An Apex High School student expressed what is essentially a universal sentiment among students: “I definitely enjoy eating out rather than the courtyard or cafeteria.”-Bailey Pierce, AHS student. While there are many different lunch options close to the AHS campus, what seems to be the most popular? 

We surveyed students. They were given a choice of thirteen different restaurants or places to buy food – Taco Bell, Chipotle, Starbucks, Bojangles, Five Guys, Sheets, Wendy’s, Zaxby’s, Lidl, Mcdonald’s, Chick-fil-a, Dairy Queen, and Harris Teeter – and asked to select all of the places they like to eat during off-campus lunch. 

Students could also write in different locations. The write-in locations included home, Moe’s, Costco, Panera, Tropical Smoothie Cafe, and a gas station.

The winner and the most favorite off-campus lunch destination was Starbucks, with 16.9% of the students responding to the survey. Starbucks is an understandable lunch choice because of the variety of quick food, snacks, and beverage options. The first runner-up in lunch eateries was Chick-fil-A, with 12.4% of the vote. Again, not too surprising given Chick-fil-A’s popularity although the line can be long when a quick lunch is needed.

A close third place choice was Bojangles (11.2%), in close proximity to the campus. The next tier of lunch locations, in terms of popularity to AHS students, was McDonalds (9%), Zaxby’s (7.9%), and Chipotle (7.9%).

“My favorite places for eating off campus are definitely Starbucks, McDonald’s, and Zaxby’s. All of these places make it really easy for you to order ahead of time so you can walk in and pick it up! Starbucks especially. Whenever I walk in all I have to do is go to the mobile order spot and grab my food. McDonald’s is a bit more complicated because after you order you have to mention the order number to pick up the food. If it’s busy then you might still have to wait a few minutes inside, rather than picking it up right away.” -Chloe Andrews, AHS student. 

Pierce stated, “My favorite place to eat for lunch is Starbucks or downtown Apex. I enjoy eating off campus because it gives me time to talk with friends, relax, and to take a break from school. I like that I get a variety of choices to eat from and can get something different every time. I also make sure to mobile order so that it can be quicker.”

There are some drawbacks to off-campus lunch dining. Andrews added that the “negative part to eating off campus is all about time. Time management is so difficult to handle especially when we are talking about a restaurant that isn’t right near the school.”

Similarly, Pierce stated that the “negative part of going off campus can be the short amount of time to eat. The line to get out the parking deck can be long, and by the time you get to the destination you want,  you only have fifteen or twenty minutes to eat. Sometimes only ten minutes. By the time you get your food you have to rush back to school to make sure you’re not late.”

In order of popularity, based on the survey results, the lunch options are Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, Bojangles, McDonald’s, Zaxby’s, Chipotle, Taco Bell, Five Guys, and Lidl. Then there was a tie for Tropical Smoothie Cafe, Costco, Panera, Sheetz gas station, Harris Teeter, and Dairy Queen. This lunch survey suggests that students definitely take advantage of the opportunity to eat off campus.