Ranking the Stations in Garvey Hall

Image by Alexander Harvey ‘24 and previously used for this Tower article.

By Anthony Curioso

This is an independently submitted op-ed and does not reflect the views of The Tower.

Garvey Hall has been a refuge for many a hungry CUA student since its opening in December 2022. Some people have taken to Instagram to voice their opinions on the different offerings in Garvey Hall daily. But which stations are doing well, and which are you better off avoiding? I will answer that question by ranking each station from worst to best based on the quality and variety of the offerings from each one.

In ninth place is The Nook. This station features drip coffee and hot water machines for coffee and tea enthusiasts, a hotel-style toaster for bread and bagels, and two waffle makers accompanied by batter dispensers (which have this year been moved away from the rest of the station). Unfortunately, one can only find food available at this station during Garvey Hall’s breakfast hours; outside those times, one sees only the coffee and tea setups. As such, it is impossible to rank this station anywhere other than dead last.

In eighth place is Delicious Without. This station, originally named “Pure Eats,” serves food free from all nine of the most common food allergens as reported by the US Department of Agriculture. This station often serves some delicious-looking food, and on the few occasions I ate from this station, I felt satisfied with the food I got. However, I frequently feel guilty about taking food from this station because for some people, it is the only place where they can get something safe to eat on campus.

In seventh place is 500 Degrees. 500 Degrees is Garvey Hall’s pizza station, and it is easily the most popular station on its side of the dining hall. However, due to the station’s popularity, the Garvey Hall workers cannot seem to replenish the pizzas as fast as people take them off the counter. Often, I will approach this station to find that they have (at least temporarily) run out of the pizza I want.

In sixth place is Rooted, the plant-based items station. I would have been more inclined to rank this station higher if it offered a variety of items beyond pasta with sauces. Additionally, as some of my heritage is Italian, some of the sauces provided to accompany the pastas at this station would be an embarrassment to my heritage if I were to eat them.

In fifth place is the Grill, which serves omelets during Garvey Hall’s breakfast and lunch services and burgers, hot dogs, and grilled chicken during lunch and dinner. The Grill station’s omelets are the sole reason for its higher ranking. Unfortunately, I find it hard to overlook how excessively dry the burgers are, and I have always disliked hot dogs regardless of the source.

In fourth place for me is Chop’d and Wrap’d, which is the sandwich counter and salad bar. For a while, my philosophy regarding food has been that you cannot really go wrong with a sandwich. However, as a wheelchair user, I find the salad bar section of Chop’d and Wrap’d to be incredibly awkward to navigate. I don’t exactly feel comfortable or even know how to approach asking for assistance with making a salad.

Homestyle comes in third place, offering classic comfort foods. The Garvey Hall staff has dramatically improved their offerings from this station in the 2025-26 school year. My favorite dishes include traditional soul food items, such as ribs, mashed potatoes, potato salad, and macaroni and cheese. The Homestyle station offered these items multiple times in recent weeks, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed them.

Just barely missing out on the top spot is Innovation Kitchen, which is my runner-up. As the name suggests, Innovation Kitchen features menu items from different cultures’ cuisines at every meal, from Asian stir-fry and egg rolls to Mexican quesadillas and tacos. Innovation Kitchen also sometimes serves as the temporary home for the aforementioned omelet station in Garvey Hall.

To no one’s surprise, my pick for the best station in Garvey Hall is the Sweet Shoppe, the dessert station. During lunch and dinner, the Sweet Shoppe features ice cream, cookies, and cakes; during breakfast, it offers donuts, muffins, and what I can only assume are the Garvey Hall version of Pop-Tarts.