Ronald Tutor Campus Center

I would definitely avoid this plaza between the hours of 11am to 2pm. It gets packed with students trying to grab lunch, and lines are insanely long. Even if you manage to get food after all the waiting, you can’t count on grabbing a seat, especially if you’re with a group.
I do appreciate that this place is kept relatively clean. And it’s a convenient location as it is in the middle of the USC campus. They offer a variety of food options – Panda Express, California Pizza Kitchen, and Seeds, to name a few. Not the best, but satisfactory nonetheless.
Graduate Student Government is located here as well, on the second floor. We have meetings in the offices, and there’s always something going on, so if you want to get involved in graduate student affairs, this is the place to go!

This is for the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf inside.
Poor service!
This is third time I got bad service from Coffee Bean.
I ordered iced hazelnut coffee, and they charged me for iced hazelnut latte.
I said several times I want iced coffee not iced latte.
There was a long long line and they were busy, I got that.
But, this server is just keep joking with other baristas in spanish and charged me latte.
What a poor service?

The campus center came about when I started at USC. Perhaps it was still too fresh, too clean, at the time. But it never felt like home. It never felt lived-​in. There’s something very artificial, very plasticky about the way it’s designed. It doesn’t feel like a historic or important building, but rather a tacky attempt at grandiosity. In terms of color scheme and materials, it fits with the rest of campus, but is otherwise an unwelcome imposition. It feels fake, like they tried too hard. Prestige is something a university grows into, not something it buys. USC would do well to ponder this lesson in its aggressive effort to become a top school.
In fact, this building is all about trying really hard. It’s the home to admissions, and is supposed to give prospective students the shock-​and-​awe treatment. Donors will visit, smiling, proud their university has become something so fantastic. But I hope they’ll think harder about what this campus center is really trying to accomplish.
In theory, a campus center offers space for all students to gather around and engage in communal activities. This one, perhaps limited by campus size, isn’t large enough to do that and doesn’t offer the right mix of spaces. It’s not good for studying — there are no individual rooms or study spaces. It’s okay for eating, but the food is overpriced and inconsistent. It’s mediocre for student organizations, given the dearth of rooms and their austere, awkward layouts. And it’s only passable for socializing, given the cramped chairs, extreme noise (especially from the fountain), and lack of available spaces to sit. If you’re desperate, you can sit on the concrete steps, but these are uncomfortable, overly sunny, and awkward for eating.
There are plenty of calmer and more beautiful spots on campus to hang out. Try any of the benches in the treed areas. You’ll be able to relax, free of distractions and noise.

An ostentatious brick veneered monstrosity that announces to all plebians: Your Tributary Tuition Has Been Duly Spent.
$ 130 million for this eyesore? If I were Ronald Tutor, I’d pay USC NOT to name this after me.
Although it may be the geographical center of campus, it is anything but a Campus Center, unless your life revolves around eating mediocre fast food.

Gets crowded at around lunchtime. like. CROWDED. Think LA traffic crowded… Long lines, long waits, so if you have class in 30 min you’ll likely be eating your lunch in class after being late. Also, I don’t like the selection of food places :(Panda, CPK, Wahoos (wish chipotle), and Carls Jr (lol)
OTHERWISE I really like the atmosphere. Great place to chill with friends on a nice LA day, or just to sit and study or relax!
There are a lot of hidden places here. People associate it just for the food court area but go to the second floor for Lemonade! There is also the Undergraduate Student Government office. On the 3^rd floor there is the Trojan Generations room which is a great place to study and do group meetings! Also, the special events office is there as well. A bunch of meeting rooms that you can reserve for meetings and events for your clubs! The FORUM is a pretty room also and everybody should check it out!
In Sample Hall there is a great study area that looks so pretty and smells good. It is opened 24 hours during finals. The admissions office is also there and an alumni thing. (lol)

The center of campus with great outdoor seating to people watch. Grab your food from the food court next door sit down and relax! then rush to your next class.

