IDS 202: Food options

As a student who lives on campus, I have experience what it is like to live on campus with a car, and without a car. Living on campus and not having a car leaves you with limited options in terms of food. Most of the options served at school are unhealthy, not vegetarian friendly, and served continuously.

My freshman and sophomore year I did not have a car on campus. The only food options that were available were Krasa, Coal Ben, and Starbucks. Krasa is run by Sodexo and since this is such a small campus, there were not many food options. They had a small salad bar every day, and that's as far as they went for healthy options. They also had a small sandwich station, pizza, a grill, pasta, and desserts everyday. Just tasting the food, you can tell that it is not healthy. The next option that we have is "Coal Ben." It is run with a sports bar vibe, and most of the meals are served with fries. The most popular items are burgers, wings, and quesadillas. Below is the picture of the menu. As you can see, they have a Halal portion of the menu, but barely any options for vegetarians.

Another option on campus is Starbucks. There are not many food options at Starbucks, but the food they have is viewed as "healthier," even if it is not. The drinks served are packed with sugar, dairy, and many empty calories. While there are healthier options at Starbucks, most people do not purchase those drinks.

When I finally got a car, I'm sure you can imagine how excited I was for new food options. Within five miles of campus are three grocery stores. There's a Butera, Jewel, and Mariano's. These grocery stores range in prices, foods sold, and overall experiences. There are also many restaurant options. To just list a few; Chipotle, Nando's, Panera, Portillo's, Taco Bell, KFC, Mongolian Grill, Front Street, and Rose Bud are all within a ten minuted drive. Having all these options gave me many more vegetarian options, and made choosing healthy options much easier!