Kessel Student Center’s newest addition, “Kessel After Dark,” seems to be a hit among students campus wide. Fried Oreos, gravy-coated French fries, and milkshakes are making the rounds on Snapchat, a photo-based social media. However, this new and exciting option also seems to mirror the student-run business “Pace Perk Café,” which operates from Martin Hall’s basement and is also a popular late night snack option for students.

The Pace Perk Café, founded in April of 2010, has been a favorite late night social gathering site for students living on campus. With the Kessel dining hall closing at 9 p.m. each day, students flock to the Perk for milkshakes, chicken nuggets, and taquitos among other comfort food options.

There has been a buzz around campus about the competition that may arise between the two dining options. Food quality and social atmosphere are now factors which students will take into consideration when choosing a place to eat.

“I believe Kessel will hurt the Perk’s business at first, but the Perk has more options and Kessel can’t replicate the type of fun and loving environment that we share with our customers,” said sophomore Lionel Williams, a Perk employee.

Competition may be heating up but some students have faith that the loyalty of students and friends will keep the student run business afloat even with its new stiff competition.

“I think it is a good idea but I don’t think it is going to pull through because so many students support the Perk. This would’ve been a good idea for Kessel 2 or 3 years ago when Perk was on the Briarcliff campus,” Joselyn DeWitt, a Kessel employee, said.

At its founding and first few years of operation, the Pace Perk Café was located on Pace’s Briarcliff Campus. This allowed students living on that campus to have access to food without taking a bus back to the main campus, which can be time consuming and stressful. This is the first year that the Perk has been located on Pace’s main Pleasantville Campus because Briarcliff will no longer be a residential campus. This new location change may have created a subtle tension between Kessel and the Perk now that they are within such close proximity of each other. The students have not shown favor to one or the other, but food options and convenience will soon play a role in which place will be more frequented.

Only time will tell which dining option will come out on top and become the most popular for students to visit late at night. Will it be the long time friendly student run business or the trusted, convenient new option?