Andrew Clarke's Work

My Experience With Food at MCLA

I am used to eating well at home. My mother would cook plenty of chicken, fish, beef, and savory vegetables to balance my meals throughout the week. Eating fast food was an occasion for me until I came to North Adams where a quarter pounder is the equivalent to filet mignon.

During orientation, I was told by my peer advisor that the food served was the best the school had to offer and that it was served in an attempt to make a good impression upon the new students. The cafeteria dinner that the prospective students were given seemed subpar to me, even for school food. The meal consisted of a liquid-based “mac and cheese” pasta dish and these flat, breaded chicken tenders that seemed to be free of any flavorful seasoning. It immediately appeared to me that there was something wrong with the so-called “mac and cheese” because it was clear that it contained no real cheese but rather a watered-down cheese wiz sauce that failed to qualify it as palatable dish. In contrast to the pasta’s lack of flavor, the chicken was mild. I wouldn’t call the tenders bland, but they greatly benefited from the generous portions of salt and pepper that I added to them. In retrospect, adding barbecue sauce or honey mustard might have remedied the flavor problem, but even that couldn’t fix my issue with the mac and cheese.

As I looked around the room, I witnessed a number of reactions ranging from mild enthusiasm all the way to pure disgust. I leaned towards the latter and ended up walking away with an unsatisfied appetite and an upset stomach. Something about the food didn’t sit right with me and despite the hot sauce and other condiment concoctions that I became known for, I never really found a way to make it work.

The Aramark staff have a chronic problem of serving pork-based cuisine while failing to provide other options. I remember seeing pork on the menu generally at least three or four times a week in the form of pork chops, pulled pork, and sausages. They switch it up to create the illusion of diversity when in reality they are really pinching for pennies at the expense of the student body. The school will tell you that they provide options such as pizza and salads but the reality is that the workers making the pizza either don’t know what they’re doing or don’t care to put in the effort to learn. The lack of concern is even better exemplified in the wilted, unwashed lettuce that is visibly deteriorating. The worst part is that when the workers receive any sort of unorthodox requests, the majority of them give as much attitude as they can get without putting their positions in jeopardy.

This cafeteria experience persisted until my senior year when I changed my meal plan. My best advice to new students is to find an affordable off-campus apartment where you can cook for yourself and avoid making the same mistakes that I did.