Jessica Stalter
Although there are many places to eat on campus, many students are still dissatisfied with their options.
Florida Southern has many options students can pick from between Wynee’s Bistro, Buck Stop, Tutu’s, the Undercaf, Happy Place and more recently Fresh Twist. However, even with various locations to get food, the campus is still lacking in healthier food options.
The deficit is largely in the healthy options the campus offers. For students who are not concerned about health, all of the campus dining options are available. However, for those who are wanting to watch their health, many of the dining halls are out of the running.
The cafeteria is the main place for students to get full meals on campus. It provides decent food in large portions. There are some healthy options between the salad and vegetables, making it a valid option for those trying to be health conscious.
While the sides are not the healthiest, it’s easy to avoid them. And while the entrees do range from moderately healthy fish and other meats to fattening sandwiches and pastas, overall, they provide a decent variety.
Because of these choices, the cafeteria is the best option for those trying to be healthy, as long as they have the self control to say no to the fattening options. The downside of the cafeteria is the long wait times and the portion sizes, as well as the quality of some food items.
The Healthy Blend Deli, or the Undercaf, is one of the best options for fast and healthy eating on campus between the chicken ceasar wrap, salads and avocado-based items.
There is rarely a line, and when there is, it is usually short. There are plenty of sandwiches offered that, though not particularly healthy due to carb and sodium content and relatively large size, taste good. Additionally there is a connected smoothie place, Freshens, that could be considered healthy, if not sugar packed.
Tutu’s Cyber Cafe is the next relatively healthy dining location, containing salads, veggie trays and fruit cups. The salads seem to contain more calories than a typical salad from other locations, but it is still a healthier option. The sandwich offerings are moderate, ranging from grilled chicken to burgers to cold sandwiches.
There are also breakfast sandwiches available in the morning for a brief period of time until they sell out, usually before 10 a.m. The only downside of Tutu’s sandwiches is the massive sodium content, with one italian sub making up 90 percent of daily value. Depending on the time of day Tutu’s can be very busy, especially shortly before and after class times. This being said, it is a good idea to stop through when there is less of a rush to avoid a long wait.
Buck Stop, located toward the middle of campus, is a decent option for a quick meal between classes. The only healthy options are the chicken sandwiches. They do however have pizza and burgers, making it not the healthiest option, but relatively tasty.
Fresh Twist is Florida Southern’s newest dining option, serving many types of pretzels as well as lemonade and smoothies. There are not really too many healthy options here except the smoothies, but Fresh Twist is a great and popular option for a snack or small meal.
Lastly there is Happy Place, with no healthy options, but very good loaded fries and various sides. One perk of Happy Place is that you can get a good amount of food for a very low price.
Overall, there are a lot of food options around the Florida Southern campus ranging in price and quality. Trying to find just healthy foods on campus is more difficult when the unhealthy options are tastier, cheaper, faster and more prevalent, but they do exist (if you look hard enough).
