If a line stretching from the cash register to the exit of the JRC has ever discouraged you from dining at the Spencer Grill, a new ordering option might address your concerns. This semester, Dining Services has introduced a mobile ordering option through a partnership with the GET Mobile app to allow customers to remotely order food and beverages from the Spencer Grill and Global Café.
Jeanette Moser, director of Dining Services, wrote in an email to the S&B that the department chose the GET Mobile app because of its extensive popularity at colleges across the country. She added that by using the same software programming as the cash registers at the Grill and Global Cafe, the design of the app was smooth and straightforward.
Despite the circulation of a rumor that faculty members took the lead in advocating for a mobile ordering option to avoid waiting in line, Moser wrote that it was Dining Services that proposed the introduction of the option as a convenient solution to general concerns about long lines.
While Dining Services is optimistic about the future of mobile ordering, Moser wrote that the first priority is to get the word out about the app and the conveniences it offers. As a relatively new initiative, many students remain unaware of the option to utilize mobile ordering. Elizabeth Roberts `25 had never heard of the app, while Madeline Fialkov `25 did not know that it could be used to order food until she saw a sign advertising the function. “I had known about the GET app, but I didn’t know I could get food with it,” Fialkov said. “I just thought it was a way to check how many dining dollars I had left.”
Maria Lopez `26 has the app downloaded on her phone but said that she has not tried using it since several experiences in which the app erroneously indicated that the Grill was closed. Lopez said she thinks the app is a good idea, and would consider using it again if it worked consistently.
While Moser wrote that the app will improve workers’ experiences by allowing them to prepare food in advance, some workers at The Spencer Grill have lingering concerns about the efficacy of the app and its impact on their jobs.
“It kind of gets a lot with them [mobile orders] when there’s an order that just pops up,” said Bianca Morcho `25, who often occupies a back-of-house position at the Grill. “It’s due in 15 minutes, but then someone else just came in and ordered something and I have to choose between … which order to prioritize.” Morcho also noted that the worst lines are caused by students seeking meal replacements, which cannot be ordered through the mobile app.
Roxanna Longobardi `25 said that, as a Grill worker, she has used the app herself — finding it especially useful when she is in class or when she does not want to go out.
Both Morcho and Longobardi said, however, that mobile orders have not significantly impacted their jobs yet because not many customers are using the app. Morcho estimated that she gets around five mobile orders during a shift, while Longobardi, who only works one shift per week, said that she normally gets around two orders per shift.
Dining Services plans to expand mobile ordering. Moser wrote that the future of online ordering will include kiosks in the Grill and that she looks forward to the greater efficiency brought by increased usage of the GET app. She further encouraged students to share their feedback on the app.
“Your input is highly valued as we work to enhance this service,” wrote Moser.
