HUB Chick-fil-A to Close After Conclusion of Spring Semester
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — On March 17, after more than 20 years since finding a spot in the HUB-Robeson Center food court, Chick-fil-A decided not to renew their contract with Penn State. After this spring semester, the only Chick-fil-A that students can access without a car will be permanently closed. This change comes with the franchise’s choice to remove all express locations. The closest Chick-fil-A to University Park will be the one currently located on North Atherton Street in State College.
When you look around the HUB, you can almost always see people eating Chick-fil-A. Many used Chick-fil-A as a midday pick-me-up, especially those who don’t have Chick-fil-A near home. Anna Adams is one such student who has put Chick-fil-A into her daily life. She will now have to change up her routine.
“It’s going to be so weird not having Chick-fil-A in the HUB anymore,” Adams said. “After a hard day of classes, I would always go to the HUB to get waffle fries from Chick-fil-A, and it would make my day so much better.”
Charlotte McAfee, a freshman at Penn State, spoke avidly about why the HUB location was ideal for students.
“As a student who is not allowed to keep their car on campus, it seems really inconvenient for us to get to the Chick-fil-A that is [far] off-campus,” McAfee said.
The new restaurant chain taking Chick-fil-A’s place in the HUB is called Slim Chickens, a franchise from Arkansas. Slim Chickens will appear to offer more menu options than Chick-fil-A, including wings, cheese fries, Texas toast and chicken tenders or sandwiches. It has yet to be reported whether or not Slim Chickens will serve as an express restaurant in the HUB like Chick-fil-A, so their menu could also see the same limits.
We will have to wait and see whether or not students embrace the change of restaurants in one of their most popular on-campus dining locations.
Isabella Leahy is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her email, iul93@psu.edu.
