Student story: Subway Lunch Rush

By Taylor Escher

The bright lights beat down as stomachs began to grumble.

The lingering smell of Subway hung in the air. The quiet hum of snack machines remained constant as time slipped away in line. Five minutes, 10 minutes, 20 minutes.

The Subway lunch rush was underway.

Filled with campers from the Flint Hills Publications Workshop, the line slowly moved forward as some sighed. Customers watched a CSI murder play out on a small, flat-screen television hanging on the wall. Foot tapping, texting and muted conversations also passed the time.

“The line was ridiculous,” said Ali Swee, Notre Dame de Sion newspaper staffer. “It wasn’t worth the wait because the bread was too crunchy.”

The workers were swamped. Two men cut bread, placed meat, toasted sandwiches and quickly adorned them with toppings. Cards were scanned as chips and drinks were doled out.

“With full staff it takes about 10 to 20 minutes to get a large group of teenagers through,” said TJ Warren, a Subway worker. “During the school year the lunch rush consists of 200 to 300 students. It takes about an hour to get 75 people through.”

The K-State Student Union website described the scene: “Offering a menu of fresh, nutritious sandwiches in a casual atmosphere…” But during the lunch rush, hectic is the word most would use to describe the setting.

“I was wondering why there weren’t more people working,” said Brooke Urzendowski, newspaper staffer at Marion High School. “They knew tons of journalism students would be there.”

Finally at the front of the line, journalism students ordered a variety of sandwiches. Kathryn Schultz, Notre Dame de Sion newspaper staffer, rattled off a long order: nine-grain wheat, turkey, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, red onions, pickles, olives, banana peppers and mayo.

“Everything but jalapenos?” snapped a rushed Warren.

“Yes,” responded Schultz.

The line for sandwiches was dwindling, but the line to pay was growing. Both employees were so engrossed in finishing sandwiches that they were slow to collect the money.

“They made five to six sandwiches while I was waiting to pay,” Urzendowski said. “The food was good, but was it worth the wait?”

After a 20-minute wait, Bailey Buer was relieved when her sandwich was finally handed over.

“When we got there we thought about going somewhere else, but nowhere else sounded good. Subway was good and worth the wait,” said Buer, a newspaper staffer at Kapaun Mt. Caramel. “It wasn’t so bad because we could talk to each other, and we had a long break with enough time. I would have been annoyed if I was alone.”

CSI played on as customers slowly dwindled out. The employees were at peace once again, focusing their attention on the end of the show. The Subway lunch rush had passed.

Taylor Escher is a junior at Notre Dame de Sion and a student in the advanced writing class at the Flint Hills Publications Workshop.