The bell rings, your stomach growls and your mouth starts to water. Ames High has conditioned its students around lunchtime, just like Pavlov did to his dog. Regardless of whether or not the administration has brainwashed the students, it’s lunch time, and people are hungry. Fast Food: BK, McDonald’s, Wendy’s The majority of fast food “restaurants” in Ames are located south of downtown. These restaurants offer drive through services for students with little time to spare. The traffic can be heavy, because of the afternoon lunch rush, so it can take up to fifteen minutes to get to Lincoln Way. Once in the fast food district of Ames, students have a variety of one dollar cheeseburgers to choose from. McDonald’s and, more recently, Wendy’s both offer double cheeseburgers on the dollar menu. Burger King offers cheeseburgers as well, but with a twist. The Rodeo Cheeseburger at Burger King is a cornucopia of onion rings, barbecue sauce, cheese and meat. If cheap and easy is pleasing to your pallet, fast food restaurants are an excellent place for lunchtime dining. Campus Town: Cocost, Little Taipei Mini Cyclones or Gators? Paper or Plastic? Cocost or Little Taipei? These age old philosophical questions have troubled the likes of Calvin and Hobbes, Voltaire and even Theodore Herzl, but is there a correct answer to any of these questions? “Little Taipei is a lot faster. I could sit and eat there and be back at the school in a single lunch period,” junior Regan Davis said. Both restaurants offer a similar product, delicious Chinese food at a great price, and great campus atmospheres. All of the classic Chinese cuisines are available; sesame chicken, chicken and egg fried rice, Mongolian beef and all the other usual suspects, but keep in mind Cocost has Royal Crown cola. The Mall: Dinner and Dessert, Fazoli’s The mall offers the fresh smell of commerce in the morning, a place where senior citizens can walk safely without curbs or fresh air, and a place to get delicious, fresh smoothies. Fazoli’s offers Olive Garden quality Italian food at half the price, and twice as fast. The Olive Garden may have amenities like waiters, hosts, and delicious Oreo pie, but Fazoli’s has a drive through window and a person walking around giving out free bread sticks. Fazoli’s is a short drive from the high school that doesn’t involve much traffic, and students that have one period for lunch have plenty of time to eat there. If mighty Zeus himself were to throw a lightning bolt at a bowl full of strawberries and bananas, the result would be a Dinner and Desert smoothie. “There is just so much variety in the smoothies and they use fresh fruit.” senior Tyler Crandall said. “Their smoothies are perfect.” Forged in the depths of Mt. Doom and wielded by Sauron, Dinner and Desert smoothies are the best tasting healthy treat available in the Mall, and maybe even Ames. The amount of restaurants in Ames has increased a ridiculous amount, but the quality over the years has been stagnant. If these restaurants don’t sound appealing, students could just go home and eat.