Finally. UNF has answered (at least some) of our many, many prayers: we now have a different on-campus dining option in Qdoba. 

I’ll be honest- seeing the empty space Slice occupied day in and day out last year was beginning to be a bit of an eyesore. I’m glad our SG stepped to the plate and addressed many students’ issues. Good work, y’all.

Unfortunately, with every action comes an equal and opposite reaction (Thanks, middle school science!). There have been complaints from students about the portion sizes being served at Qdoba. Specifically, about sizes that are too small. I had a burning desire to get to the bottom of these claims (I was also really hungry last Tuesday), so I decided to wait in line with my friend Sophomore and Communications: Video Production major Andrew Horton and see for myself what was really going on.

First off, let me just say that I absolutely love how they have specials for each day of the week. This definitely needs to be something that is implemented in all of our on-campus dining options. I wish I had a nuanced reason for why, but all I can say is that I think it’s cool and will help students save money.

The line was long, but that’s expected for a restaurant that opened less than a week ago. Thankfully, we were moving pretty efficiently; Andrew even timed out our duration in the line. It was about 45 minutes from waiting to check out which, for a line that was cutting through Einstein’s, isn’t that bad.

But how was the food? You’re definitely asking through the screen. Well, the complaints were partially true- the portions of the meat were a little small. I ordered a steak bowl with brown rice, beans, pico, guacamole, and cheese. I also ordered a drink and a bag of chips for the full Qdoba experience, which brought my total to around $15. Here at Spinnaker, we take our investigation very seriously (I expect to be compensated for my dining dollars). As for every other ingredient, they were portioned pretty normally. I figure this is a problem they’ll iron out in the weeks to come. 

Andrew ordered a chicken and bean burrito with a side of queso. He had a similar stance to mine. “The portions were a little on the small side, but not bad… enough to get me through the day,” he said. Specifically, he suggested adding more meat and beans to their burritos to address the portion size issues.

But what about the taste? Pretty good, I must say. Tex-Mex is very different from the options offered on campus, so it was a welcome change from what I’ve usually been eating. However, I wish they offered pinto beans along with their black beans. Other than that, I give Qdoba a solid thumbs up. It won’t knock your socks off, but if you can’t stand another bite of your spicy chicken sandwich, then this will be your savior.

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