Asher Gibbons
The Southern Editor
For too long I’ve been hearing that the food at Wynee’s Bistro is not good. The upperclassmen who witnessed the days of the “old caf” have too much nostalgia for the prior atmosphere, whereas the freshmen who dislike the food are just too used to home cooked meals.
For the doubters, there’s more substance to this claim than “I told you so.” I’m against the doubters and believe that the entree items and a superior comparison to a large Division I school proves that caf food is actually worth your time.
The entree items at the caf are often filling dishes, such as chicken, pork, beef or fish. These proteins come in a wide variety of different styles which helps prevent it feeling like you’re eating the same thing every single time. For example, the chicken can be made as the iconic chicken fried chicken, fried chicken, barbecue chicken breast or chicken a la carte. Some of the more popular nights at Wright at Home include Taco Tuesdays, dino nugget lunchs and steak night Saturdays.
There are certainly times where I don’t like the options at “Wright at Home,” or just simply want more protein to add to my plate. FSC’s flattop shines in this situation with grilled chicken, grilled beef, grilled shrimp and other options, making this an easy choice to turn to during the week.
There’s also the “Portabellos” station, in which the Bao Buns got extremely popular prior to spring break. They also often have build-your-own pizzas, pork carnitas and pork butt in rotation. Finally, at World Tours, what previously used to be the “Super Bowls” station now serves a variety of food.
If none of this is making your stomach growl, then you’re not going to find a dining hall in any college that will satisfy your cravings.
Over the break, I had the opportunity to visit the campus of Arizona State University and decided to try their dining hall food. It was levels below the quality of FSC’s caf food. They had their Wright at Home equivalent that served just one dish, rather than having a choice of different protein options or sides. There was also a self-serve nacho station, which was essentially just tortilla chips in a bowl and nacho cheese.
I will say that their Chipotle-esque station where you could get a burrito or bowl was pretty good, but that’s not enough to say that the overall experience was better than FSC’s.
“The food [at ASU] is fine but it would be nice to have some ice cream,” Donovan Anderson, an ASU student said. “If a school has an ice cream machine, it’s a good dining hall.”
Well good thing FSC has an ice cream machine that offers chocolate, vanilla or twist soft serve that can occasionally be paired with oreo crumb toppings. FSC dessert does stand out due to that ice cream machine as well as the assortment of pies, cakes or pudding cups.
In terms of overall campus wide food, ASU does have a variety of different chains such as Chick-Fil-A, Subway, Burger King, Qdoba, Starbucks and many more. But in this instance, I am comparing just the dining hall foods. When purchasing food with meal plans I realized ASU works similar to FSC, but instead of a weekly allowance snakebites, their students get semester-long points to work with.
During my brief ASU visit, the lines were busy, but each spot had multiple different registers to counter the wait. If we did have a Chick-Fil-A or a Starbucks on campus, the lines would be disastrous. I also think if these options were that readily available, you’d eventually get sick of their food. Steak n Shake fills the need of an on-campus fast food spot with little to no wait times and a menu that you can get tired of without it being the end of the world.
The food at FSC is consistently good and constantly evolving. Unlike some other campuses lacking in their cafeteria options, FSC stands out as a college program who can deliver for masses with options galore to choose from.
