At 11:30 p.m. on Monday night, Stanford’s dining halls were buzzing with activity for its annual Midnight Breakfast. At Lakeside Dining, hundreds of students lined up, while faculty served omelets and pancakes as the Pillsbury Doughboy danced at the front entrance to the live DJ. 

Stanford’s Midnight Breakfast has long been a favorite tradition among students. It was first hosted 25 years ago. Towards the end of winter quarter, Stanford faculty and staff come together to serve students a breakfast buffet at an unusual time – midnight. Every year, thousands of students are served across multiple dining halls to accommodate all midnight visitors until 1:30 a.m..

This year’s Midnight Breakfast was co-sponsored by Residential & Dining Enterprises (R&DE), Stanford Student Affairs and the Associated Students of Stanford University (ASSU). Students from all over campus had local dining options to choose from, including Arrillaga Family Dining Commons, Munger Graduate Residences, Escondido Village Graduate Residences (EVGR) Dining, The Axe & Palm (TAP) and Lakeside Dining. The line at Arrillaga reached all the way down the stairs and out the door at one point. 

“I think it’s a fire event, and I have no complaints,” said three-time Midnight Breakfast attendee Emily Schwab ’26, despite being disappointed that “they served cereal with no milk.”

The menu this year included traditional continental breakfast foods like bagels, pastries and fruit. Stanford faculty, like Mona Hicks, Senior Associate Vice Provost and Dean of Students, doled out hot foods like bacon, pancakes and tater tots. 

However, students were drawn to the event for more than just the food. For freshman Austin Shaw ’28, Midnight Breakfast was a “morale boost.” He felt “loved and appreciated” by the staff who helped serve and said that the event helped build community among students. 

“It was great to see my dorm come together and share a meal even in finals week — it has built a real sense of community in week 10,” Shaw said.

Many students also got to reconnect with friends and classmates while eating their midnight breakfast. Carlos Valencia ’28 attended his first Midnight Breakfast and said he saw a lot of people he had not seen since the beginning of the quarter. 

“We joined three tables together to make one big super table,” Valencia said about making space to accommodate all of his classmates.

However, not everyone was a fan of the fare. Aiden Ackerman ’28 said he expected more and thought that the bacon was too thin. Still, many students are waiting for next year’s Midnight Breakfast to go again. 

“For sure I’ll come back next year,” said Valencia.