Grill Delivery to Begin Next Week
To many students, Grill has always been a social center, a snack source, and a treasured hallmark of campus. Among new COVID-19 related changes, Grill will continue to run via pickup services.
To accommodate the Academy’s COVID-19 safety measures, Grill implemented changes to its selection and open hours. According to Grill Manager Scott Jeffco, Grill will be offering prepackaged products such as beverages, snacks and personal care products. Students can order items through a form from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday. Pre-ordered items will be available for pickup the same day between 3 to 7 p.m.; smoothie and coffee services will be available for pickup from 7:30 to 10 a.m. from Monday through Wednesday.
Grill has also implemented policies to ensure safe social distancing at all times. “Masks must be always worn while in the building unless seated and actively eating or drinking,” Jeffco said.
Other policies include maintaining six feet distance, observing building and room capacity and following traffic patterns.
Many students look forward to the new Grill pickup system. “I’ve loved Grill food since my prep year and it’s great that they’re doing this. I can sometimes be very vocal to my friends about Grill cheeseburgers and chocolate croissants being amazing,” upper Felix Zou said.
Lower Jack Quinn considered the new system to be a “good resource to be able to purchase food for later, especially when [students] are spending so much time in [their] rooms.”
Some have raised possible improvements for Grill. “One suggestion I have is to allow people to come in but only [allow] 3-4 people in at a time,” lower Maxwell Li said. “Another suggestion would be to schedule [entry times], where preps can go at [one] time, lowers can go at another time.”
Upper Sophie Fernandez raised another suggestion to address the crowding, “Grill is only open for certain times in the day [and] it gets super crowded. To help with overcrowding, it might be interesting to try to have Grill open for more hours than what we saw this past fall term.”
Lower Emilie Dubiel added, “I think Grill could be improved if it still served hot options like mozzarella sticks and sandwiches. I know that I, along with a lot of other students, miss the food options from grill pre-COVID,” Dubiel said.
Along with those returning to the Academy, new students this year look forward to partaking in Grill’s reopening after the quarantine period. “I haven't really experienced the Grill under normal circumstances,” lower Franklin Chow said. “This will be the closest I'll get for now to the real experience.”
Although many campus facilities will be reopening or easing restrictions, the Academy and students will continue to adhere to required precautions. “It’s great that they’re taking steps to cater to students' requests and needs. Even though I, and many others, wish it was different due to the pandemic, these are the types of precautions we have to take. I’m glad that they’re taking steps to make things back to normal,” lower Riches Afolabi said.
“The success of this new program will be contingent upon the ability of the community to follow the Academy’s COVID safety guidelines. We appreciate the entire community’s help in enforcing and following the Academy’s COVID safety rules so we can continue to serve the community and hopefully expand on those services,” Jeffco said.
