Employee Cafeteria

Disclaimer: I am not a Cedar Point employee. I am a Kings Island employee, and have been for many years.

Okay, the reason for my post...

The food at our employee cafeteria is not very good, and is extremely expensive in terms of what you get for your money. Since the park aquisition took place mid-season I understand why nothing related to employee food service has changed yet.

If you folks at Cedar Point are generally satisfied with the food quality/pricing I would be encouraged and will look forward to next year for an improvement in this area.

Thanks for your comments.

it wasn't terrible at all. a broad selection of food, but the only way to pay is cash which can sometimes be annoying.

prices were decent, fries were like 90 cents, pop was 95 cents, philly cheesestake was like 2.10.

so all in all i was very satisfied with food, but like with everything, prices could be a touch cheaper, and it'd be great to pay some other way (payroll, plastic, etc!)

It's cafeteria food. Some stuff I really loved (the tortellini) and some was mediocre (chicken fingers). Overall, I didn't think the price was bad for what you got.

As far as I know, CP's biggest issues are the lack of updating they've done over the years with the employee only areas (ie: dorms). That's the only thing I'm not looking forward to next summer. *** Edited 9/2/2006 11:06:05 PM UTC by Gomez***

I'm already shuddering at the thought... ;)

I wasn't ever impressed by the Employee Cafeteria, and thought it was a pretty good ploy to make back some of the money they paid us each day. 90 cents for a cup of pop is ridiculous, especially considering that I've been told (and read) that they get that pop for literally nothing. Even a quarter would be more reasonable, IMO.

You mean your not getting the $1.59 Steak and Lobster special they are giving us here at Disney World?

Get real people, management could care less. It's cafeteria food, it's supposed to be bad. It's bad down here at Disney also! Dont like it? Pack a lunch!

bholcomb said:
I wasn't ever impressed by the Employee Cafeteria, and thought it was a pretty good ploy to make back some of the money they paid us each day. 90 cents for a cup of pop is ridiculous, especially considering that I've been told (and read) that they get that pop for literally nothing. Even a quarter would be more reasonable, IMO.

And they didn't even give us a free cup on July 4th this year!

Wait, didn't you get free sandwiches on July 4? ;)

In 2004 during Halloweekends they had free pancakes and sausage for breakfast every Saturday morning. I definately made sure I was up early enough to take advantage of that. :)

Okay, I'm not really encouraged that things are going to be better next year.

Some companies that have employee cafeterias charge just enough to cover expenses - not for profit.

Apparently Cedar Fair is not one of those companies, choosing instead to turn a hefty profit from a captive audience.

The idea of packing a lunch or dinner sounds reasonable but, in practice it is not always convenient or even possible.

The park is not turning a hefty profit from their cafeteria. And where above did you get that idea anyway? Except for a complaint about drinks, everyone said the price was reasonable for what you got. I don't even think the drinks are bad. Aren't the employee vending machines priced at one dollar for a 20 oz. bottle? That would probably cost you $1.25 at most grocery and convenience stores, let alone what it is in the park itself.

*** Edited 9/3/2006 1:28:36 PM UTC by Walt***

How hard is it to throw a sandwich, a bag of chips, a candy bar, and a juice box in a paper sack?

When I started at Disney 12 years ago the employee cafeteria's were run by Disney, they were cheap, and the food was great. They are now run by Aamark, the food is borderline disgusting, and not at all what I would consider "reasonable" in the price area. With the exception of EPCOT (they have a Subway back stage) you either deal with the bad, overpriced food, or bring your own. I would venture to say it's pretty much the same with every major corporation in America.

I didnt mind the cafe food, the problem I had with the cafe though was the people workin it....the service was REALLY SLOW concidering you only get one 45 min break and finally get your food 30 min into your break...and then some days fights between the cafe workers would break out and was very unprofessional/annoying

Walt - Where I got the idea above was a dollar for a soft drink and a dollar for fries (approximately... it's more than that here at KI). When several thousand employees buy a soft drink during the course of a day the math seems pretty simple. The cafeteria has covered their payroll for the day AND turned a hefty profit... and that's just for soft drinks.

Disney Mike - Yes, you either deal with bad over-priced food or bring your own, but my point is that it shouldn't be that way. The fact that it's pretty much the same with every major corporation in America is probably true, but Cedar Fair (even with twelve parks) is not a major corporation.

As I stated in my original post, I was hoping the food situation here would change for the better. The mind-set of making a profit when you sell something, regardless of WHO you sell it to, is obviously strong motivation.

On a positive note though, I am extremely pleased with some of the changes Cedar Fair has already made here. It will be refreshing to work for a company whose primary business is operating amusement parks. *** Edited 9/3/2006 6:09:02 PM UTC by old_joe*** *** Edited 9/3/2006 6:10:08 PM UTC by old_joe***

I never had a big problem with the Cafeteria... Especially after catering events, when they would bring the left-overs to the hungry employees...

Mmm... 25 cent Hot Dogs, reduced to 5 cents by the end of the evening.

Gotta love it...

geauga lakes is ok. The prices are reasonable, but the fries and chicken fingers are usually cold. But pop is 50 cents, unlike cedar points.

A Coney Island (Cincinnati) ride op I know said that for 50 cents he gets unlimited Pepsi in their cafeteria.

I used to work at KI myself, it was last in 2001. I think Cokes went for around $1 in the employee cafeteria. Still, around the same price as at fast food places/convenience stores, and obviously far cheaper than the guests paid.

What kind of food do they usually have around this time of year? Just wondering because I will be starting in a couple weeks.

THe food wasn't all that terrible and I don't think I ever spent over 4-5 bucks to get full, but some of the caf employees were on the rough side. Nothing like standing there for 15 minutes after you placed your order only to have a guy stick his head out and say, "Whatchu watin fo?" Then you hear the chopping of the meat for your philly! :)

Then there was one night they decided they wanted to close early and kick everyone out. They said they did it all the time. Yea right. We just sat there.