Students enjoyed a variety of different foods from local South Orange restaurants on Thursday during the second annual Student Government Association’s “Taste of South Orange.”
Held at the University Center lobby during the early afternoon, students were able to grab a quick bite from some of the popular eateries in the Village of South Orange.
Compared to only 4 participating businesses last year, a total of 12 local sponsors participated in the event this year.
The participating businesses included Ashley Marketplace, Burgers Grilled Right (BGR), Bunny’s Sports Bar, Cait and Abby’s, Cluck U Chicken, Jackie and Son, Pandang, Sonny’s Bagels, Starbucks, Tito’s Burritos & Wings, Village Pizzeria, and Village Trattoria.
Aside from enjoying the food, students participated in raffles to win free gift card certificates to the participating businesses.
It was also an opportunity for students to learn about the discounts available for being Seton Hall University students at certain places in the Village, including Dancing Blender, Miti Miti, Grid Iron Waffle Shop, the Bow-Tie Cinema and many others.
Not all students were completely aware of these benefits including Seton Hall student Alexa Sjolund who said, “I go to these places all the time and I had no idea that I could show my Seton Hall ID and I don’t have to pay as much so I’ll definitely know that for next time.”
The Village Relations Committee within SGA was responsible for creating and putting this event into action.
Senator Anastasia Plank, who led the Taste of South Orange initiative alongside her team, points out that the event is meant to enhance the student experience.
"This event works to increase and develop student relations with the village businesses, which is crucial to ensure continued great relationships and the benefits from those relationships (i.e. discounts),” Plank said.
To increase student awareness about what the South Orange Village has to offer, Plank also hopes that the businesses participating can profit from Seton Hall’s sponsorship on campus and looks forward to the interactions between the South Orange Village and the Seton Hall community.
Village Relations Chair and Senator Santiago Cabrera speaks similarly on this topic by saying the “Taste of South Orange is of such importance to us because we connect the students with the opportunities they want down in the Village.”
Other students also highlight the great food and activities that Village has to offer. Seton Hall student Veronica Gail commented, “it’s nice to be able to experience different foods because you get bored of the same foods here.” Fellow student Anthony Fantasia says that he and his friends “always plan a day out of the week to visit the Village.”
As relations between the Seton Hall community and the Village of South Orange continue to grow, students look forward to what next year’s event will hold.
“Last year we had four businesses involved, now we are standing at twelve and following up with them to make sure next year we have even more,” Cabrera concluded.
Laura Maltez can be reached at laura.maltez@student.shu.edu.
