Brittany McFadden-Broderick
Ooh! What’s that smell inside the Health Education Complex? Something cheesy? Mmm… maybe a little bacon? If you keep sniffing, your nose (and probably your stomach too) will lead you to Sandella’s Flatbread Café, the newest eatery on Upstate’s campus. Sandella’s opened up this semester along with the Power Blendz smoothie and shake stand.
Sandella’s isn’t unique to our campus. According to the company website, there are over 125 restaurant locations nationwide—even in Hollywood. The flatbread café is also located at over 20 other college campuses. There’s also a Sandella’s Flatbread Café at the Sherman College of Straight Chiropractic campus. Spartanburg residents, faculty, and older students may be familiar with the Sandella’s that was in Downtown Spartanburg. Open for seven years, the popular location closed in 2007. But now that we have our own on campus, the reaction is great.
Demetric Simmons and Haley Kemp are two of the student employees at Sandella’s. "Students are really excited that there’s somewhere new to eat on campus. They’re getting tired of eating at Sub Connection." Kemp said.
Simmons, longtime Sub Connection cook, quickly interjected, "Hey, don’t knock Sub Connection!" Nevertheless, he agreed with her. Sub Connection is always a faithful standby when the dining hall serves something questionable. Sandella’s surely doesn’t erase the loyalty that most students have to Sub Connection, but it’s always great to have a change.
Sandella’s sells a variety of wraps, Panini’s, quesadillas, salads and pizzas. The interesting new menu is also very healthy. The flatbread used for many of the items on the menu contains zero grams of fat. There’s also no trans fat—fatty acids that raise your "bad" cholesterol levels and increase the risk of heart disease—on the menu. Nutritional information can be found at sandellas.com, the company website.
Simmons and Kemp say that the most popular item among students is the chicken quesadilla. Simmons’ personal favorite is the Brazilian chicken pizza. Kemp is a vegetarian, so her options are a little more limited unless she picks off the meat. However, her favorite item on the menu is the Mediterranean quesadilla, made with red and green peppers, onions and feta cheese. So, meat eater or not, Sandella’s has something on the menu to please everyone. There are also monthly specials, so make sure to check out the newest dining spot!