as in restaurants
a place where people get food at a counter and carry it to a table for eating
The restaurant resembled a school cafeteria.
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Recent Examples of cafeterias
The Bardwells rotate their crops, minimize their use of pesticides, and presumably contribute to the de-poisoning of America’s K-12 cafeterias.
—
Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2025
Free breakfast and lunch for everyone wasn't always the way in school cafeterias, but families became used to the benefit during the pandemic, when federal rules temporarily changed in the face of an unprecedented crisis.
—Lily Altavena, Freep.com, 26 Sep. 2025
The 2025 Food Safety Excellence Award winners included drive-thrus, school cafeterias, hospitals, catering companies and grocery stores across the city.
—Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2025
The first few dinners in the spring reminded Stoney of school cafeterias in the 1950s, with white people on one side of the room and African American people on the other.
—Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 22 Sep. 2025
For many of us, peanut butter is a nostalgic food, transporting us back to peanut butter sandwiches in school cafeterias and character lunchboxes on school buses.
—Melinda Salchert, Southern Living, 13 Sep. 2025
In middle school cafeterias, high school hallways and across college campuses, Charlie Kirk's death spread phone to phone.
—Rachel Hale, USA Today, 12 Sep. 2025
There are old-fashioned Edisons and the tubular bulbs for hospital cafeterias and other places with unpleasant overheads.
—Clio Chang, Curbed, 11 Sep. 2025
French cafeterias typically offer multi-course meals that might include salad, a main dish, bread, cheese and dessert.
—Chicago Tribune, Twin Cities, 21 Aug. 2025
Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2025
Free breakfast and lunch for everyone wasn't always the way in school cafeterias, but families became used to the benefit during the pandemic, when federal rules temporarily changed in the face of an unprecedented crisis.
—Lily Altavena, Freep.com, 26 Sep. 2025
The 2025 Food Safety Excellence Award winners included drive-thrus, school cafeterias, hospitals, catering companies and grocery stores across the city.
—Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2025
The first few dinners in the spring reminded Stoney of school cafeterias in the 1950s, with white people on one side of the room and African American people on the other.
—Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 22 Sep. 2025
For many of us, peanut butter is a nostalgic food, transporting us back to peanut butter sandwiches in school cafeterias and character lunchboxes on school buses.
—Melinda Salchert, Southern Living, 13 Sep. 2025
In middle school cafeterias, high school hallways and across college campuses, Charlie Kirk's death spread phone to phone.
—Rachel Hale, USA Today, 12 Sep. 2025
There are old-fashioned Edisons and the tubular bulbs for hospital cafeterias and other places with unpleasant overheads.
—Clio Chang, Curbed, 11 Sep. 2025
French cafeterias typically offer multi-course meals that might include salad, a main dish, bread, cheese and dessert.
—Chicago Tribune, Twin Cities, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cafeterias
Noun
-
Stadium management specialist Legends — in which Sixth Street are majority shareholders — also partnered with Madrid to run the club’s retail operations and all the Bernabeu’s restaurants and bars.—
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
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Good flavor knows no boundaries, and Charlotte’s restaurants featuring authentic Hispanic and Latin American cuisine will make your mouth water.—
Loán Lake,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Dining The Queen Elizabeth features over 10 restaurant and cafes, in addition to the high-end signature restaurant Britannia.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
18 Oct. 2025
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Mornings in Palma are graciously slow, as residents start their days with an espresso (€2) at their local cafes, like Café Ca’n Salat in the old town.—
Emilio Parra Doiztua,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cafeterias.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cafeterias. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.
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