We all anticipate it. No matter the teacher you have, we all eagerly wait for the clock to strike 11:50, and we get out for lunch–except for the awkwardly late 1:05 lunch on a late start schedule. So during this time, the high traffic areas are unexpectedly, the lunch line, the quads, and the parking lots of CdM. Where is it that these CdM juniors and seniors go to during lunch? Here’s a deep dive on all the possible spots you can go to and still make it back in time for your 5th/6th period.
The most basic and boring of them all is located in walking distance and right down the street. That, of course, is Ralph’s. Whether you go to the Starbucks there, or the CVS, or Ralph’s itself, Ralph’s is a classic CdM lunch spot that you can’t go wrong with. It takes <5 minutes to get to Ralph’s from the senior lot, and the same amount of time from the enclave lot. It’s even shorter back, since you won’t have to deal with traffic coming out of the senior lot.
Now, some more farther away spots but still pretty basic will be The Bluffs or the Starbucks next to it. It’s very easy to hit both of these spots in one go, where you’d go to The Bluffs to get food, then Starbucks for your drink. The Bluffs is around 5-8 minutes away from the senior and enclave lot. The parking there is a bit tricky though, as spots closest to the restaurants get filled up first, only leaving spots in the very far back end open. The Bluffs ofter a much wider selection of restaurants to choose from than Ralph’s. You’ve got Flower Child, BLK Dot, Chipotle, Stacks, Panera, Nick the Greek, Jersey Mike’s, Panera, The Stand, and the list goes on. So if you haven’t decided on what to get when the bell rings, you’ll for sure know what you want when you get there.
Another grocery store that you can easily get to and back from CdM is Pavillions in the Port Streets. Take Senior Justine Kennedy ‘25 for example, “the Pavillions is probably my favorite place to go during lunch. Nobody ever goes there so it’s very secluded, and I get to cash in on my rewards there… people think it’s a million miles away but in reality it’s like a 5-8 minute drive.”
Fashion Island is divided into many different parts. There’s the part where the food court/Starbucks is, and then the part where there’s Pressed Juicery, then there’s the Sweetgreen area. This is more for advanced drivers with good time management in my opinion, since there often tends to be some traffic and parking is always a struggle. Speaking of parking, don’t even attempt to go to the food court, because parking is always impossible there. Instead, try to go to Pressed Juicery or Sweetgreen. Senior Lark Walz ‘25, a frequenter to Fashion Island, says, “Fashion Island is a great place to go to for lunch, except it takes a while to get accustomed to it. Traffic can be bad but there’s always shortcuts you can take.”
Lastly, the last lunch spot recommendation comes as the University Town Center. However, don’t even think about going to In-N-Out if you still want to make it back by 12:25. Mendocino Farms, Chick-fil-A, Dunkin’, MoonGoat Coffee, and more all offer great food spots during lunch. In fact, the Chick-fil-A here is far better than the Fashion Island location, as you can actually park your car here! Make sure to order ahead on the app, though.
And that wraps up the most popular places to go to during the sacred 30 minutes we get for lunch every day. All the places mentioned above are within driving distance to and from CdM. So if you’re a senior or a junior, be sure to try out some of these food spots (just be sure to order ahead)!
