In the 11 days since Auntie Anne’s arrived on the campus, some students said they’ve already bought more pretzels than they’re willing to admit.
“They’re just delicious,” said senior criminology and criminal justice and English major Rob Craig, adding that he’s now a regular of the shop after eating there on numerous occasions.
Last semester, many students said an Auntie Anne’s would be a welcome addition to fill the extra space next to Taco Bell in the Stamp Student Union food court, and many have been flocking to the kiosk since it opened Jan. 20, food court Unit Manager Lori Dominick said. After giving away about 400 pretzels as an opening day promotion, the new stand is selling an average of about 600 pretzel each day, she added.
“The reaction has been very overwhelming,” Dining Services Senior Associate Director Joe Mullineaux said. “We’re actually busy enough that we’re just about keeping up with the demand in the Stamp.”
Dominick said she was surprised at how many of those customers have a sweet tooth, with cinnamon sugar pretzels nearly matching sales of the original flavor.
But business has not declined in other Dining Services-run restaurants, such as Chik-fil-A and Saladworks, she said.
“We’re hoping [Auntie Anne’s] actually brings new people in,” said Dominick, adding, “I expect things will slow down a little as the novelty wears off.”
Though many students are choosing the food court’s newest addition over other restaurants, several managers said they aren’t losing any customers.
“I doubt if it affects any businesses,” said Moby Dick store manager Aresh Yazdani, whose restaurant opened last winter.
Several students, such as sophomore community health and English major Ana Ordonez, said after years of choosing between the same foods, they were glad to have another snack option on the campus.
“I’m happy they actually have this,” she said. “I have gotten so tired of all the other food they have here.”
However, some students said they were not too pleased with how much their cravings cost. Plain pretzels start at $2.99 and meal-and-drink combos cost more than $5.
“It’s good for a snack,” said senior computer science and economics major Andrew Kannan. “It’s expensive, but it’s OK, I’ve come to expect that.”
Last semester, Mullineaux proposed selling Auntie Anne’s products at other locations around the campus, but those plans are on hold for now because the pretzels are only fresh for 30 minutes after being cooked.
Footnotes Café, located inside McKeldin Library, may be close enough for Dining Services to drop off and sell Auntie Anne’s products, Mullineaux said, but for now the focus is to “get down the art of making pretzels.”
He said employees are catching on quickly, but creating the perfect twist is harder than it looks. Mullineaux attended an Auntie Anne’s training session last week and said he successfully made — and ate — only one pretzel.
“I remember when we first opened Chick-fil-A, marinating the chicken and then hand breading it was quite a challenge,” he said. “After eight or nine years, we’ve got it down and we’ll get the pretzels down.”
lurye@umdbk.com
