The E&M Deli closed in September and will soon be replaced by Subway.
Glenn L. Martin Hall will feature a new Subway restaurant by the end of this semester, Dining Services spokesman Bart Hipple said.
The Subway will replace the E+M Deli, an eatery in the engineering building that closed Sept. 30. E+M mainly served sandwiches, wraps, sushi and other items common at campus convenience stores, Hipple said.
Although business was “fairly steady,” Dining Services is responding to students’ wishes for more food variety, he added.
“That shop has been there for a very long time, operating as a sandwich deli,” Hipple said. “The sign overhead is at least 35 years old.”
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Along with an increase in revenue, Hipple said he hopes for a positive student response to the Subway’s hours and assortment of sandwiches.
“We’ll be serving the breakfast menu and lunch menu, which is another need we see in that area because none of the nearby cafes are serving breakfast,” he said. “I hope it will provide them a breakfast and lunch experience more in line with other places.”
Similar to other convenience stores and campus eateries, the Subway will accept cash, credit cards and Terrapin Express, Hipple said.
The Subway’s hours are tentative, but Hipple said it probably will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. However, he noted the hours could change depending on popularity.
Sophomore chemical engineering major Catherine Borig said she would definitely prefer a Subway over the E+M Deli.
“I’d probably go to the Subway more than the deli simply because there are more cafes that work as delis nearby, but having a Subway would be something different to go to,” Borig said. “There’s not a lot of options for food at that end of campus.”
However, junior English major Melissa Godfrey said she does not believe building the Subway is a good use of campus space.
“I would probably still go to Stamp,” Godfrey said. “It’s kind of pointless to have two on one campus, and the engineering building is pretty far away from a lot of people, so only people who are engineers will be going around there.”
Godfrey also said she doubts Dining Services will see an increase in revenue after the restaurant’s construction.
“If people are going to go get food, they are just going to go wherever is closest to them,” Godfrey said. “The deli and the Subway’s [revenue] would be about the same.”
But the restaurant will definitely be popular with engineering and all other students, freshman aerospace engineering major Blake Halpin said.
“It will attract more customers because it’s more of a known chain,” Halpin said. “The cafe has some strange options, from what I’ve seen, and Subway is more familiar to students, so I think it would draw in more customers.”
