The Chronicle asked students about their thoughts on the newly-renovated West Union, which fully opened for students this week and will be hosting a “West Union First Big Welcome” event Friday before the annual Heatwave concert.
"It's really exciting for the first few days, but then you realize it's just Penn Pavilion with like three added options. I like that they added a more developed Asian food section. I feel like the Indian place gives less food than the place in Penn did."—junior Michelle Lou
"I think it was worth the wait. [The only bad part] was the wait, but that's behind us now."—junior Zack Montgomery
"I like the architecture and the open concept. From what I've had, the food is great. I feel like there is a nice variety, but I wish they would have put Latinx cuisine."—senior Tomas Delgado
"I'm slightly disappointed that some of the restaurants basically seem like Penn moved to West Union, but it's definitely an improvement in the variety of food."—senior Isaac Rubin
"I think it's really incredible and I'm a senior, and it's amazing to see what has actually come of this building. I really enjoyed working in here because it's not the library but it's quiet enough."—senior Emma Caudle
"The West Union is really cool in terms of how they have so many food options, and how it connects you to so many places around West Campus. So far all the food has been good."—sophomore Nick Kardous
"I think it's great, I really like the wide choices for food. It's a big step up for West Campus dining in general. I really enjoy the ramen bar."—sophomore Jonathan Yu
"It's amazing, I think it's very smart. I live on Central, but I'm definitely going to be here more often. The seating is my favorite thing. As opposed to the Bryan Center where there's not much seating, there's seating everywhere here."— sophomore Daniel Deveau
"The best thing is that it's kind of like freshmen year where everyone comes up to you."—senior Jake Son
"The only bad thing is the lines. It's like four blocks for ice cream. But it's definitely better than the Bryan Center and takeout."—sophomore Courtney Montgomery
"I really like the place and the architecture and the food. The most interesting thing I've found is the combination of the modern architecture and the older one. My favorite thing is the design."—sophomore Tatiana Ermakova
"Mostly I'm thrilled that we have it opened and ready, and I'm just loving the reactions that I'm hearing. I love to just sit by the door to watch people come in and 'ooh' and 'aah' and struggle to figure out where to eat. I'm getting high on students' exuberance."—Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs
Claire Ballentine contributed reporting.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.