Fueled by coffee and grab-and-go snacks, campus espresso cafes are convenient options for the college student on a budget.

Sometimes difficult to decode on a map or hidden in a building, campus cafes are usually bustling with faculty and students alike during the breakfast and lunch hours.

In Todd Hall, hospitality and business management students run the Atrium Cafe.

“We are unique because we are a student-run operation supported by the school of HBM,” said Atrium Cafe Marketing Manager Kathleen Byrnes.  

Atrium Cafe stands apart from other espresso locations on campus because it doesn’t serve Starbucks, but instead advertises that the coffee and food come from upstairs in the School of Hospitality Business Management, Byrnes said.

Although Atrium Cafe is changing its food company soon, supporting the school of HBM helps the students further themselves into their desired career paths, she said.

Another option for lunches is the Lighty Espresso Bar, located in Lighty Student Services.

Chelsey Woods, dietitian for WSU dining services, said with Lighty’s special sandwich options “you can order half or junior sandwiches, and you have the ability to customize and create as healthy of a meal as you want.”

She also explained that with the new GET Food App, students can order and pick up their sandwiches without waiting in line.

Cyber Café, located in the Smith Center for Undergraduate Education, more popularly called the CUE, has a variety of bagel sandwiches that provide a quick lunch option for students going to and from classes.

Natasha Follett, a barista at Cyber Café, said one of the best sandwiches for students who needed a quick boost would be the CUE sandwich as well as the cheddar bacon breakfast sandwich because both are popular and very tasty.  

Other espresso options are located in Bustad, Cleveland and Carpenter hall and all share similar types of sandwiches and salad options. All of the espressos around campus take RDA, Cougar Cash and cash, with the exception of the Atrium Café which does not accept RDA.

Campus espressos, although sometimes hidden, are often only just around the corner or in the same building as student classes.

The espressos and cafes also include places to study or work between classes.

The campus cafes generally have affordable prices ranging from $1.25 to $8 per item, and although the hours of operation vary from place to place, the cafes are usually open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.