When it comes to Jamba Juice vs Juice Zone, or Noah’s vs Bagel Street Cafe, most Monte Vista students prefer to buy from local businesses rather than popular chains. This could be because of a variety of reasons, from nostalgia and tradition to overall convenience. But in addition to convenience, it seems that this preference of local businesses is a result of the infamous ‘Danville Bubble.’
This is the idea that Danville locals tend to stay within Danville for everything from restaurants and coffee shops to grocery stores and hangout spots. For example, most born and raised Danville residents tend to visit neighboring towns like San Ramon and Dublin much less than you’d expect, given their close proximity, especially compared to people who grew up elsewhere and moved to Danville when they were older.
As someone who was born and raised outside of Danville, Ms. Chrzanowski sees the ‘Danville Bubble’ in a different way, and thinks that it has both pros and cons.
“It’s great to support local businesses,” Chrzanowski said. “[Smaller stores often have] good stuff that you can’t necessarily find at [the] City Center or a big mall. There’s just something special about shopping downtown.”
Chrzanowski also mentioned how “in Danville, you always see students around, and a lot of students work at these local businesses,” which gives the town a very strong sense of community.
However, she also points out that there are a few negative aspects of the ‘Danville Bubble’, like how people tend not to branch out or explore as much since Danville is safe and seems to have everything we need. Danville locals’ habit of staying in Danville rather than driving just 15-20 minutes out of town may not seem like a big deal, but it becomes more noticeable when kids leave for college because it is their first time experiencing the culture of a different city.
One of the main differences students experience when they move away for college is the absence of nostalgic places. In other words, people may have to get used to their distance from local businesses that they grew up going to.
For instance, the majority of students firmly believe that Juice Zone is better than Jamba Juice, but why? It may be because of Juice Zone’s expansive menu, or the fact that its smoothies tend to be a little cheaper. Since Jamba Juice is a popular chain with locations all over, Juice Zone may seem more exclusive and special since it only has one location. Also, many MV students live in close proximity to Juice Zone, which makes it a more convenient option, and is one of the reasons why so many students work at Juice Zone.
MV students’ collective preference of local businesses is also seen with other establishments. A recent poll of MV students showed that most people favor Bagel Street Cafe over Noah’s Bagels. Devika Nair, a sophomore who feels the same way about these two bagel shops, says that Bagel Street Cafe is simply “nearby, so it’s more convenient.”
Similarly, sophomore Evy Imperial thinks that Yersen Gelato is “way better” than Cold Stone Creamery, which is why she goes there much more often.
“Yersen is cheaper and it’s so good and they give you big scoops.” Imperial said. “[At] Cold Stone, they give you big scoops but it’s hella expensive.”
This fondness of local businesses is even seen within MV staff, as we see with English teacher Logan Spilker’s rule about eating in class. He only allows students to eat during class if they eat food from local businesses, and he decided to implement this rule in order to encourage students to support small, community businesses rather than chain restaurants.
”We’ve got a lot of really good local businesses that have been here for years, that if they go away, we’re going to have a worse time for it,” Spilker said.
He gave the example of The Brass Bear Delicatessen, a nearby sandwich shop in Alamo, and explained that students should eat here rather than a fast food chain in order to “keep money in the community”, which will be better for all of us.
Although he acknowledges the fact that high school students typically prefer to eat from popular fast food chains, he tries to motivate them to choose local businesses by enforcing this rule in his class. As someone who grew up in Danville, it makes sense that he would feel passionate about maintaining the culture and way of line in his hometown.
