Food delivery services at IAA
Written by Quinn De Vecchi
Students at IAA are able to buy food and snacks at the Stone Cafeteria, the Melody Freeze, and the ScholarShop. They are also able to order food via delivery services such as Uber Eats, Grubhub, Doordash, and Instacart. These services come from either local Interlochen shops—such as Papano’s Pizza, Cicero’s, and Tom’s Grocery—or from stores or restaurants in downtown Traverse City and farther.
Food is delivered from outside drivers, and students are able to pick their orders up from inside the security office. Instacart drivers leave groceries within Instacart-specific lockers outside the security building.
“It’s very simple,” Muniba Oke, a sophomore Visual Artist, commented. “I’ve been using it for three years now, and I’d say I get a delivery every one to two months. You just have to ask them to put [the order] in Campus Safety and then you get your food.”
Uber Eats, Grubhub, and Doordash mainly supply customers with restaurant and convenience foods that come from Traverse City and the Grand Traverse Mall. These options span multiple cultures’ foods and snack options. Instacart also has a grocery-only ordering process from stores such as Costco, Meijer, Aldi, and even Target locations.
Alisha McMillan, a sophomore Creative Writing major, commented on the benefits of delivery services being accessible to IAA students.
“Life is unpredictable and you don’t know when you’re going to need something, and, especially as teens, we’re developing those skills right now. We’re learning how to budget [time] and how to use money because we know we can’t go [to the store] everyday.”
Since deliveries can come from farther locations, wait times also extend over an hour for hot meals. Grocery services can come within specific time frames if a student requests it in advance to arrive within the next few hours or days. Students are able to time when they want their delivery to come, so it fits into their school and work schedules.
When weather conditions are snowy or icy, wait times can double. Drivers take more precautions while getting food, and restaurants are sometimes close earlier in the day. IAA student tipping practices often shift as well as the weather becomes harsher.
“We shouldn’t have to compensate for low paying jobs in the first place, but there should be a ‘winter fee’ [for delivery apps] because of the dangers that come with driving in northern Michigan specifically,” Alisha commented.
Alisha then spoke on the topic of driving during the winter time and how she can relate to the delivery drivers during the season.
“There are [so many] car crashes around here [because of the snow]. And because of the weather, there is more want for delivery services,” Alisha added, because student off-campus privileges are often limited in harsh winter weather.
Alisha then mentioned that she believes gas is one of the main negative factors of using delivery services. Some students are inclined to use public transportation to these stores and restaurants, rather than buying the goods online. This helps lessen car emissions and the winter hassle.
The Tom’s bus drives students to the grocery store every Wednesday, helping solve this issue by allowing multiple people to go at the same time.
“Tom’s trips are a nice break from IAA—they remind me that I’m a person,” Jay Lee, a senior Interdisciplinary Arts major, said. “When I have the time and energy, Tom’s is really helpful for any specific food cravings I might have. It’s just nice to get food from the outside world.”
Students are also able to travel to town every Saturday utilizing the public BATA bus for a fare of $1.50. Students can then buy groceries at local marts, get snacks at convenience stores, and buy food at restaurants.
IAA offers a variety of options to buy food and order at restaurants, and students are encouraged to find what service works best for them, whether or not gas or tips are important to them.