Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is doing research on colleges, and sees a few schools where most of the students complain about the food. I am insistent that there is no college currently in session that has food that is completely inedible for the 3k+ students to go there. They would not still be in existence. It would be front page story. I get that there are schools with subpar hot meals or variety; but salads and cereals!?

Your kid is being picky. This is the perfect opportunity for them to break the habit and start training their pallet for life.

My kid isn’t being picky. He took a gap year last year and traveled independently throughout South America, cooking for himself at hostels and eating all kinds of food. At the hostels, though he usually had access to some kind of stove, top and oven, which meant he had more options for cooking a simple meal.

I take him at his word that the meal plan dining food is not worth the cost. He’s dropped down to ten meals so that’s done.

It’s not a front page story (why would it be?) but the dining services at Temple university are getting many complaints this year from students and parents. It’s definitely not a secret and they are complaining to the company managing the dining hall.

If this is true OP and he traveled through hostels and figured out cooking there, he does not need your help! So he can’t cook besides microwave. He has google, he can get a microwave cookbook for college kids(there are a lot), or he can eat PB and Jelly sandwiches or protein bars and apples and oranges(last at room temp for 2 weeks), or he can ear the dining hall food. He will surely survive on some combination of the above.

Anonymous wrote:I do see this as an opportunity for him to learn to adapt, to be flexible He seems spoiled.

At some point, he will be visiting a friend or a new date it his in laws and have to eat what is put in front of him.

Every dining hall has a salad bar, pasta or pizza, usually Asian stir fry, maybe pizza. Yogurt.

Help him grow.

+1
He needs to suck it up and figure this out on his own, or deal with the dining hall. There is zero way it is that bad.

My DC buys the strawberry smoothies at Trader Joe’s and has one with a protein bar for breakfast each morning. If your DC needs more, he can add a peanut butter sandwich. Then with the ten meals in his eating plan, he only needs to figure out four more each week.

Anonymous wrote:My kid is doing research on colleges, and sees a few schools where most of the students complain about the food. I am insistent that there is no college currently in session that has food that is completely inedible for the 3k+ students to go there. They would not still be in existence. It would be front page story. I get that there are schools with subpar hot meals or variety; but salads and cereals!?

Your kid is being picky. This is the perfect opportunity for them to break the habit and start training their pallet for life.

My kid isn’t being picky. He took a gap year last year and traveled independently throughout South America, cooking for himself at hostels and eating all kinds of food. At the hostels, though he usually had access to some kind of stove, top and oven, which meant he had more options for cooking a simple meal.

I take him at his word that the meal plan dining food is not worth the cost. He’s dropped down to ten meals so that’s done.

It’s not a front page story (why would it be?) but the dining services at Temple university are getting many complaints this year from students and parents. It’s definitely not a secret and they are complaining to the company managing the dining hall.

My kid is doing research on colleges, and sees a few schools where most of the students complain about the food. I am insistent that there is no college currently in session that has food that is completely inedible for the 3k+ students to go there. They would not still be in existence. It would be front page story. I get that there are schools with subpar hot meals or variety; but salads and cereals!?

Your kid is being picky. This is the perfect opportunity for them to break the habit and start training their pallet for life.

Surprised people are so negative OP, maybe the food is really bad.

He just needs to keep it simple. Think “girl dinners” - deconstructed type meals, the grocery store is close so sounds like he can get ingredients easily.

Breakfast - yogurt, granola, nuts, fruit or plain instant oatmeal - add peanut butter for protein

Lunches and dinners - pita, hummus, prepared falafel from store if they have, baby carrots, mini cucumbers, tomatoes, fruit, cheese, some charcuterie type meats or cooked shrimp, buy the already hard oiled eggs, microwave rice and add canned black beans, salsa and cheese, tortilla microwaved with shredded cheese

It’s just one year and with that and the swipe meals - and maybe there’s some acceptable stuff at the dining hall (?) he’ll get by - I would encourage going to the dining hall to socialize and having a salad or dessert or whatever.

It's just a couple of meals a week. Sandwich, frozen entree, take out.. He dies not need to cook beyond the microwave.

Surprised no one has chimed in about the quality/temperature controls of dorm refrigerators. They are fine for beverages and a leftover slice of pizza, but would hesitate storing eggs and raw meat. Another factor would be the smell of cooking food in a small dorm room area. Gross.

Small rice cooker.

Panini griddle. Can make sandwiches and quesadillas and burgers.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Salads. Nothing that can be made in a microwave is healthy. Why is it up to you to solve?

He is asking me for suggestions and to help him make a plan for foods he can make on his own without access to a kitchen.

Well, pretty much none of the other suggestions sound better, or healthier, than cafeteria food. PBJ. Canned food. Also, if he’s choosing this can’t he be resourceful? Tell him to ask it on IG.

This. But if he really must do something, how about a one burner plugin induction thing. With a pot. No fire risk and he can properly boil things to make rice or beans.

Dorms don’t allow those, or crockpots, as others suggested. Basically it’s microwaves under a certain wattage limit.

Are all these college boys really calling their mommies about having tummy aches after eating school cafeteria food? Maybe they’re actually just hungover! 😆

electric kettle to heat water. Ramen noodles; hard boiled eggs. as students have done for 40 years

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please do not encourage him to keep an illegal toaster oven. Dorm fires are a real risk and it’s really not fair to the rest of the inhabitants of that building.

+1

And they’ll be found out pretty quickly when there are cooking and burning smells coming from the dorm room.

My kid had one last year, and their room was next door/connected to the RA's (double double with a bathroom in between. There were never any issues, because my kid knows how to cook and use a toaster oven safely.

75% of their friends also had a toaster oven and managed to use it safely.

How did you know what 75% of their friends had? Are you so involved that you know the contents of their friends’ dorm rooms?

So many insane parents on DCUM.

I do see this as an opportunity for him to learn to adapt, to be flexible He seems spoiled.

At some point, he will be visiting a friend or a new date it his in laws and have to eat what is put in front of him.

Every dining hall has a salad bar, pasta or pizza, usually Asian stir fry, maybe pizza. Yogurt.

Help him grow.