At the end of last year the hoopla surrounding the new food contract made Chartwells sound like the second coming of Christ. However, when Chartwells took over during the summer, complaints started to surface about the price and quality of food.

When students returned to school the cries grew louder; as meal plans became more limiting and out-of-pocket expenses started creeping higher, the complaints increased.

While Chartwells has granted the customer the ability to pay for a meal with a credit card, that combo meal at the grill is still going to cost you around $6.50. If one is willing to drive off campus to Wendy's or McDonalds you can pick up a comparable combo meal for around half the cost.

While it may be more convenient to buy in the Commons, the cost of a meal everyday for someone without a meal plan adds up quickly.

When the Chick-fil-a opens in the UC, it will be interesting to see how the prices will compare to other Chick-fil-a's off campus. If the prices are the same as off campus it will be a victory for students, but if there is a markup then we all lose.

The revamp of the dining hall will also be interesting as the price of entry has increased but the quality of the food is still the same as it was in Sodexho days. Even the layout is still essentially unchanged. The entrance was moved but the flow of traffic is still convoluted and confusing.

Admittedly, Chartwells has the cost of an infrastructure, but it is disgraceful that Chartwells can charge such a premium for food. The monopoly effect is alive and well at UMBC and it only continues to hurt students already beset by the high price of fuel and the exorbitant tuition and fees that UMBC charges.