Have you ever wondered how it feels to be crammed behind the counter of our school’s cafe, with long working hours and huge lines of hungry, impatient, and cranky children waiting for someone to serve them?

Well, the employees of the Mitzu Cafe surely felt that more than once, especially when there are so many people waiting to be served all at once.

Therefore The Bite set out to investigate what’s behind the scenes of the school’s cafe and the mysterious ways that it works. We’re probably gonna ask the most recent questions everyone has been asking themselves: Where is Mihaela? Why the new employees? Have the long lines been solved? Read on for the scoop!

Changes Behind the Counter

On Oct. 27, 2025, Stradale Carnivale’s School Division Director Octavian Stoica announced that Mihaela, “our beloved Mitzu Coffee Shop barista,” made a personal request to transfer to a Stradale location closer to her home. “Mihaela has been part of our AISB team for many years,” Stoica wrote in a press release for the AISB community, “and we truly hope to see her back with us soon.”

In Mihaela’s place, Stradale has appointed Cristian Sandu as the new barista, who, Stoica says, “brings extensive experience in the café industry and a genuine passion for coffee.”

With Mihaela’s departure, many students and teachers wondered how the cafe would adjust to new staff. The change was noticeable, but the fresh team, despite being new to the fast-paced environment, has already brought smoother service and shorter lines, according to interviews with the students and staff who visit the cafe on a daily basis.

One of the employees, Madalina, has shared in an interview that she enjoys working with children most of all. Even so, Madalina says,

“The children are very disorganised, especially during breaks, when we must serve as many students as possible.”

In Madalina’s view, the new staff, though, has helped improve the flow, but challenges remain. She believes things would run better if students showed more responsibility, patience, and respect. Although she notes that most are generally respectful, some are not, which creates conflict and challenges.

She also suggested that “slightly longer breaks or allowing students to buy food more times during the day would reduce the pressure on both staff and students.”

Despite the demanding schedule from 7:30 to 5:00, the new employees are committed. Their presence has clearly improved the efficiency and maintained a social atmosphere that everyone can enjoy. On the other hand, sources say, the cafe still faces challenges that limit its full potential.

Every Sip Has a Story

Stoica, the manager of Stradale at AISB, described the Secondary’s morning snack breaks as “very short,” meaning the staff don’t have that much time to organize themselves and serve everyone as quickly as possible, especially when so many students all come at once.

Stoica says that Mitzu Cafe managed the demands of students during Morning Snack Break better “about three or four years ago,” when there was a different timetable that split this time into separate Middle School and High School breaks. Such a timetable gave Stradale “time to serve better.” 

Now, under the current timetable constraints, Stoica says, “we have to adapt and find a solution. It’s always hard to serve so many students there. To maintain some order there.” 

But the “biggest challenge,” according to Stoica, is the start of lunch when “all the [Secondary] school students are coming” at the same time.” Stoica believes they addressed this “very well” with the addition of more staff at the cafe. “By the clock, you can see that in 15 minutes, we will serve all the students,” but still, the lines may be too long, testing some students’ patience.

So the solution that he shares for this problem is: “[For the Secondary section] to come to lunch in two different times” split between middle and high school. This solution could potentially spark a sustainable solution and could create a new era of organization that could revolutionize the cafe’s long lines and long waits, which is what Stoica explained in great detail.

Student Solutions for Better Cafe Experiences

Lastly, the Bite reached out for students’ comments on their cafe experience while they waited to make their order.

“Well, I think it’s a pretty good experience because there’s a lot of variety,” says grade 8 student Horea B. “But also, something that I don’t really like is that the lines can sometimes be very long.”

Grade 9 student Angie T. says, “We have to be respectful and not cut in line.”

“Don’t cut lines,” grade 10 student Amy P. concurred, “try and just stay in one line. And also, to go a bit faster, know what you want beforehand so you can just quickly order it.”

Before leaving, please share other possible solutions you might have in the comments below!