At the end of Spring Semester 2017, University students said goodbye to Steak Escape. This semester students said hello to Steak ‘n Shake and a new booth in the Union. The Falcon’s Nest is one of four main on-campus locations that students get food, along with the Oaks, the Carillon and the Sundial. Food is a big concern to students, so does Steak‘n Shake provide what students want on campus?

The Falcon’s Nest offers several different options in small booths, but while choices are great, this translates into a smaller Steak ‘n Shake menu. While the full store offers a couple pages worth of items, the Union location has a half-sheet worth of choices. Though, that small menu does cover the important stuff: burgers and shakes. They also have a Veggie Melt for a vegetarian option. According to the menu on the BGSU app under dining, there are about the same number of food items (11) as there are shakes (10).

Though while the menu is much smaller, the prices are exactly the same. There was some fear among students that prices would be jacked because the location is on campus, but students will be happy to know that prices are the same no matter where you are.

The kiosk also looks great in the Falcon’s Nest. It’s bright and clean. New counter tops and lighting really make that corner of the Union look very nice.

There also seems to be an effort to keep the Steak ‘n Shake efficient. Students order before entering the line and employees are constantly calling out order numbers and setting up fries and bags for the next several orders. It is nice to see things running quickly, though there is still a wait in the line.

There is something given up in an effort to be efficient though, since fries are prepared before the order is ready and sit under a heat lamp until they are needed. This can lead to a lower quality of food than you may find in a full Steak ‘n Shake.

Is the trade-off worth it? It may be up to circumstance. A student who is hurrying to a meeting or a class may want to get through as quickly as possible, but a student with more time may want fries cooked as freshly as possible, even though there would be a wait.

Is the Steak ‘n Shake giving people what they want on campus? It all depends on the student, but I think in general this is a good edition to the Falcon’s Nest,  even if it doesn’t quite live up to a full Steak ‘n Shake. The shakes are pretty delicious, too.