Are Meal Plans Worth It?

ryanx13
Wed, 28 Aug 2013 23:40:57 +0000

When I signed up for a meal plan there weren’t any specifics on what was in the dining halls, so here’s a basic idea for those wondering:

Quality of the food is usually great, although I can see that after a semester it might get a little old. I don’t understand why some people on this site say it’s “crap” because it’s not and most of the actual students on the plan enjoy it.

Keep in mind that both dining centers were recently renovated completely, so be skeptical when reading about them online.

They have unlimited fruit juice (apple, orange, pineapple, etc) and milk (2%, skim, chocolate) with various kinds of cereal. There is a sandwich bar which is like subway except on bread of your choosing (honey wheat, whole wheat, etc).

There’s a panini station which has a different type of panini every day. You can decide what to put on it and they are pressed right before you so sometimes the line can be a little long.

In the morning there’s always pancakes/sausage/bacon/omelets and a waffle station (similar to panini section) which makes amazing waffles with the gator head imprinted in the middle… They must put a lot of sugar in these because they taste so good.

There’s a dessert corner with cookies, desserts and other kinds of treats. There’s coffee in the mornings.

And there are many other stations that completely change every day and serve things like pasta, etc… There’s always pizza available 24/7, of course… But there’s definitely variety in the dining halls if you look for it.

The dining halls are very CLEAN… I’ve not noticed any problems except the juice station frequently goes out of order in the mornings…

Also if you want variety your plan is accepted at numerous locations in the Union and Chomp It & Moe’s at Raquet Club Dining Center (next to the gym by the stadium). You can spend up to $6 at these places, except for Papa John’s which is a combo meal. The bad news is you can only go to these places on weekdays, and there are limits on how often (2 swipes a day, Moe’s/BK only allowed after 4pm).

Personally I like to visit places like Chomp It, Croutons and Home Zone to get healthier options.

Hopefully this helps a little; I wish someone told me what was actually in the dining halls before I signed up!