When I was doing my college search, the dining halls were definitely a factor I considered. In fact, I know a few of my high school friends who committed to a college once they tried out the food and enjoyed it, or lowered a college’s ranking on their list because they didn’t. When I looked at Stevens dining options and saw “Meatless Mondays,” I thought, “Yes! I’m even more sure of this.” Imagine my disappointment when I learned that it’s more like “meatless — only on Mondays.”
As a vegan student, I have many complaints about Pierce. In fact, in the second week of school, I was browsing the options and saw “VG” (vegan) on one of the pizzas; I was excited. When I looked closer, it looked like it was vegetarian (should be “V”), so I asked the person behind the counter, and he said to me it contains cheese. From a cow. I decided to go speak to someone about it, and I was surrounded by four workers, one of whom insisted that “VG” was vegetarian. We went back and forth until another one decided to just bring the piece of paper. Once it was clear that they mislabeled it, they informed me that the vegan option for today was beans. It’s already sad that there’s only a single vegan option and not multiple. Imagine being forced to pay for the most expensive meal swipe option yet having beans and rice for lunch. I personally was just offended. They informed me that I could email them at “dining@stevens.edu,” and they would get back to me within a week. It has been three weeks.
My issue is not that the pizza was mislabeled; it’s the fact that the pizza was not vegan in the first place. There’s only one option at one corner every day. My meal gets decided for me every single day. The only time I get to make a choice is on Mondays. I had to pay just as much as everyone else, yet I get fed as an afterthought or even not at all. The one option most of the time is bland, lightly cooked tofu with barbecue sauce as a substitute for spices (a sauce I have disliked and avoided my whole life, but must starve or endure for now). Not to forget the 24/7 waffle station for everyone, but the vegan waffles from the “without” section are only for breakfast. Oh, and the vegan breakfast? The same turmeric tofu scramble every day. I know it seems as if I have beyond beef with Pierce, and the truth is, maybe I do. If I keep talking about how unfairly vegan students are treated by the dining hall, this article would be too long.
So, I spoke to some non-vegans. Vegetarians had similar complaints: not enough options. One of my friends stated, “Because of Meatless Mondays, they proved that they can feed us. So why aren’t there more options every day?” When I spoke to other students and faculty members who don’t follow a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle, they also stated, you guessed it, not enough options. Most people said, “It’s the same food over and over again,” or “I wish there were more options or variations.” Someone said to me, “There are more all-you-could-eat dessert options than food options, which is dangerous, like having an all-you-could-drink beer station.”
As you can tell, Stevens students and faculty are very competent, intelligent, and humorous.
So why is no one listening to our concerns? I know for a fact people have contacted Pierce; I am one of them. Stevens holds their students and faculty to very high standards, so why isn’t Pierce held to higher standards? If the students and faculty members are unsatisfied yet there are no changes being made, one must wonder if the intentions are to satisfy students or do what’s easy and convenient. It’s very unfair and frustrating to be forced to pay for meal swipes that don’t get rolled over for next year, and not be listened to or fed something that you like. I know Pierce could do better, and Stevens students deserve better, so when are things getting better?
