English - 2nd Semester 3rd Essay Ethnography

8/9/2019 English - 2nd Semester 3rd Essay Ethnography

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/english-2nd-semester-3rd-essay-ethnography 1/6

Steven McKeown

English 1106

April 1, 2010

Dietrick Express Dining Hall

Over the past several months of school I have been conducting an ethnography of

Dietrick Express Dining Hall on the campus of Virginia Tech. Throughout my research I have

noticed several defining factors which set DX apart from the other dining halls on campus. I am

currently a student at the Virginia Tech and must admit that Dietrick Express is a one of a kind

dining hall on the universitys campus.

Over the past few months I have been doing some research on DX. To this point my

research has consisted of attending DX on several occasions, observing the area outside and

inside of DX, and as of just recently interviewing people inside of DX. Through all of my studies I

have begun to find some consistent happenings and observations. It is through these that I

have been able to make several statements about DX which I believe to be true after studying

my observations. A few things that I have noticed about DX is that it is usually busy, every time

I have gone there has been at least 5 to 10 people in front of me in line. At different times of

days and different days I have noticed that the line can be bigger or it can be smaller. Also, DX

is for the most part fast food; however they do offer healthy options as well. Finally, Dietrick

Express moves its customers in and out quite quickly for the number of people that they are

serving.

Through my research thus far I have been able to decipher the culture of DX. I have most

frequently attended DX when it was late at night on a Friday or Saturday. This is the time period when



McKeown 2

all the drunk party goers are returning back to the dorm after a party and need some food to satisfy

their late night cravings. And it is this late night drunk crowd that DX is most commonly known to

attract, however DX I have found is a little more than a place where the drunk party goers go after the

party. I have also noticed the workers at DX are usually quite joyful, happy, and usually joking around

when I am there. Even if it is late at night, I suppose that they get enjoyment and find it humorous

watching all the drunken party goers return back to campus. If that is the reason why they are usually

so cheerful and joking around then I personally must agree with them. It is quite funny watching the

students return from parties. Another aspect of the Dietrick Express culture that I have noticed is the

newly built lounge area for eating. The reason I say newly built is because in the beginning of the year

this area was closed off and then sometime late during the first semester it was turned into a dinging

and lounge type area. The area really reminds me of a common room in one of the dorms except a little

bigger. This is due to the televisions, couches, and tables to eat at. It is in this area where I have

noticed another aspect to the culture of DX. This culture is a more relaxed area where I have seen

people hanging out just watching TV while eating there recently purchased foods.

It was through many weeks of observations and going to DX that I was able to notice these

cultures that were taking place. However I wanted to learn more, so I conducted a few interviews. The

interviews that I conducted were of one of my friends in the dorm who regularly attends DX and a

worker at DX. I found both of these interviews to be interesting and provided me with some insight into

more of DX culture and some of the things that go on there.

I decided to head over to DX at around 11pm on a Thursday night with my friend who also lives

in my dorm. His name is Cody and the reason I have chosen to interview him is because he goes to DX

more than anybody I know. So, Cody and I headed over to DX at around 11, and by 11:15 we were



McKeown 3

sitting at a table in Dietrick Express talking about DX and why he eats there so much. The first question I

asked was, Out of all the places to eat on campus why DX?

Cody replied, because its good. I proceeded to ask him to elaborate on why it was good. Was

it the type of food? Or perhaps was there a certain thing that he was referring to as being good. Cody

then proceeded to tell me how cheeseburgers are one of his favorite foods and he really likes the

cheeseburgers at DX.

So cheeseburgers are your favorite thing to get at DX, if DX was out of cheeseburgers, what

would be your next option? I asked. Cody said that although cheeseburgers were his favorite thing to

get at DX, that he does not always get just cheeseburgers.

The pizza, chicken sandwiches, and chicken tenders are also really good, he stated. I then

asked if DX was his favorite dining hall on campus.

Probably West End, he responded. However, DX is probably the dining hall I attend the

most, he then added.

Why do you attend DX the most, if West End is your favorite? I asked.

