Switching between school buildings is difficult for anyone, and mounting stress over the trials of junior year makes the transition to NASH all the more challenging for rising 11th graders.

In transitions prior, students could always find comfort in the one period without any unknowns: lunch. While this period is typically an overlooked aspect of the move between schools, whispered rumors made it a frequent topic of discussion among soon-to-be juniors. Was the food really worse at NASH? Would the NASH cafeteria always be a place of chaos?

After a full week of dining at NASH, students finally have their answers—and the results show that there was little cause for concern.

One of the many causes of concern for rising juniors was circulating rumors of NASH’s food being worse than NAI’s. These fears, however, were discovered to be completely unfounded by juniors throughout the first week of their school year at NASH. Interviewed students found no noticeable difference in food quality between the two schools. 

Students who prefer NAI’s cafeteria food stated that it was simply because they have not yet tried enough of what NASH has to offer to make a decision.

Madison Lambert, a junior, said, “I haven’t been to many of the places in the cafeteria yet.”

The atmosphere of the cafeteria is a central part of what makes lunch periods so highly anticipated. Concern for the cafeteria’s layout emerged among soon-to-be NASH students after last May’s “NASH Move-Up Day” for sophomores, where the Class of 2025 was split into only two separate groups for lunch, resulting in extremely long waits for students hoping to purchase lunch from the cafeteria.

Under the three-period lunch system, however, new juniors had no difficulty choosing between the schools. NASH’s cafeteria was highly favored for its more spacious layout and speedier lines. An increased variety of seating options was also one of the most favored aspects of NASH’s cafeteria. 

Some interviewed juniors lamented the lack of snack options available in comparison to the carts at NAI, but others are excited over some of the new things the NASH cafeteria has to offer. The salad bar specifically is a major point of interest, as NAI’s cafeteria has no self-serve options.

As Xu stated, “I feel like [the NASH cafeteria] has more options… There’s the salad bar — that definitely wasn’t at NAI.”

The transition from NAI to NASH can be terrifying, but at least lunch can remain a source of solace to juniors among the many unknowns.