When @villanovadining posted pictures of what the new Connelly Center would look like on Aug. 15, it served as a shock. A complete revamp had occurred, stripping the plant-filled-ski-lodge look for more of a clean-minimalistic-spaceship thing. Quite honestly, I feared the Connelly Center was going to look like the inside of a hospital when I returned to campus. However, I realized Villanova actually did a good job with it. It’s more dynamic than the pictures made it seem, and I like the contrasting blue chairs with the white and gray walls. It’s certainly a much cleaner look than the previous Connelly Center, which, honestly, is a welcome change for me.
I’m not here to talk about the way it looks, though. As a central dining location, it does not really matter how it looks. Additionally, new students in the coming years won’t even know what the old Conn looked like, anyway. What matters is the food. I was overjoyed to learn that a new Wawa was being added into Conn. As a proud New Jerseyan, I couldn’t be happier to have one of the best convenience stores in the nation within walking distance.
Wawa is a smart choice to have on campus because it has so much variety. Obviously, it is famous for hoagies, but it also has quesadillas, mac and cheese, chicken tenders, meatballs, pretzels, salads, bowls, soups and more. Compared to Belle Air Terrace, the options at Wawa are tenfold. Everything Wawa has to offer is also good quality, so it’s nice to know I can get a variety of good-quality meals to keep things fresh throughout the week.
Generally, it seems that a lot of students are happy to have the Wawa on campus. However, there seems to be one common critique among them.
“The Wawa is really good, but I’m mad it doesn’t take meals,” junior Baily Keeley said.
“I love the Wawa, but if you want food that’s similar to what Belle Air had, you have to get Wawa with points,” junior Kaitlyn Walker said.
“I think you should be allowed to use a meal for the Wawa,” junior Kyla Armistad said.
The call for meals is a valid critique. Belle Air was such a central dining spot on campus that took meal swipes and now that option has been completely eliminated. Even though Wawa is a separate entity from Villanova, I don’t see why the meal plan shouldn’t work with it. A meal is equal to $9.25, so why wouldn’t that carry over to Wawa? If one gets something within the meal price range, they should be able to solely use a meal swipe.
Moving on from the Wawa, I think Nova Noodle Co. and the new sushi place are great additions to the Connelly Center. Of course, the sushi was a massive hit last semester, and I’m glad some more options were added. I tried the chicken teriyaki bowl from the noodle restaurant this week, and I was quite impressed. However, my only complaint would be the portion size. If I paid $9.25 for such a tiny bowl at an actual restaurant, I’d be pretty mad. It seems that other Villanova students agree with me.
“The noodle place is very solid, but the portions should be bigger,” junior Luke Fabietti said.
“Everyone I know thinks the portion sizes should be larger,” junior Beau Mowery said.
I think it would be a good idea to be able to do a combo from both places equivalent to one meal swipe. If Nova Noodle Co.’s portion sizes don’t change, one bowl and one sushi roll should be equivalent to a meal. Quite honestly, since I’ve been back at school, I feel like I’m starving from these tiny portions. Is it too much to ask for just a slightly bigger bowl?
Lastly, I just have one more question to ask: where is Smoothitas? Villanova revamped its smoothies about halfway through last semester, and now the options seem to be completely gone.
“You can get a smoothie at Wawa now, but at Smoothitas, you could use a meal,” Kaitlyn Walker said.
Obviously, I understand that Wawa sells its own smoothies, but it’s sad to see that Smoothitas’s unique ones have been removed from Conn. From the looks of it, Smoothitas provided different options from what Wawa currently sells, including acai bowls.
Overall, though, I really like the changes made to the Connelly Center. Wawa is a fantastic option to have on campus, and I love Villanova’s commitment to diversifying lunch options with the additional noodle and sushi places. Many Villanovans will be spending this semester trying out all the options the new Connelly Center truly has to offer.