Wellit has to do with the convenience of DX. West is a bit of a farther walk from our dorm,

while DX is right on the other side of street basically. It only takes about two minutes to walk to DX, and

once you are there it is easy to get in and out quickly. In West End though it can take quite a while

sometimes to get your food and it is always really crowded. He stated.

I decided I would ask him one more question, What time of day do you attend DX the most?

His answer was late at night usually after 11pm. The reason that I decided to ask this particular question



McKeown 4

was to help prove my theory that DX makes most of its sales from the late night customers, even if it

isnt a weekend. I believe that there are several reasons why DX makes so many of its sales late at night.

For instance, like Cody stated earlier, DX is very convenient in the fact that it does not take very long. All

the food is premade so that when you get there all you have to do is grab what you want to eat. This

helps the process of moving customers in and out go very quickly. The other reason I believe DX sees so

many late night customers is due to the fact that it is the latest dining hall opened on campus. DX is

open every night of the week until 2am. This means that for a few hours of the night it is your only

option as a student to get food if youre looking to leave your dorm and eat on campus. After talking to

Cody, I noticed one of the workers at DX sitting on break by himself at a table watching TV. I decided I

would approach him and see if it was alright that I ask a few questions.

As I walked over to him I tried to take notice of how much activity was going on around me. The

student gym had just closed within the last 30 minutes, so there were several groups of friends at DX

and it seemed that they had just come from the gym where they were playing basketball. I was able to

make this observation because they had a basketball with them, were wearing basketball shoes, and

were talking about the games that they had just played. So, I made my way over to the DX employee

sitting in the corner watching TV. I explained that I was doing a field study on DX and asked if it would

be alright if I asked him a few questions. He said that he only had a few more minutes on break but that

it would be alright.

I began by asking him what exactly it was that he did at DX, and he replied, It dependslike

tonight I have been working the register and thats what Ill be doing when I return. But on some nights

I might restack some of the foods that run out such as the drinks or salads, on those nights it really just



McKeown 5

depends what needs to get done. Some cleaning here and there. But tonight Ill be working the

registers.

Interesting, what do you enjoy doing more, working the register or doing some of the other

tasks that need to be done? I asked.

Well it depends, some nights it can be interesting to work the registers because of the people

you interact with, especially on Friday and Saturday nights. But it can also get a little boring sitting

behind the register for so long so some nights Id rather do some of the cleaning and other things.

Out of all the dining halls on campus that you could work at why DX? Wouldnt you rather

work at one of the dining halls that is open during the day rather than working at DX late at night?

Being up late really doesnt bother me to much, plus I need the money. So I guess I just took

the first job that I could get and that was working here (DX), He replied. I then went on to find out that

he is currently a student here at Virginia Tech. I have noticed other students working dining halls

before, but I have also noticed people who are definitely not students working at some of the dining

halls. I suppose that anyone can work at the dining halls, which would seem like a good thing to me

because it provides jobs not only for students who need to make money but for some of the locals of

Blacksburg as well. He then went on to tell me that he had to get back to work and said that it was nice

talking and that he thought it was cool that I was conducting a field study of the place he works. I

thanked him for his time and proceeded to sit at the table and do a little people watching for a few

more minutes before heading back to the dorm.

A few things that I noticed were just how many people came in and out of DX in the five minutes

that I sat there. It was really impressive just how quickly the lined moved with so many people



McKeown 6

purchasing food. I also tried to pay attention to some of what the customers were purchasing. It

seemed to me that the favorites were pizzas, drinks, and chicken sandwiches. By far these three things

were the most purchased things as I sat there and watched.

I feel like the DX holds a special place on campus among the students of Virginia Tech. It

really is known very well among the students as the place to grab a late night bite to eat not only after a

weekend night of partying, but any other late weeknight. Its central location among the dorms and

quick service has really made it a popular destination among students and if I had to guess, Virginia Tech

is making a good amount of money from the establishment as well.

Documents

English - 2nd Semester 3rd Essay Ethnography