Starting this semester, Point Perk will have different hours of operation. Point Perk is now open 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays and Fridays, and from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday.
This change went into effect on Feb. 3 and students have a lot to say. Point Perk previously closed at 9 p.m. on weekdays.
Euri Mendez, a first-year student who is a graphic design major, didn’t have a problem with the cafe’s new hours.
“They’re not that majorly different than they were before,” Mendez said. “They just close earlier, and I feel like that’s fine if the workers get to leave earlier.”
Mendez said he isn’t typically at the cafe late. However, he said he doesn’t know how the new hours will affect campus events like karaoke, but he said that he’s sure that it will be fine.
Jada Pelzer, a first-year dance major, has similar thoughts on the new hours. Pelzer doesn’t visit Point Perk during the later hours it is open.
“I get all my snacks during the day, so by the time it’s nighttime I could be in bed eating the snack I got from earlier in the day,” Pelzer said.
However, Sadie Choo, a first-year dance major, has a different opinion.
“I think the new hours are messed up primarily just due to my schedule, especially with dance because a lot of my classes end at 5:50 p.m.,” Choo said. “Whether it be academic or literally dancing from 1 p.m. to 5:50p.m. So, I’m like where and when can I get food if nothing in the dining hall works.”
There are mixed reactions about the new hours for Point Perk, but this isn’t the first instance of controversy surrounding CulinArt, Point Park’s food provider since 2016.
Last semester, the dining hall faced health code violations for things like sanitation, cross contamination and improper date marking of food. While these problems have since been resolved, that initial inspection is still fresh on student’s minds.
“To be totally honest, I’m not totally understanding what new precautions went into place, but I have noticed that the meat, despite it still being dry, does taste fresher,” Choo said. “There were a couple points last semester where I felt like what I was eating truly wasn’t safe. It didn’t taste great either, but so far this semester it tastes fresher even when I go into the dining hall at later hours.”
While Choo has noticed improvements, other students haven’t noticed much of a change.
“I’ve never had a bad experience if I’m being honest, but I haven’t noticed a difference.” Mendez said.
Meanwhile, Pelzer wasn’t even aware there were violations last semester, but she finds some of the food in the dining hall bad.
“They only have good food when guests come over and on weekends, which is really messed up,” Pelzer said. “I’m going to be here every day until I graduate, and I don’t like ordering out everyday. So, it’s either you starve, or you try to eat something,”
Pelzer said she also noticed that often spoons, forks or plates that are put out for student-use are dirty. Pelzer said that she and a friend had to pick through the silverware section in the dining hall to find a clean spoon in the past.
A representative from CulinArt was reached out for comment, but they did not respond in time for publication.
