For many Lakeside students, a morning trip to the WCC is a part of the everyday schedule, whether it’s to grab breakfast before school or racing there during a 5-minute break. However, with the opening of the new T.J. Vassar ’68 Center for the Sciences and Humanities, that long-standing monopoly for student snacks is over as of April 20.
The new snack bar inside the Vassar Center feels less like the traditional school cafeteria and more like a professional cafe. While coffee and tea have been available on campus for years, this new location offers a brand new coffee machine that significantly expands upon caffeinated options. Students can now purchase lattes, chais, and dirty chais, with the pricing ranging from around $2 to $5 for these new drinks. While according to SAGE staff member Valeriia, the final pricing for these specialized drinks is still being adjusted, the upgraded menu is already a major plus for Lakeside students. Perhaps the most exciting change, however, is the addition of fresh pastries at all times of the school day — a first for Lakeside. The options now include scones, cookies, and muffins, alongside a variety of fruit cups, chips, candy, and bottled drinks. The baked goods, in particular, are already gaining a positive reputation.
Chloe M. ’26 noted, “I know people who love the chocolate chip cookies,” adding on that many have said they are the “second best chocolate chip cookies ever.” As in the WCC, Valeriia says SAGE plans to rotate the food offerings, so we likely haven’t seen all the treats that will eventually be available. The early student consensus is mostly positive, with Elyse C. ’29 noting that it is “really convenient, and the snacks are a lot better than the ones in the WCC, but it gets busy really fast.” However, some students said the convenience and aesthetic of the new space isn’t worth the additional cost when students already have lunch paid for. One student responded to the Tatler poll saying they will only get food from the snack bar “if it is free,” and Violet M. ’26 said the cafe “looks really nice, but [she’s] not going to eat from it because [she] already has free lunch.”
The payment process remains the same for the new snack bar. As with the WCC, you simply provide your school ID code to one of the SAGE workers at the checkout desk. For those who prefer their snacks warm, the snack area also features a public-use microwave, which will be useful for those looking to heat up a meal on the go.
The addition of this space doesn’t mean the end of an era for the WCC, which remains fully operational and continues to serve its traditional menu. Instead, the Vassar Center snack bar serves as a convenient space to get food for those with back-to-back classes on the far edge of campus. In addition, unlike the WCC, the Vassar Center is a primary academic building. Every student on campus will take English classes there, meaning that, for the first time, students don’t even have to leave the building during their breaks to find food or drink.
While the WCC is still the central place to get food at Lakeside, its distance from the Vassar Center can make a quick snack run during a passing period or break during class nearly impossible. By cutting out the long trek across campus, the new snack bar allows for more time to study or relax in between classes.
Whether you are sticking to your routine at the WCC or plan on enjoying the perks of the Vassar Center, the expansion of food options will have a noticeable impact on the daily flow of campus life. With the ability to grab a latte or croissant without leaving the building where many classes are held, Lakeside has traded the cross-campus walk that many have become accustomed to for a more sophisticated, accessible, and caffeinated school day.
