As a student of Cal Poly Pomona for four years and a resident of the school's university housing for two years, I've come to Centerpointe to chow down on meals after long days and late nights. Eating here is definitely a one of a kind experience. But many people in the campus community and those outside looking in might wonder what eating at this college dining commons might entail. With this, I wanted to write a review about my experiences at Centerpointe.
Starting with location, Centerpointe is at the edge of the campus next to the Student Services Building (the "spaceship"), Kellogg's historic horse stables, the recently constructed Residential Halls (Sicomoro and Secoya). Although it is closer to some of the main streets, it is somewhat out of the way for both students and the outside world. Because the commons is farther away from the bulk of the classrooms on campus, only few choose to make the walk downhill to the housing district of the campus. For visitors looking to eat here, the nearest parking structure is Structure 1 and about a 5-10 minute walk away. With an extra expenditure of 8 dollars required to buy a daily parking pass, getting here isn't the most convenient.
Entering in, you would first be met with the front desk area where you would pay first before entering in. Prices may vary based on when you choose to eat and what payment method you choose. But on average, lunch is around $12.25 and dinner is around $13.50 per person. Although Centerpointe takes cash, credit, meal swipes, and meal points (during summer), take advantage of the fact they accept Bronco Bucks as the meal is cheaper by a dollar or two (Bronco Bucks are only for the campus community). After paying, you would enter the main part of the dining hall that has all of the food offerings and seating. Seating areas vary, giving you options to sit at individual tables, barstools, in lounge chairs, outdoors, and more. Just be sure to bus your own plates and trash on your way out.
Similar to many dining commons around the US, Centerpointe is an all you can eat buffet-style eatery with 6 main stations: Sandwich, Pizza, Pasta, Grill (Burgers, Chicken Tenders, Fries), Fusion (usually Mexican, but other food during breakfast and sometimes lunch and dinner), and Global (rotating ethnic foods, Mongolian, and sushi bar). In addition to the main stations, there are a few extra non-manned areas such as the salad bar (build your own salad, soup), all-day continental breakfast bar (bread and toaster, cereal, yogurt bar, cut fruit), dessert bar (pasteries, cakes, soft-serve, occassional donuts); and three drink fountain areas with Pepsico soft drinks, sparkling water, iced tea, coffee, milk, and soymilk offerings. Though this may seem like a large number of options, it is good to know that these stations do not change their menus (with the exception of global, whose menu changes with each meal). Furthermore, certain stations have been operating on and off since the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g. sushi bar, mongolian, pasta). All this now said, I'd argue the 11-12 dollar price tag for all of these offerings is a very great value price-to-portionwise. Even in the nearby Pomona, Walnut, and Diamond Bar areas, it is extremely difficult to find any other eatery that has this much quantity for cheap. Even if you're a visitor paying for a parking pass, 19-20 dollars still isn't all too bad.
The catch of this eatery, and similar to other dining halls, is the quality of food. Though the food is consistent at most of the stations, the bar is set pretty low as the food needs to be produced in mass. For the rotating global station, the food can be hit or miss depending on the day. There have been days where the station serves flank steak and whole crusted fish filets. But on other days, smaller ticket items like potato curry and beef stew with little beef are served. Although figuring out when the good food is served is close to impossible, a good rule of thumb is to go during lunch time. The food is more fresh, the chances of getting a better dish is higher, and lunchtime is cheaper overall. Personally, I enjoy the food at fusion, grill, salad bar, and sushi bar.
One Closing Note: If coming for lunch, try to avoid coming between 12-1PM on Tuesdays and Thursdays as the campus has a free period called U-Hour. During this time, Centerpointe is usually crowded with both students and staff alike. Lunch service does not end until 1:30PM, so coming in in that last half an hour means there is more food and less lines.
From all my experiences eating at Centerpointe, there are days where the food is 5 stars and other days where its 1-2 stars. As long as you keep in mind that you're paying 11-12 dollars and that you're at a college dining hall, I think it can be worth the time and effort. Because the experience fluctuates often, I'd say Centerpointe deserves a 3 star rating. Not bad, is great sometimes, but could be better. read more