Ethnographic Study: Lincolnwood Town Center

The social situation that I chose to observe was the food court at my local mall, Lincolnwood Town Center. It is a shopping mall located on the far Northside in Lincolnwood. It is a public space filled with various retail stores. The food court is a rectangular shape in one for the mall’s wings. The food court perimeter is filled with food stores like Subway, Quiznos, Sabarro’s, a smoothie shop, an ice cream stand, a Chinese restaurant, a hot dog stand, and a burger stand. The tables are gray and the chairs are blue and metal. The tables are group together so four or fewer people can sit together. There are TV’s throughout the food court and music blasting over the speakers.

The food court is filled with a wide-range of people. There are groups of people around similar ages, families with children, individuals, mall employees, and security guards. The people are of all races: Asian, black, white, Middle-eastern, and Hispanic. Some of the people speak in different languages. The people are mostly dressed in casual clothing like athletic wear or jeans or sweatshirts.

The reasoning for the different groups of people to be there was varied. Some of the people ate meals while others share small snacks and others sat people watching, talking on their phones, or doing crossword puzzles. The mall visitors casually stroll into the food court, looking around to choose a seat or a stand to buy food. The visitors sit in a relaxed pose suggesting the casualness of the food court. Some talk to the people they are with while others do not speak while they eat or they sit silently together. A group of teenagers had a basketball with them and sat resting their heads on the hands suggesting eating after a basketball game. Only a couple people have shopping bags with them suggesting they are specifically coming to the food court to eat rather than eating during their shopping. In contrast, the security guard and mall employees are quicker when they walk through the food court and they do not look around rather they are more directed in their actions.