First Floor Hours Back to Normal

First floor DeNaples Center at Late Night

By Phillip Schoch – Staff Writer

Student favorites such as Which Wich, Pizza and Pasta, Chick-fil-A and Zoca are available during late-night again after the DeNaples Center’s first-floor food court expanded its hours.  

Last school year, only Grille Works and Chick-fil-A were consistently open for late-night. Joseph Boyd, the general manager of dining services at the university, was excited to announce the new hours for those first-floor options that were not available before. 

“In addition to Zoca and Grill for lunch, dinner and late night, we are excited to offer Which Wich from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday and 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, as well as Pasta from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday,” Boyd said. 

Students across the university appeared to take notice of the change, as first-floor returned to its usual busy state. Dozens of students packed the food court lobby around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, taking advantage of the added convenience. 

Workers clipped brown paper bags to Which Wich’s clothesline as they assembled sandwiches. Patties lay sizzling on the flat grill. Students passed by Chick-fil-A’s grab-and-go slots, making sure to grab sauce as they headed to the cash register. More students waited in the lobby, eager to grab their mobile orders. 

Jeanna Gailius, a senior and a captain on the university’s swimming and diving team, eats first-floor “almost every day for lunch, and sometimes late-night.” Her favorite place to go is Chick-fil-A. Her preferred method is using the Transact Mobile Ordering app, available on smartphones. 

 “Oh (I use it) all the time. For, like, everything. I can order after class and pick it up which saves time.” Gailius said. 

With fewer options open for late-night last semester, students could wait more than an hour and a half for a mobile. For people on sports teams, finding late-night options was more difficult than it usually was. 

“I’d have to grab my phone while I was still at the pool and do it early enough to get something.” Gailius said with a laugh. 

Brian Hroncic, a senior at the university, says he eats first-floor “about four times a week,” and he opts for late-night roughly once or twice a week. His favorite option? Like Gailius and many other students, Hroncic favors Chick-fil-A, specifically the spicy chicken sandwich. However, Hroncic also enjoys a dining option that makes its Scranton debut this semester. 

“I also like the new B+F restaurant they added (at Grille Works). I like to get the cheeseburgers from there,” Hroncic said. 

In addition to burgers, B+F offers vegetarian options like the chipotle black bean burger; the Beyond Burger is another substitute for regular burgers. Additionally, B+F offers Nashville ranch spicy chicken sandwiches. 

“We know the students will enjoy this delicious new menu.” Boyd said. 

 “I haven’t (tried B+F) yet, but that sounds about right for the brand,” Gailius said. 

With its hours returning to normal times as well as the introduction of B+F, first-floor is a dining option many students might consider in the future.