By Issac Piper
We all need to eat. That’s a fact. However, just because we need to eat doesn’t mean we need to eat away at our savings too. Tri-C offers a variety of dining options on campus, but how cost effective are these options? Should you dine at Tri-C or should you dash home and cook for yourself?
Tri-C has three different plans for their dining services. Bronze for $50, Silver for $125, Gold for $250, and Platinum for $300. Each plan allows you to get a different amount of meals per week, essentially pre paying. Let’s look at the math. Imagine you are a student with a 14 week semester. The platinum plan allows 4 meals per week. On average, a meal at the cafeteria costs $10. $10 for 4 days a week for 14 weeks equals $560 on cafeteria food. The platinum plan ends up saving you $260.
While your wallet may not be draining, what about your health. On average you need 2000 calories per day. Roughly 700 should be attributed to lunch. The cafeteria has a few rotating items along with static items. One of those static items is the pizza. According to the campus dining services, a slice of the pizza averages 630 for pepperoni and 424 for cheese. Add on a drink and side and your 700 calorie goal is met. While this is good, this pizza also contains 1500mg of sodium, just under half your daily intake. It isn’t too much but it is something to monitor.
The cost is there, the calories are there, but is the service there? The Tri-C cafeteria fresh cooks much of its food in front of you. All fried food is fresh and fired to order. The staff is also friendly and has an energetic presence. There has not been a time where I have ordered and not felt welcome.
Cost, Service, Nutrition, Tri-C cafeteria is satisfactory in every category. While some may find home cooked a valuable option, or perhaps they want to eat out at a nearby restaurant, Tri-C dining is undeniably an asset for all students to use.
