Around The Master’s University (TMU) campus, conversations arise about the quality of the cafeteria food and how the chicken is always undercooked. Some students become sick from it while others just do not like the taste.
On-campus students must pay for at least 10 meals per week. All this exposure to the cafeteria’s food has caused students to form their opinions—both positive and negative.
I set out to answer the question: Is the cafeteria food good quality?
On Tuesday, April 18, I interviewed various students. I expected mostly negative feedback, but the results were mixed.
Libby Powell is an on-campus sophomore who has the 14-meal plan. Powell’s favorite food is the sushi salad, and her least favorite is anything with mushrooms. She recognizes that that is her preference and not the cafeteria’s fault.
“I think the food quality is great! I think that for bulk food, it’s really good. Obviously, it’s not going to be like your mom’s cooking—that’s the most amazing thing in the world—but for the resources and just for the amount of people they’re cooking for, I think it’s really quality,” Powell said.
Michael, an on-campus freshman, does not view the food so favorably. While it can be good, he says that sometimes meals are leftovers from a previous meal. But he does like the cookies and will eat four at a time.
“It’s more just quantity over quality in my opinion. It’s flavor, but [at] the same time, at what expense? I can still eat the food, and I can still enjoy it somehow, but it takes some creativity on my part to add some soy sauce and hot sauce to make it taste a little bit better,” Michael said.
Because Michael sees the quality as “sometimes hit or miss,” he has changed his meal plan.
“I used to have the 14-meal [plan], but I didn’t want to eat here 14 times out of the week. I only eat here out of necessity. If I didn’t have to eat here, I would do a smaller meal plan, but the 10 is the lowest,” Michael said.
Michael’s least favorite food is the chicken. He represents a common complaint that it is undercooked and should be avoided, if possible.
“It’s sometimes very rubbery, and it tastes raw, and I’ve had friends that have gotten sick from it. So, it’s something that is not my favorite, but they serve it at like every meal. So, you just kinda have to eat it and just hope you don’t die,” Michael said.
Other students simply do not like the chicken in general.
“Generally the chicken and the rice—not a huge fan of, in any way that they make it,” said Noelle Borland, an on-campus junior.
With all this chatter about how poor the food quality is, I wanted to hear from the other side. I asked breakfast and lunch cook Fernando Ramirez for his perspective.
“I enjoy the food here. I think it’s good food. We always try to cook fresh for other students. We try to do the best that we can,” Ramirez said.
Ramirez described what happens before the food is served to the students.
“We have to defrost whatever food we want to make, and then we have to add every ingredient that we use. As soon as it’s ready, we put it in the oven. We check every temperature. [When] we see that it’s ready to put it outside on the line, we always check it twice,” Ramirez said. “We [are] always sure that it’s right—that it’s okay to put it outside.”
When asked about the chicken, he responded to students’ criticisms.
“Sometimes we are in a rush, and maybe some pieces, …they came [out] well-done… We always make mistakes, and it’s good to hear opinions and comments about the students, and it’s good for us to know,” Ramirez said.
TMU is a Christian college. God calls His people to be a light in a world of darkness. Paul urges Christians in Philippians 2:14-16 (LSB) to “shine as lights in the world” by doing “all things without grumbling or disputing, so that you will be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation.” How does complaining about our food affect our witness to the unsaved cooks in the kitchen?
“I think part of our witness as Christians at the community is not complaining about the hard work that people put in and the service that they’re doing for us. Yeah, it may not be the most amazing food that you’re used to but suck it up. Be patient, and just take it as it is and be grateful,” Powell said.
With all this grumbling, perhaps a focus shift is necessary.
“I would say that anyone who grumbles about the quality of the cafeteria food needs to understand it is difficult to make food for this many people constantly every single day. It’s hard to find new recipes, and it’s hard to ensure the quality when you’re making it at such large amounts,” Borland said. “So, even if the cafeteria food isn’t necessarily great all the time, you shouldn’t expect it to be amazing all the time. Although, there are areas in which they could and should improve.”
Michael gave his counter-response to not complaining.
“I agree that we shouldn’t complain, but [at] the same time, I think our voices should be heard because we’re paying so much money to get this good food… I think money should do the talking in the end,” Michael said.
Interviewing everyone showed me that the opinions on the cafeteria food are not unanimous. Some students like the food while others do not.
The cafeteria is not perfect. The students would like to see more variety and properly cooked chicken. Ramirez admits that sometimes mistakes happen when the cafeteria is so busy. As students mentioned, we should understand that it can be hard to always have quality food for the hundreds of students that eat there.
Much work goes into making the food. The breakfast and lunch crew start work at 5 a.m., and the dinner crew arrive at 11 a.m. The cooks work many hours every day so that the food is ready by the time the cafeteria opens at 6:45 a.m., 11 a.m., and 4:30 p.m. respectively.
The food is not always the tastiest, but when I think about how much work goes into putting that food on the table, I will remember to be grateful for the Lord’s provision.
