Category Archives: Penn State Eats

Oh Canyon, dear Canyon, how infamous and awesome you are. You’re there through all hours of the night and for the sweet price of $1, you can solve all my hunger needs with a slice of sweet heaven.

If you don’t know what Canyon Pizza is, it’s a pizza shop on East Beaver Ave that boasts a slice of pizza for a$1, and is open from 11am-4am. It’s essentially the go-to place for drunk college kids or even sober ones who just want cheap pizza and a funny show.

Personally, I’ve been to Canyon my fair share of times. The line gets progressively longer throughout the night  which sucks but man, that is some good pizza. A  lot of people say it tastes like cardboard, but having had it at both 2pm and 2am I can officially say, I like Canyon a lot!

It’s pretty much a dive on the outside and inside. There are three picnic tables outside and about 4 chairs next to the window inside. Needless to say, it’s not the nicest place but hey it’s cheap and is always there for you when you’re hungry.

One of my favorite parts about Canyon is the drunk conversations people have at Canyon. Onward State wrote a great article on this: http://onwardstate.com/2013/09/23/overheard-at-canyon-pizza/

Definitely read it if you want a good laugh.

Overall, Canyon has a special place in my heart, 4.2/5

The Berkey Creamery- perhaps the most cherished, wonderful, amazing, heavenly place at Penn State. If  you don’t know what the creamery is well then it’s time for you to drop whatever you’re doing and get down there.

The Creamery is Penn State’s personal ice cream shop. What makes it so special is that the ice cream is made with the milk from Penn State cows, so it’s pretty much like you’re eating a bit of Penn State with every lick which is super awesome.

There are over 100 ice cream flavors and you can get them all in milkshakes too which I’ve never had, but I’ve heard are particularly delicious. But don’t even try to mix flavors because it’s not going to happen. The only person to mix flavors was Bill Clinton and that employee has since been fired (actually this person probably just graduated but anyway…). The creamery is always packed after football games and on warm spring/summer nights, which can get kind of annoying, but it’s truly a favorite for alumni and students alike.

As if the amazing ice cream wasn’t enough, the creamery also has snacks for your pleasure, grilled stickies in a box (check out my previous post on these if you don’t know what they are), and also they have milk, tea and lemonade made by the creamery people. The lemonade is seriously the best I’ve ever had-go get it now.

In addition, if you’re traveling and want to take home a gallon of ice cream or whatever, they will give you dry ice to keep it cold for you because they are the nicest people ever.

I could go on and on about the creamery but instead I’m just going to give it 4.5/5 stars and call it a day.

Today I made the long venture up to East  to eat at Roxy’s. And well it was an experience. I don’t spend that much time up in East commons so I got very lost. There’s like three different entrances but they weren’t all open and they don’t all lead to the same place so it was just a big complicated mess. Don’t worry, it only took me 10 minutes to find the place…

Upon entrance, Roxy’s looks nice, fast, easy and cheap. But if you look at the menu, it’s really small. They have breakfast sandwiches which are fine but not for lunch! Then they have like 4 actual options (burgers, burgers and more burgers). In addition, they have 1-2 specials on each day. But if you want a special from another day don’t even try it’s just not going to happen.

The whole experience was kind of sketchy. I got the grilled chicken and the cook took it out of a metal box and had it on the grill for maybe 15 seconds and threw on some lettuce and gave it to me. Also, there were no chips so like that was really disappointing.

Honestly, I can’t say I’d really recommend Roxy’s. If you haven’t tried it, don’t worry you’re not missing anything. 1.5/5

We’ve all been there. It’s 8:30 and it’s just that awkward time between dinner and late night snacking time and you’re starving. You get the bright idea- oh The Mix is fast, easy, and cheap I’ll just head over there and get a quick sandwich. Well my friend, you’re wrong on so many levels. 8:30 is that prime time when EVERY SINGLE PERSON in Pollock goes to The Mix for food. It’s not uncommon to wait 45 minutes to an hour for a sandwich. And if you ordered a cheesesteak or hamburger well you might as well bring some homework to do because  you will be there for a while. You could have had that microwave mac and cheese done in 3 minutes but no, you had to go to the mix.

Don’t get me wrong, The Mix is awesome. It’s super cheap and customizable. And their mozzarella sticks and smoothies are super delicious. But that line though, the constant line, is it even worth it? And you will never want to go to The Mix when there is no line because it will either be at 7am (I know I don’t get up that early) or like noon time when you’re either in class or eating regular food in the dining commons.

I’m giving The Mix a 2.5/5 . For how long it takes and how boring the selection can get over time, I don’t think it’s really worth it. However if you happen to go at a non-busy time and need food on the go- The Mix is your place!

The other day I thought to myself, I want some Chinese food! What restaurant could possibly be open at 10 pm on a Wednesday night? Well, apparently a lot of them are. But i just went to the closest Chinese restaurant, Hunan Wok.

When you first walk in, it looks disgusting I’m not going to lie. It’s dirty and poorly lit. The food looks like it’s been sitting out for days and the restaurant was totally empty (I mean it was 10pm but still). The people behind the counter were watching a movie while I was standing there so I had to do the good-ole fake cough to get their attention.

I ordered the chicken lo mein and it was actually really good. I was a little scared because let’s be honest, this place really didn’t look like it’s served a customer in a couple of months, but I was happily surprised. The food was hot and the portions were huge for what you paid for. There were like two meals on one plate.

