Georgia State will soon have a new restaurant on campus as a Steak ‘n Shake arrives early next spring semester.
Amanda Shoff, spokesperson for PantherDining at Georgia State, said the location will be located across from the University Bookstore, in the Panther’s Club food court, and will replace the current State Place Grill. Shoff said she’s hoping the location will open in mid-January.
“We just finalized the contract, so hopefully the turnaround will be quick, regarding training, construction and operations,” Shoff said. “I will have a better idea about when the Steak ‘n Shake will open once we meet with the designer and work out a more defined schedule.”
New restaurants make their way onto campus through a variety of methods. One is when restaurants simply rent the space and are self-supporting, such as Waffle House. Others, like Chick-fil-A and now Steak ‘n Shake, arrive on campus through license agreements.
“PantherDining conducted surveys, spoke with [the Student Government Association] and analyzed historical sales data to find out what the students would like to see on campus,” she said. “We used that information, as well as price point, quality and efficiency, to decide what restaurants to bring to campus.”
With the opening of a new restaurant comes an opportunity for on-campus jobs. Interested students can apply on the PantherDining website, by clicking the Employment tab and going through Handshake.
Students will also be able to find a new Panda Express in the Courtyard dining center in Student Center East, when it opens for the spring semester. Several students weighed in on the news of the new dining additions and what they want to see on campus in the future.
“I did not know about [the Steak ‘n Shake],” student My Truong said. “I think the more food places there are in general, the better it is for the community.”
Grace Cho agreed that Steak ‘n Shake is a good addition, but she’d also like to see more vegan and vegetarian restaurants at Georgia State. Low-carb, Keto and Paleo options are something senior Eric Levengood is hoping for on campus, but he said he’s looking forward to getting bunless burgers at the new Steak ‘n Shake.
While onion rings may excite some students like Maria Ahmad, others aren’t so thrilled about the new arrival.
“I hate to see another source of for-profit, cheap and nutritionally shallow food added to the diet of students,” student Linda McGinn said. “Doesn’t anyone in the administration and student body care about their health?”
Zi Morfaw isn’t so thrilled about Georgia State offering another fast, unhealthy option to students.
“They really just want to get more money for having more junk food,” Morfaw said. “They need to make their prices reasonable – salad at the Saxby in the library is like $8.”
