A new option for those with the unlimited meal plan this semester is Swipe A Bite at the Roost Express. If you have not tried this option yet, I highly recommend doing so this week because it is so good. I have tried the chicken tender sandwich and the breakfast bagel sandwich with egg, bacon and cheese. These two have been my personal favorites, but the menu includes a lot of other options.

The main options include breakfast bagels, breakfast burritos, cheeseburgers and a BLT bagel sandwich. There are a variety of different options for each menu item because you can get sausage or bacon with each breakfast sandwich. The breakfast items come with two hashbrowns and the lunch items come with homemade chips. You also get a drink with your meal and that could be milk, juice, or a fountain drink.

The other great part about this dining option is that they offer gluten free bread for every menu item. The gluten-free options are limited in both Grotto and Ryan Hall dining facilities so it is very beneficial to those who have to eat gluten-free to have this alternative option. One of my friends is gluten-free and she always struggles to find food that she can eat besides salads and fries which is not a substantial meal.

My roommate has gone to get lunch there every day for the past two weeks. She has tried all the different menu options and her personal favorite is the BLT bagel. This is a great alternative if one is tired of the same food in the Grotto Commons or the 501 Grille.

Another perk to this new dining option is that you can order online ahead using the GET app. This means no waiting while your food is being prepared if you know you are going to be crunched for time.

The people who work in the Roost Express are all so excited to see people utilizing their dining services again. Due to COVID, students were not going there for food as frequently as they had been prior to the pandemic, so the Swipe A Bite was intended to bring students back to the Student Union for lunches.

The only downside I have seen so far is that if you use the Swipe A Bite in the morning, then you can not use the Swipe At Night in the evening at the Anchor Express. The Swipe At Night was the only option last semester for students with the unlimited meal plan.

Even though I love Swipe A Bite, my friend tried it and she was not happy with her experience. She went to go get her food and one of the ladies that work there yelled at her for trying to take the container that said her name. However, that could be understandable as they want to keep everything organized. Once she got her food, she opened up the chicken sandwich to find a piece of metal inside. The whole experience did not seem worth it to her.

The Roost Express is open from 10 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Students are encouraged to sit down in Luke’s Landing and eat their food there if they have time.