Beautifully constructed building but it’s always super crowded so I usually avoid this area at all costs from around 11 AM to 3 PM. NEVER try to get a quick lunch here during normal lunch hours. You will be sorry. The lines are ridiculous and the food isn’t even that great. Seeds is way overpriced and the way they set up the registers to pay is really dumb so you have to wait in line for your food and then go to another line to pay –_​_​–
Lemonade is okay but still pretty pricey. Lines can get really long too. In the main area they have Panda, CPK, Wahoos and Carl’s Jr. All of them are meh fast food so nothing special here. There is a lot of seating outside but there are still issues finding a place to sit during rush hours…
I do like the Trojan Reading Room with the Oculus in the ceiling, it’s super legit. However that room tends to get filled up quickly too which is a bummer. Have yet to try Morton Fig’s but i have heard good things.

This isn’t a review for the campus center– it’s for the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf inside. Just don’t do it. I ordered a pumpkin spice latte, with extra vanilla powder. There were 3 other people in line, and it took them 10 minutes. I asked the barista if there was extra vanilla powder in the drink; she said yes.
I tried it and it tasted like black coffee and milk with some sugar. It was awful! It must have had no pumpkin flavor added at all; it’s not like you can’t tell the difference. I went to add sugar, they were out except for the freaky liquid sugar and Splenda. I went back and politely asked another barista for vanilla powder (they didn’t have any to add yourself) and regular sugar. They looked at me like I had asked for all the money in the cash register, mumbled something, then left to «find some». They came back and said, «We don’t have any vanilla powder» and gave me three packets of sugar.
How do you not have vanilla powder? You just told me you added it in; you certainly charged me for it. Well maybe that explains why the pumpkin spice latte doesn’t taste like pumpkin either — it’s hard to if your employees ‘put in’ ingredients you don’t have.
And the most awful thing about this place are all the lying signs that say, «Let us make your drink just the way you like it!» or «We’re happy to customize your drink!» LIES! Don’t put those things up if you’re going to treat a customer like trash when they ask you to simply give them vanilla powder since you can’t properly add it yourself.
You’re running to class, and it’s convenient, and there aren’t any other coffee options very close by, I know. But you’ll have a better day going to the Starbucks on Hoover. The line is huge there, but at least it’s worth the wait.

beautiful architecture and great food choices

What a fantastic facility. This place is such a great improvement over the old Commons that used to be here before. Previously, the old Commons had 3 levels total. Upper floor housed some offices, main floor had the small grill and large dining hall, and the basement had the original Traddies, Mexican joint and the rotisserie chicken join.
Ronald Tutor Campus Center is all that plus more. More offices, more study spaces, more eateries, a way bigger Traddies. All these things packaged in a picturesque design.
This place is awesome and definitely worthy of people’s tuition. Only thing I dislike are the amount of damn bikes that litter the entrance.

apparently there is a lot of food in there that I didn’t know about. #llifeofagradstudent

The new Campus Center is a great place to grab some lunch or dinner. There are a variety of chain restaurants, including Coffee Bean, CPK, Wahoo’s, Panda Express, and Carl’s Jr., as well as Seeds Marketplace, which is much like a convenience store. They also make fresh salads and sandwiches. My favorite sandwich is the Caprese. If you’re vegan, they also have a variety of different items in the back of the store. All in all, quite a good place to go, especially if you have the Trojan Meal Plan.

