BY CAIT OLSON, STAFF WRITER

Imagine walking into a cafe greeted by smiling faces and the heavy scent of freshly baked bagels. You walk up to the counter and order a large latte and a bagel. Shortly after, you receive your meal which is handed off with some kind word of gratitude.

I can guarantee that no one that reads the previous sentences will think of Einstein’s Bagels. At Einstein’s, you are lucky to get a “hello” from anyone, and as for fresh bagels and decent coffee, forget about getting those. I am aware that I go to one of the smallest universities in Minneapolis, and as such, I do lower my standards a bit for Einstein’s. However, I pay money for this service, and I expect a little more than what Einstein’s has to offer. If your company is built around the sale of bagels, then why is it that they are so unspectacular? Does Einstein’s allow the rats themselves to make the bagels? Or do they just check for quality?

A safe, rat-free option is the coffee — or at least I hope this to be true. “Darn good coffee” is the statement printed on every paper cup, but what’s inside is burnt water. Coffee takes about two to three tablespoons of grounds per eight fluid ounces, using almost boiling water. But I do not want you to feel as if I am just piling my negative comments out without having solutions to them.

The ideal solution is to scrap Einstein’s all together and install a grab-n-go type store where a variety of snack and drink options could be found at all hours of the day. But as this is not a completely feasible option (Augsburg did just dump all of our school’s funds into a shiny new building), I propose that we then set higher standards for the student workers.

I realize and understand the stress of being a student working in customer service. I too am a barista, but this stress does not give you a free pass to be rude or to brew low quality coffee. Although, I will also admit that I brewed some pretty awful coffee this morning. No one is perfect, but let us understand that we all struggle through our days. A nice smile might just make our coffee taste better.

This article first appeared in the Friday, November 3, 2017, Edition of The Echo.