Small changes in food and drink options have been going on at the Dock. Students are coming back to school and seeing all these changes throughout the building, one of which is the temporary closure of the Cove. The main spot students are finding their snacks and drinks at is the Dock, located in the Cafeteria. 

One of the changes the Dock enacted this year was to switch out the drinks on offer. The beloved Kickstart energy drinks were switched out for several flavours of Sparkling Ice which has now become a cult favorite among students. The less embraced food and drink departures were the well-known and highly-praised salt and vinegar chips as well as the Gatorade drinks. There are some other interesting additions to this year’s selection to replace those lost, however; one of these new products is the new kettle corn that many have been excited to eat recently. 

Darryl Schorle, a well-known employee at the Dock, spoke about the new options and said, “a lot of it has to do with what’s available.” Although there are different snacks people love buying at school, it ultimately depends upon the suppliers and if there is enough food to support sales. 

Schorle said “[he needs] enough for five days times four cases a day” to ensure a good selection throughout the week. The new food and drink options at the Dock is due to supplier inventory: what they have and how much is available. The decisions are ultimately made by Schorle and others in charge; he described these decisions as “a group effort.” 

Conversely, student opinions are more critical of the new food and drink items. 

Hailey Guptail, ‘23, said, “I feel like there’s less healthy options and overall just a lack of good snacks for students…I don’t really like them at all.” Claire Oh, ‘23, said she misses the “salt and vinegar chips we used to have along with those other flavors,” adding that although “there were some items last year that [she] liked [that are] not at the Dock anymore,” the recent changes are fine. The overall consensus from these two students is that the food changes at the Dock are not as ideal as they hoped. Although there are continuous snack changes at the Dock, the good news is that there are still other locations to grab a quick energy boost throughout the school day. Vending machines throughout the school offer quick and easy access to drinks, and the main cafeteria, also known as the Harbor Cafe, is giving lunches for free this year, which is a great opportunity to eat before the end of the day. Ultimately, having food students are happy to eat can come from multiple places throughout the school. These changes may continue to occur, but students need not worry: banana bread will always be a staple snack.