middle of three major academic buildings (with Annenberg Science Center and Caspersen History House flanking it), but it is also the main space for studying and a popular place to hang out with friends. This makes it the most convenient place to grab a quick bite in the middle of the day. The library also has the latest hours, closing on weekdays at 10:00 p.m.,  in contrast to both the Grille and the school store, which are often open only until 3:30 p.m. Overall, more students are found in the library than other selling locations on campus, which contributes to the library’s high number of customers.

A Platter of Choice

Students say they appreciate the library’s diversity of products. But it is certainly true that all of Peddie’s snack locales offer a wide selection of delicious foods, so what really makes each place unique and special to its customers? The answer lies not in the amount of different items themselves but in the distinct types of items they focus on. 

For example, when asked what factors influence the library’s decisions when stocking products, the library’s director, Mr. Dubrule, explained that they strive to source items that are healthy, international or not commonly found. The library also prioritizes cost, buying from either Amazon or directly from manufacturers and selecting cheap items that are only rounded up to the nearest quarter dollar. “It’s not a money-making operation,” Mr. Dubrule said. “[I]t’s more of a value-added service for the students.”

The school store is one of the less popular places to get snacks, which is understandable due to a majority of its items being Peddie merchandise and school supplies. However, being less dependent on snack sales has given Mrs. Mahoney, the Store’s manager, more freedom to experiment with different snack options. Mrs. Mahoney said that in the past year and a half, she’s gotten more creative and has been making changes as often as every other week, trying out new items to see what students like. The Store also carries more mainstream snacks, which nicely complements the library’s scope of more niche options.

The inventories of the Store and the library consist mostly of pre-packaged foods and drinks, which make for affordable, convenient and quick bites on the go. But The Grille’s forte revolves around something much different. While they do sell pre-packaged goods, such as the ones available in The Grille’s vending machines, PFS stands out as the only place that offers daily specials and rotating options made fresh and kept warm throughout the day. 

Continually Growing (maybe Peddie’s Food Continues to Evolve?)

It seems that at Peddie, what one snack stand does not cover, another one does, which makes for a well-rounded group of businesses on campus; each place provides students with a multitude of options to satisfy cravings and taste preferences of all types. Moreover, all of the establishments are committed to continually improving their services for the school community. 

For example, staff members for The Grille said that its snack bar employees “attend food shows to sample new products and get ideas,” and that they take requests and observe what is popular among buyers to help craft future menus. Mrs. Mahoney also welcomes community feedback and ideas for the Store and, to be more sustainable, she is also trying to limit the amount of plastic bottle-packaged products the Store carries. 

Mr. Dubrule, who is also an advisor and head coach for Girls Varsity Tennis and Girls Varsity Golf, said that he often test drives snacks by having his advisees and athletes try them first, and that the library is always very attuned to what items students favor. Last summer, a survey was sent out asking the student body for new snack suggestions, and the feedback was used to add five new snack items for the start of the school season.

The Best Bites

In addition to asking what students’ favorite locations for purchasing snacks were, the survey also polled them to see which specific snack items they liked best. Naturally, there were many, many different answers, but a few of the most frequently mentioned picks were various flavors (sometimes all) from the library’s selection of Hals chips, bagels from The Grille, black and white cookies and hi-chews. However, there was one clear winner: The Grille’s infamous large and warm chocolate chip cookies. Beloved for their gooey chocolate-filled insides and soft texture, the snack in question stole the hearts of many respondents who had not chosen The Grille as their favorite overall place to grab snacks but still appreciated this signature treat. 

The same question was asked of the people in charge of The Grille, the library and The Peddie Store. According to Mr. Dubrule, the library’s black and white cookie is so popular that it is constantly sold out, which he thinks is likely due to its meager price of just $0.50. Chocolate Panda cookies, Hals chips and Mike & Ikes (only $0.25) are also big hits. The Grille staff confirmed that the iconic chocolate chip cookies are indeed a best seller, and mentioned that their recently introduced freshly made pizza slices have also been doing well. Finally, Mrs. Mahoney explained that Goldfish, Arnold Palmer Half and Half Ice Teas, Airheads and Swedish Fish are consistently in demand, while NERDS Gummy Clusters, Flipz Chocolate Pretzels and Arizona Green Tea have become popular in more recent days. 

Interestingly enough, when asked what they thought was the most underrated snack available on campus, students again had differing opinions, but the library’s black and white cookie was the most popular answer. However, this has been disproven by Mr. Dubrule’s report that the treat does the best out of all of the library’s options. To Peddie’s black and white cookie lovers, your favorite snack is unfortunately no longer a hidden gem … if you see them, grab them!

Frequent Foodies?

Finally, the Peddie Poll also asked respondents to indicate how often they purchased snacks from campus sellers and whether they preferred buying snacks on or off campus. 58.3% indicated that they buy snacks from Peddie 1-4 times a week, 20% said 5-7 times a week, 15% said less than once a week and 6.7% said greater than 7 times a week. 10% of respondents said that they prefer getting snacks from off-campus sources and 28.3% said that they prefer buying from Peddie. For many, though, it proved not to be as big of a deal — 61.7% of students who answered said that it didn’t matter where they got their snacks. 

Those who did lean one way or the other all had different reasons for doing so — off-campus snacks are less accessible to boarders and less convenient in general for students due to being farther away. The longer walk is worth it to some people, though, such as those who prefer to buy products in bulk or choose from a wider selection of foods. It all depends on one’s personal preferences. 

However, one thing remains clear: All of the people behind Peddie’s beloved snack operations work very hard to brighten students’ days and enhance their experience at school. As Mrs. Mahoney said of managing The Peddie Store, “[T]here is nothing better than a student coming in after a tough day and smiling because a particular snack they asked for is in the Store.” As the year goes on, make sure to try a new snack and appreciate all the people who make Peddie’s snacks an integral part of the Peddie experience!

Thank you for tuning into The Peddie Poll! The Peddie Poll is dedicated to providing accurate reflections of student interests on a wide variety of relevant topics. We appreciate any feedback, suggestions, input and participation! Be sure to look out for more polls and articles featured in future issues of The Peddie News. 

About the Survey

This survey was conducted through Google Forms and had a total of 60 distinct student responses, or a response rate of roughly 11%. The survey followed an open-response format and utilized multiple choice selection to facilitate ease of graph depiction. This limitation of response options may have influenced survey results. All direct quotes were used with explicit permission from the person quoted.