Hudson Weber

Junior Mason Cost prepares to sample items from the new Friends vending machine.

One of the biggest and most-requested improvements to the Friends campus in the summer of 2023 was the introduction of a vending machine. Located in the lobby of the Friends Gym, the new machine holds a variety of snacks and drinks:  Lay’s Baked Chips, popcorn, energy bars, Gatorades, and bottled water.

On Monday, we set out on a mission to try out the new vending machine and a few of its offerings. Although there could have been a better selection of easy-to-grab snacks like Gushers, Cheetos, or Sprite, we enjoyed what we could. 

Hudson went for the baked barbecue chips. He was underwhelmed.

“These are mediocre at best. No depth to the BBQ flavor,” he said. “The chip was almost stale-tasting, and had lost that clean crunch we all crave in a good chip.”  

Mason went for the Gatorade. 

“Lukewarm at best,” was his review. “In what was supposed to be a chilled vending machine, the Gatorade was mid.” 

“They should use a separate machine for drinks so that the snacks aren’t cold – and we need tastier snacks,” added Adam Nicolson, class of 2025.

Students’ main suggestion for improvement is the introduction of some snacks that aren’t so … healthy. In our opinion, they should add things like SunChips (or any other unhealthy tasty treat), a wider selection of drinks, and prepackaged meals.

While the machine is hard to figure out at first, we found that reading the directions helps. Just make sure you have $5 in your bank account first.

Current rating:  6.5/10