Central Dining Hall — Local services in Boone

Lower Central/Sanford Commons (I'm not going to be commenting on the quality of Upper/Rivers Street Cafe since I don't have a meal plan and haven't been up there) tends to be incredibly hit or miss depending on what you get. Here's my thoughts on all the options I've had there: The Carving Board's sandwiches and wraps are consistently really good. Everything from there tastes super fresh. The tomatoes they use specifically are extremely flavorful and I'm kinda shocked? I don't play about tomatoes, and these are REALLY good tomatoes. Habenero's burritos are alright, I've had one with chicken and one with beef. The chicken is okay, but the ground beef is extremely salty and hard to eat. On the plus side, they are very filling. Chick-Fil-A has your standard Chick-Fil-A fare. Good option if you're in a rush or don't have the patience to wait for your food to be made since they just have a shelf where you can grab your sandwiches and/or nuggets. Do note that for the two semesters I've been here, I've never seen them stock the grilled options once despite having them on the menu. Mountaineer Grille's burgers and sandwiches are alright. Definitely get toppings on them since they can be a bit dry otherwise. I'd skip on the fries, they're very plain and not that great. If you really want fries, the Chick Fil A ones are better. The little dessert section occasionally has one dollar donuts and they're actually really good. Have not tried the Salad bar (I've noticed flies hanging around on more than one occasion, so I've been hesitant), but there's a little fridge next to the Chick Fil A that stocks the market salad which is good. The sushi here is NOT good. Last fall I took my chances on one of the bigger platters as a treat for myself after finishing a decently big project and it was absolutely not worth it. Took me like an hour to get through it, it sucked so bad. Cascades has better sushi in my experience. TL;DR: Carving Board is best option from my experience. Everything else is passable or below average. Also heads up: There is an upcharge for takeout boxes (I think like 80 cents?). Didn't realize this for like two months cause I didn't trust the cleanliness of those trays and got everything in a box instead. I eventually got over it though. There's also an upcharge for extra Chick-Fil-A sauces but y'know. They're in big containers out in the open. Do what you will with...

So here's the problem. I'm an on-campus student, and I've been here at App for my junior and senior years. Last year, the dining hall was much better. It wasn't perfect by any means, but there were options that tasted pretty darn good, and the portions were reasonable. However, that isn't the case this year. I'm not quite sure how much COVID has to do with this or not, but none of the options in the dining hall are even close to acceptable. The portions have been drastically reduced while prices have either remained the same or in some cases been increased, by a lot. This could potentially be acceptable if the ingredient quality was high enough, but it's not. Most options have far fewer menu options than an ordinary year, and the options they do have are made with low-quality ingredients. For example, tonight, I had a burrito from the southwestern-style place in the hall, Habanero's. It had rice, chicken, corn, beans, pico de gallo, and lettuce. Even after I asked for extra rice, I was left with a mostly-empty takeout container that cost me eight dollars. Many other options in the dining hall have given me similar experiences. While writing this review, I tried to consider all the different things that have made the circumstances change for on-campus dining this semester. COVID, reduced staff, sanitization and distancing guidelines, reduced enrollment, all of it. Even if I cut them a lot of slack to account for all these circumstances, Roess Dining Hall is STILL not up to snuff. Not only is the food terrible, overpriced, and portioned poorly, the commitment to sustainability/recycling/composting is gone, the facilities are still grimy, and the staff impolite, but just today, they closed half of the facility! It's honestly ridiculous to imagine that first year students have dining plans that cost thousands of dollars impressed upon them just to get this low-tier slop. My final point is this: I don't want my harsh criticism to be construed as an attack on the Roess employees, or even the higher-ups within the on-campus dining staff. They are doing the best they can with the cards they have been dealt. It just happens that their best is pathetic. They're not to blame though. The blame lies solely with those who have made the choice to keep this campus open to try and juice out a few more dollars from the exploited students. Don't blame campus dining, blame...

Roess dining hall or central as it is more usually called is a C- it will pass but no one is proud. The food is mediocre with chik-fil-a and the breakfast being the only things that might redeem it. The worst thing about it is not the quality of the food but the repetition while lacking enough meaningful choices to make up for it. Everyday when I walk in I know exactly what is being served and I know that I'm tired of it all. With the only good rotating menu belonging to home style on the upper level I wish for one day where I could be pleasantly surprised when I walk in. Beyond C grade quality and depressing repetition the prices are unjustified. Outside of breakfast it takes about a month to figure out what works for the value of the food (hint taco place and the 3 for 4). A note on the 3 for 4, how does my cost go from 4 dollars to 8 when I get a large rather than small fry. Most of these problems could be solved if APP like most all of the other food services at UNC system schools went with a private operation. I could vastly expand on this but the clearest examples can be seen where students self select to eat and where you an consistently find lines, McAllister's...