If you’ve ever left to get lunch right after class as soon as A or B lunch starts, you’ve seen the crowds and groups. All of the kids eagerly waiting to cross the street and walk into King Soopers, Chipotle, Subway, or even Arby’s.
Going off campus is an extremely popular choice for lunch, whether you’re walking or driving, and for most of us, it’s just another routinely part of our day. But what about the employees who work at these establishments?
The King Soopers across the street has always been a staple in the area, but in 2013 when it was rebuilt, it opened up many more opportunities in the community. It’s one of, if not the most popular lunch choice at LHS, but with so many kids going in at once, what do the employees think?
“It makes the front end a lot busier, it ends up backing up our front end a little bit, a lot of customers coming in all at once. But, I mean, at this point we’re used to it so it doesn’t change things as much,” said King Soopers’ front end manager, Paul McMullen.
Now that the Starbucks outside of the King Soopers has expanded and moved further down Littleton Boulevard, employees say it can get even more hectic.
“There’s triple the business now, so we’re getting better staffed right now. We just hired two new people, plus, I’m transferring somebody over so we’re in the process of getting them Starbucks trained right now so that we’ll be able to compensate and to take care of everybody once they come in.” said Dawn Humphrey, King Soopers’ assistant manager.
Along with the chaos in the store while kids are trying to get lunch, sometimes employees also have to deal with theft.
“I’m gonna say for the most part I don’t have a lot of issues here. I’ve seen some of the other stores where they have police in the store when the kids come through because the kids are not quite as nice, so I’m not gonna say all of them are great here but for the most part [it’s positive]” said Humphrey.
Even though students who walk to get lunch can have a lot of choices for what they want to get, students with cars have an even wider range.
“It’s so much faster than walking, it’s way more convenient. I really like it because then I can go places that are farther away, like the other day I went to Raising Cane’s in Highlands Ranch. I would say I can still go to King Soopers but it’s not my only option for lunch,” said senior Henry Simmonds.
Especially when it concerns food, students can be resourceful, so even if they can’t drive to get lunch, deals can be found at places that are less than a 15 minute walk from school.
“Personally, I think the Arby’s kids meal is the best way to go because it’s the perfect amount of food for less than 5 dollars,” said sophomore Lily Finch.
“There’s the Tasty Tuesdays at Cafe Rio, we go every Tuesday to Cafe Rio. For 6 dollars you can get a whole smothered burrito. Subway has good daily subs every day, and there’s a Pho place down Littleton Boulevard that has really good Pho,” said Simmonds.
With new changes to the surrounding establishments, like the Starbucks inside of the King Soopers, the effects of the everyday lunch rush are as obvious as ever to employees at these establishments and students alike.