This new campus center is generally a great venue, don’t get me wrong. Objectively, it’s got food, plenty of tables (except around the lunch and dinner rush hours), and WiFi, as well as power outlets for my laptop (near the walls). In general, it’s pretty clean (since it is new).
But after a semester of coming here frequently, my visits have been more out of necessity than desire. This ends up being the most convenient place to get food, considering the fact that it’s right in the middle of campus, closest to most of my classes.
In terms of choices, they don’t range very much. There’s a Carl’s Jr., Panda Express, Wahoo’s, California Pizza Kitchen, and a Lemonade on the second floor. But after a while, your favorites become the bane of your existence and the alternatives (some green soup) don’t look much more appetizing. It’s a reason I’ve opted to go off campus more and more often, where the range of choices are much more promising.
Service is about what you can expect at an understaffed school facility. While the longer lines do move and somewhat quickly, the employees end up having to prepare food during off-​hours, which leaves people who want food at, say, 8 PM having to wait for quite a while.
Ultimately, if I were only at USC for a semester, this would be a 4-​star review. Although it might seem unfair to drop them a star because of my own choice to eat there so often, something about this venue turns me off despite the initially flawless facilities.

I’m more inclined to agree with Ari O. than Johnny N. The time to wait in line, even at non-​peak hours like three in the afternoon, is very long. And at least during my two visits, I see the cashier workers are also doing food preparation intermittently. That’s why it takes so bloody long; the franchises are all understaffed.
Then again, I do like what’s there. I suppose my favorite is Seeds, which really is too overpriced, but at least I can get a salad of whatever type I like. And they actually stock fresh fruit and (sometimes) a small quantity of vegetables, which makes my heart sing because I don’t have a car in which to go to Ralph’s. I was delighted and surprised to also see Newman’s gluten-​free oreos for a reasonable price. (Strangely, the regular chocolate Newman’s oreos were two or three dollars more… what gives there?) And they do also have a line of kosher foods, I think ready-​to-​eat, so that’s another plus. I wish, wish, WISH they’d keep a better eye on the lines, which sometimes drape across the store!
Anyway, I do like the center. I just wish it were more convenient to stop in between classes; if I stop there on my way walking from Kapellerian to Taper during the 45-​minute break I have between classes, I don’t get a chance to sit down and eat/​drink; I get in and get out and have to rush to class immediately because it takes so long. (Again, at three in the afternoon, the lines should not be as long as they were at noon or dinnertime in the Lot.)
I never even consider going there for lunch. It’s an absolute madhouse. I’d rather make ramen in the quiet of my own dorm than enter the bedlam that exists there at noon.
I must say, I find it’s more productive to carry an extra bottle of tea or water than to count on stopping at the RTC. I would shop there much more often (maybe twice or thrice a week instead of once a week max) if the service were better.
Here’s the full hours for the center, from
, because they vary from vendor to vendor.
WAHOO’s FISH TACO
11AM-​8PM (MON-​THUR), 11AM-​6PM (FRI,
11AM-​3PM (SAT-​SUN)
CARL’S JR
7AM-​8PM (MON-​THUR), 7AM-​5PM (FRI),
1PM-​7PM (SAT-​SUN)
COFFEE BEAN & TEA LEAF
7AM-​8PM (MON-​THUR), 7AM-​5PM (FRI),
9AM-​3PM (SAT-​SUN)
PANDA EXPRESS
11AM-​8PM (MON-​FRI)
11AM-​3PM (SAT-​SUN)
SEEDS MARKETPLACE
7AM-​9PM (MON-​FRI)
9AM-​5PM (SAT-​SUN)
CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN
11AM-​7PM (MON-​THUR), 11AM-​5PM (FRI),
1PM-​7PM (SAT-​SUN)
TRADITIONS
4PM-​12AM (MON-​WED), 4PM-​2AM (THU-​SAT),
4PM-​12AM (SUN)
LEMONADE
11AM-​4PM (MON-​FRI),
CLOSED (SAT-​SUN)

Gorgeous… and a little intimidating!
The new Campus Center seems like one of the largest buildings/​complexes on campus, and it is impressive. A lot of the construction barriers have come down, and the food court is open for business (right now, just Carl’s Jr., Wahoo’s, and Coffee Bean), and there is definitely a buzz about it, even though it’s the middle of summer break.
Still some masonry and concrete work to be finished up, but this is definitely going to be quite a centerpiece of student life. Congrats to all the current Trojans!