Burger Studio

Double Angus burger with a fried egg, blue cheese crumbles, chipoltle mayo, horseradish mustard, fried onions, tomato, banana peppers, red onions, jalapeño peppers, on a non-​squishy bun — $ 6.50! It’s big but not bad, in fact it’s my favorite burger in town. But try to go on either side of when the mid-​day classes get out (12:30 on Tu/​Th, and 11:50 and 12:50 MWF).
It’s run by University Dining Services, but the concept is by ARAMARK Higher Education — «a world leader in providing professional services to more than 600 colleges and universities throughout North America, has launched Burger Studio™, the first brand created entirely by students for ARAMARK.» More like a soul-​less behemoth than a «world leader,» but I give them points for designing the Studio. The parent corporation, ARAMARK, employs a quarter million people, and the name means nothing, comes from nowhere, or shall we say it exemplifies the faceless-​ness of the modern multinational.
If one third of the pleasure of the studio is eating a yummy burger, another third is getting to order it on a touch screen where you select from a cascade of options and sides. My only complaint is that after choosing the sixth complementary fixin’ it has the nerve to ask me if I really want all of them! Listen up you cold-​blooded, non-​sentient piece of silicon, I tell you want I want, not the other way around! I don’t care if you can beat me in chess, this is my studio experience and you are here only to enhance it.
Their goal for the touch screen is «to inspire students’ creativity and individuality.» Coming here directly from a class that teaches critical thinking skills and global citizenship I find this a amusing. It is an example of the contemporary cult of individuality, where corporate marketers try to make the consumer feel as if you are actually in control of your choices, where you are a creative individual distinct from all the other students across the world because you punched in «Horseradish Mustard» and «Chipotle Mayo» while the next guy choose «Honey Mustard» and «Pesto Mayo.» You can feel innovative for your original medley of condiments while also feeling sophisticated for your global tastes in ethnic mayonnaises.
Your choice in cow can also be a part of a marketing campaign by ARAMARK to be seen as a global citizen. As part of Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign against childhood obesity Aramark vowed to reduce the amount of fat, sugar and salt over the next five years. I wonder how much salt and fat are in those new onion rings? And the materials used to make the Studio itself are supposed to be sustainable. I don’t know what «laminate made from coffee beans» looks like, so I could be wrong but i didn’t notice any coffee-​like counters.
And the last third of your enjoyment is knowing that your burger is the product of corporate online focus groups that «capture student feedback about all elements of the brand, from conception to final delivery. The Burger Studio name was selected from more than 1,200 entries submitted in an online contest. Student „taste testers“ reviewed all menu items under consideration to ensure that the type of burger, fries and buns would appeal to students.» Which begs the question, do «students» enjoy different food than others? What about law students or majors of Meat Sciences?

This place has lingered forever in the 2 star zone, then portions became smaller and service even slower than it already was and now I cannot give it more than 1 star.
Today I got a chicken sandwich with pico de gallo and lettuce and a side of fries. The chicken was grilled properly but was a meagerly 4 bites max (I’m pretty sure it was less than 3oz. of meat). The pico de gallo was less than 1 table spoon. The fries were unsalted. And I had to wait a full 15 minutes to get my food. This disaster lunch was priced at $ 7.53.
Now I understand students are not picky and as this place is managed by USD (University Dining Services) it is basically a monopolist, but what the h… I’m still paying good money for your food! Shouldn’t you at least pretend you care?