The food in University of Wisconsin residence halls is less expensive and better than food plans at other colleges, according to campus students and workers.
Pat Denson, assistant manager at Frank’s Place in Kronshage Hall, said the value of Frank’s Place’s foods allows students to literally have their cake and eat it too.
“I think the a la Carte is a better value, and the food is better too,” said Denson.
Denson also noted the a la Carte menu at Frank’s is superior to meal plans at other campuses that offer a certain number of meals per week.
Kronshage resident Matt Waldron echoes Denson’s sentiment.
“It’s reasonably priced. Of course, I’d like it to be cheaper, but I have no problems with it,” Waldron said.
The food service provided at UW is non-traditional in the sense that it does not require a resident of a dormitory to purchase in advance a set number of meals per week. Instead, UW dining halls operate like restaurants with a la Carte pricing.
Other schools like Winona State University in Minnesota offer a weekly meal plan. Students can select from 19, 14 or 10 meals per week during the semester. Winona is different from most UW schools, as their meal plans can apply to Pizza Hut and Blimpies, also located on or near campus. Winona requires all students living on campus to purchase one of the meal plans.
Most colleges require freshmen to sign up for a meal plan during their first year. For fire and other safety reasons, many colleges prohibit cooking in residence halls. In extreme cases, some colleges require a student to participate in a meal plan for all four years.
Students at Yale University can pay $3,950 and eat as many times as they want and as much as they want. At the University of Virginia, students can purchase unlimited meals for $1,390 while being allotted five free guest meals.
UW’s a la Carte menu allows students to determine how much they wish to put into their food spending. Compared to other universities requiring students to spend a certain amount of money regardless of how much food they consume, the UW plan is economical.
“Explore all of your options. Most schools have so many choices it can be overwhelming and easy to go for quick, familiar foods like burgers, pizza and fries,” according to Sandra Maltzman, a chef at Columbia University.
“But if you look closer, healthy options abound. Salad bars are packed with low-fat/high-protein options like hummus, tofu and beans. Look around the entire dining unit before selecting your meal. Choose one main entree and remember you can always go back for seconds, so don’t overdo the amount of food on your tray at once,” Maltzman added.