Overall, I think I will be going back to Hunan Wok. Sure it was a little weird, but this is college- bad Chinese food is pretty much essential to your diet.

3.2 out of 5 stars for Hunan Wok!

Ladies and gentlemen of the internet,

If you go to Penn State and don’t want to be the only person in  State College to not have had a sticky- you better go to a small, dumpy restaurant downtown called Ye Olde College Diner.

The Diner has a really cool atmosphere and it definitely stands out amongst other restaurants downtown. It looks like an actual old-time diner inside and out and it seems really open and friendly. Now, I’ve heard from a variety of sources that the diner is not very clean. While I can’t verify it’s health rating, if you catch a peak in the kitchen- you’ll be kind of disgusted (but I’m sure it’s like that for most restaurants).

Another bad thing about The Diner, is that there is always a wait. It’s been around for a long time, so people have heard of it and they all come flocking to try the famous stickies. Don’t even try to get in during Parents and Family weekend- just don’t.

The grilled stickies are amazing though and are a Penn State tradition just as strong as the Creamery ice cream. Ye Olde College Diner is the only place in State College that sells stickies made on the grill the right way. You can buy them boxed  from plenty of places but that means you have to cook them yourself. Save yourself the trouble and a bunch of burnt stickies and just go to The Diner.

This is a grilled sticky:

In this picture it is served a-la-mode although if you’re really nice to the waiter and ask him/her to put apple slices (like those in apple pie) on it, you are in for a real treat.

The actual food at The Diner is mediocre and I really wouldn’t go there if it weren’t for the grilled sticky genius (and the fact that they’re open 24 hours on the weekends).

I give the dinner 3/5 stars- literally just for the stickies and the fact that you can get a sticky at any point during the day on Friday/ Saturday. If you have not had a sticky yet- seriously get down there…now.

North Dining District located at Warnock Commons is a very small dining commons in North halls. The food selection is incredibly small, the smallest I’ve seen from any of the commons so far. There are probably one-third the amount of options here as there are at other dining commons like Pollock or South. However, personally, I’ve only eaten on the one side of Warnock which is set up very similarly to Pollock with specialized stations for salad, dessert, pizza etc.

On the other side of the commons there’s a wide variety of world cuisine. You can order anything from Greek to Indian to Italian. In general, the atmosphere of this dining commons is very informal with lots of seating and open windows to see outside. The food tastes the same as at the other dining commons but the selection is just smaller.

Overall, I would give the North Dining Commons a 2/5. I wouldn’t recommend checking it out, spend your time somewhere else.

West Halls are in my opinion, the prettiest halls on campus. The quad is absolutely beautiful and the layout and location are phenomenal. However, my favorite part of West is their dining commons. I think you could pretty much ask any Penn State Student and they’d tell you that West has some of the best food on campus.

Personally, I eat at West way too often (like six times a week), I think the food is really good and there’s always a nice selection. But you can not go to West without getting one of their famous homemade chocolate chip cookies. These cookies are warm, soft, gooey, greasy, and are pretty much the best cookies I’ve had here. I’d even go as far as to say that these cookies are better than my mother’s homemade ones (sorry mom!).

For the actual food, West has a generally good selection and although a lot of it is very similar to other places on campus, West food just seems to taste more like actual food from home and not cafeteria food. Everyday West has pizza, pasta, salad, chicken sliders, a taco station, soups, and a sub station. The selection definitely gets boring over time but overall the food is good quality and tastes delicious!

In general I’m giving West  4.5/5 stars. The cookies really make this amazing dining commons top notch!

South dining commons, also known as Redifer Common,  is a dining commons at Penn State housing eleven dining places in one convenient room. It also contains a buffet, so if you wish to eat buffet style, you have that option too. The nice thing about South, is that is has many different options for any food taste at anytime of the day. If you want Chinese, sushi, salad or even burritos, South has it all for you.

My favorite part about South is Late Night which runs from 9pm- 1am Monday-Thursday. Late Night always has a wide variety of food from pancakes and bacon to mozzarella sticks and baked ziti. Basically, anything you have a craving for- South has for you during the hours you want it at. One of the best places at South is “In a Pickle” where they make Panini’s and subs with whatever you want on it. The line is always so long because the Panini’s are amazing!

Overall, I give South 4.5/5 stars. It’s probably my favorite dining commons and I’d definitely recommend checking it out!

* Image from Google Images

If you’re like me and you live in Pollock residence halls, there is a 99.99% chance you’ve eaten at the dining commons before.  This dining commons facility was renovated in 2012 and features sophisticated decor, a 10,000 square-foot kitchen space and serves food in an all-you-can-eat fashion.

Upon first arrival, I felt like a kid in the candy store at Pollock dining commons. There is food in all directions, and the fancy glasses they give you make you feel like you’re at a five-star restaurant. The food is endless and you can either be healthy or gain the freshman fifteen in one meal.

While I enjoy the ever consistent salads, burgers, stir fry, pizza, pasta and sub stations, I feel as though the overall variety is lacking. How many times can you really have the same 6 options? Also, the food at Pollock is slightly bland. I find myself grabbing the salt at every meal and putting on almost all of my food (no judgement about my dietary habits please…)

One of the better things about Pollock though is the breakfast. While I’m not a fan of their lunch and dinner, I think Pollock has one of the better breakfasts. There are many more options than lunch/dinner and the make your own omelet station is super delicious.

Overall, I’m giving the food at Pollock a 3 out of 5.  I’d definitely say check it out; odds are you’ll like it the first couple of times.