Which Residence area has the best Dining Hall?
Today I’ll be giving my honest review of 4 of the 5 dining halls on campus. As a disclaimer, I’ve only been here for about a month and these opinions are still mostly first impressions. I’ll go through North, South, East, and West. Pollock remains the only buffet that I haven’t been to, but I said last week that their market is really nice, which competes with the others on its own. Without further ado, let’s get into the Dining Hall Olympics!
NORTH:
I admit that the North dining hall, Warnock Commons, is definitively the weakest dining hall on campus. Yes, the menu is basically the same everywhere, but the difference lies in the quality of the food, the amount of options, and the ambiance of the room. For example, North always has about 5-6 different meal elements in the buffet that rotate each day, as well as pizza, pasta, and a salad bar that are always there. West, in comparison, has about 3 times the amount of those same options plus a few extra, and It all tends to taste better over there. Worst of all is North’s ambiance; Warnock’s dining hall feels unsettlingly similar to a high school cafeteria. Overall, I give it a 6/10. I still eat there most frequently because it’s close to home, but it’s just too small and rough around the edges for a good rating.
SOUTH:
I talked about a bad experience I had at Redifer in my previous passion post, but it hasn’t served me too badly other than that one time last month. I did the Musical Theatre summer program last summer for two weeks and we ate there every day. It’s probably the second largest dining hall, scaling practically three times the size of North when it comes to the buffet. I wouldn’t say the food is any better than North though; I’ve actually had better versions of the same meals at North. However, they do have far more options usually which is a huge plus. Overall, South definitely does the job and I give it an 8/10.
EAST:
I’m sure you’re all aware that EAST is a BEAST when it comes to basically everything. More buildings, more students, bigger commons, and of course, the biggest dining hall, Findlay Commons. This, however, doesn’t make it the best. To be honest, with East, it’s all about timing. At certain times I’ve gone there’s been a wave of students and the food quality kinda goes down because of how fast they’re producing it (at least that’s my theory). Other times, though, It’s pretty empty and that’s actually when I had the best chicken that I’ve eaten at any of the dining halls here. The ambiance is okay, but similarly to North it just feels like a bigger high school cafeteria. Overall, East gets an 8.5/10 for its offerings.
WEST:
I’m not sure whether this is a controversial opinion or not, but I think that West (Waring Commons) is actually the best dining hall from what I’ve seen so far. It’s kind of removed from everything, so I never tried it until recently, but each time I’ve gone has been great. Their pizza has a really nice fluffy and light crust, they have more pasta options, there are about 3 buffets, and their cookies are GAS. I’ve also heard that they do breakfast and bunch really well, so I’ll have to get over there in the morning or afternoon at some point. The ambiance at West is great too because they have the coolest seating; there are two areas and both have elevated booths with a really nice design. I give West a 9/10 for my experiences over there so far, but maybe that will change after more visits.
In a final ranking, the gold goes to Waring Commons (West), Findlay (East) takes silver, Redifer (South) gets bronze, and Warnock (North) is disappointing. Thanks for reading!
-Asim
I must say that I was really looking forward to your post this week as I was interested to hear what you had to say on the dining halls. Your thoughts were precise and got right to the point, which was good as there was a lot to talk about. I liked how you did a final ranking out of 10 at the end of each and then did a podium at the end of discussing all the buffets. I will say that I do particularly enjoy North as I never find it to be crowed so I don’t have to wait. Out of the buffets that you have ranked I would agree that West is the best as it has a lot of room and lots of options. I would definitely recommend eating at Pollock because I think it might change your mind about which is the best. I’m excited to hear about your experience next week.
It was really interesting to compare your experiences with each hall to mine. It was equally as interesting to read your assessment of my home dining hall (east). As a vegetarian, I find it pretty difficult to get good food at almost any dining hall buffet. Specifically, East because their pizza is not linked to their buffet and their pasta is not open, therefore leaving me with limited options on the menu which are usually some kind of potato and vegetables. It was really cool to see your perspective on their options from someone who I assume eats meat.
Your blog posts literally make me want to go on a food tour with you!! It is important that you account the ambiance into the equation, because I think that is a very important factor. I like eating in East because it has bright lighting and is renovated, and I am convinced that makes the food taste better. I’ve never been to north to eat, but your comparison to a high school cafeteria familiarized it, and made me feel as if I had been there before. I also think this is a great way to get around campus. I am a creature of habit (and lazy, lol), so I usually just stick to what’s closest to home. Your blog has inspired me to get out and try these other dining halls, because I am actually curious for myself if I feel the same way!!
This was an extremely intriguing post to read. I’m surprised you put north so low but I do agree it lacks in the decor department. West would be #1 for me if it wasn’t for the no A/C. I went there earlier this semester and was genuinely sweating. Their food is top notch though. I would say definitely try Pollock, you won’t be disappointed. The line is long but worth it. After NSO I was reluctant to go back to South, but I’ll have to try it. Overall, your critiques were helpful and fair. I’ll be keeping this review in mind next time I go out to the dining halls.