Food is important to me.
Most times, hunger is the compass that I use to navigate through my life. It’s only natural that since I find myself eating on campus, I steer my day by means of what is offered here.
There are three basic elements that are considered when I declare something as good food: price, quantity and quality. I will never be like those people on the Food Network who can identify ingredients by a simple taste. The best I can do is tell you it’s got flavor and that’s about it. Also, I will never be one who feels that spending $7 to $8 (unless it is my birthday or it’s free, and even those times, that’s pushing it) for a meal is perfectly normal. I hold a business approach to my food consumption, spending the lowest amount of money possible for the greatest amount of food. So it’s only obvious that I would enjoy buffets, out-of-the-way hamburger stands or specials. Still, there is an interesting twist to all of this. I used to run cross country, so along the way I picked up a knack for eating healthy foods and a desire for fatty foods since I could burn them off.
The BC cafeteria is composed of three areas that have their own characteristics. Panorama Grill consists of assorted snacks and food that is like the food at drive-in burger stands, with the grease to prove it. The one drawback is the price. For how much it costs, I would expect enough grease to last two families, but that scarcely solves my hunger problem.
The Renegade Food Court seems like a pocket of the Sahara Desert with enough heat lamps keeping the dehydrated fried chicken and crusted-over refried beans alive.
The Express Cafe seems far and away the best choice. Not only is the food actually fresh but there is a rotation of options daily. Entrees such as wagon wheel pasta with alfredo sauce, tricolor penne with hollandaise sauce and bow tie pasta with St. Andrew’s sauce add color and flavor to BC cuisine. The best part is the food fills up the plate and doesn’t take much out of your wallet, costing only $3. The main drawback is its strict vegetable lineup and the time it takes to whip up your order, anywhere from three to seven minutes.
Outside the cafeteria, if you’re running short on time, there is a hot dog stand outside the Humanities building featuring fire-roasted dogs. Even if you are not in a hurry, you can overhear some gossip or what happened on TV the night before. For the same price ($1.75) as the Nathan hot dogs found in the Panorama Grill, these dogs are plumper and very juicy.
Even though there are times in which I wish I could find myself in front of home-cooked meals, the food offered here is not as bad as people make it out to be.