galoisien

So if you get a recipe approved, Aramark ends up cooking it for you?

Dean J

Galo, I'm not familiar with this recipe thing. My last school's dining hall did this, though. It wasn't that complicated a process, but it was a smaller school.

Paging db123, please email me at deanj "at" virginia "dot" edu if you see this in the next few hours.

shoebox10

DB: they take your water, trust me haha. Last year's football was ridiculous. The first game was absolutely horrible (note to future people: if you're going to drink drink, drink LOTS of water before you go as well...otherwise, you'll have the most miserable day of your life). Just give in to the $3, it's worth it. By the last games, you won't be buying anything unless you get hungry. Also, try to find somewhere to tailgate before/after, makes stuff better.

collegehopeful78

They take your water? How? They check bags for illegal water possesion?

shoebox10

More like illegal drugs/alcohol.

Protean

I was able to sneak in water last year by putting it on my backside, thankfully they don't check what's down my pants on my backside. They will always inspect bags and I don't think they allow unopened bottles like at MLB parks.

galoisien

Hmm -- to what extent is dining service outsourced? Are the ingredients just bought from Aramark? The cooks are hired by Aramark? Are there any students working in the kitchens?

HopefulHoo'sDad

The folks who staff the gates/entrances for football games do an extremely thorough shakedown before letting you into Scott Stadium. They meticulously inspect purses and other carry-in bags for contraband. If they find anything like bottled water or edible foodstuffs, it is immediately confiscated.

I find it amusing that banned substances like a bottle of water and a bag of peanuts are almost certain not to make it past the gate guards (although I readily admit I haven’t tried stuffing them in my shorts in an attempt to smuggle them in as Protean apparently has). However, when I visit the Men’s Room following the game, the stalls and floors are littered with numerous empty bottles of every conceivable alcoholic spirit. Obviously these items are easier to conceal, either in one’s shorts or some other inconspicuous hiding place.

Regarding what UVa overcharges its students for various items at the Convenience Stores or other Dining Locations, it’s a bit of a cop out to imply/suggest this is okay because the service is contracted out to a third party who likely gouges students at other colleges and universities as well. That doesn’t make the practice any less distasteful (no pun intended) IMO. However, I understand Dean J’s point that Aramark is likely charging similar prices at other schools it services.

HopefulHoo'sDad

Anyone who reads the UVa CC Forum knows that I’m very positive on the quality of a UVa education and the exciting and well rounded experience enjoyed by most students who attend the University. However, while I’m “complaining” about a couple of things I didn’t particularly like, I’d be interested in hearing from current students about something I noticed this past year that concerned me somewhat.

UVa is very quick to close down their Dining Halls when students have a “Break”. For example, the Dining Halls were closed for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Breaks just to name three that immediately come to mind. However, I suspect that a number of first year students chose NOT to leave Grounds over the abbreviated Thanksgiving Break and perhaps over Spring Break as well, especially International students (UVa has a fair number of these) or others who live a long distance away. With the ever increasing cost for air, rail and auto travel (thanks to $135 per barrel oil, $4.00+ per gallon gas and skyrocketing jet fuel costs), this situation will likely be even more common this coming year.

Here’s my question: I know this isn’t an issue for students who live off Grounds or who have housing accommodations with kitchen facilities, but does this practice of closing the Dining Halls prove to be an inconvenience and/or a hardship for first year students who can’t or don’t go home for Breaks?

shoebox10

They close down EVERYTHING not only during breaks, but prior. Our C3 was closed down Friday before breaks and then didn't reopen until 5pm the day classes restarted. I can't imagine what it's like for first years dependent on dining halls, but it was a pain in the butt to have Lambeth's central food core shut down too. Nothing worse than coming back from home with nothing to eat...

HopefulHoo'sDad

Shoe:
That’s exactly my point; the policy of shutting down UVa Dining Services around and during breaks was/is insensitive and inconvenient to the needs of many UVa students.

db123

what?! they search bags? hmm...well, when I went to a baseball game monday night, my friend's dad kept telling everyone she had explosive diarrhea so she needed to keep the water with her because she was getting so dehydrated. And she needed the food for electrolytes. maybe that will work.

Dean J

I'm not a dining services expert, but I imagine that Aramark has contracts with major companies whose products you can find in the dining halls (Pepsi, Chik-fil-a, Pizza Hut, Odwalla...I can't think of them all), so much of the food comes from whatever group distributes those items in Virginia.

Recently, there was a story about students and faculty planting a garden (perhaps over by Hereford?). I think a dining hall is going to use some of what's grown there.

The people who work at UVa mostly live in the area. If you aren't used to seeing your faculty and administration outside of school, you will be when you live in Charlottesville!

I didn't suggest that it was okay. I've tried not to inject my opinion on this particular topic (dining hall pricing), but remember that I've been paying for food at college dining halls for years and will be for the rest of my professional life.

Dean J

This is slightly related...interesting regardless.

O-Hill Chef is Bound for Beijing

db123

sous chef for the Olymic media?! that sounds like a pretty sweet gig.

I know this is completely unrelated, but does anyone know a good recipe for truffles? I need to make them for my calc class. (we obviously have entered the senioritis stage.)