Baffling Array of Food Confuses, Delights Students

If there’s one thing that college students get excited about it’s free food. Though students may have had to swipe in for a $14 meal in order to get it (not totally free, apparently), John Jay Dining Hall’s lunchtime Food Expo on Wednesday was surrounded by unparalleled excitement.

The expo, which aimed to gauge students’ reactions to new products to be featured at either John Jay, Café 212, Ferris Booth Commons, or JJ’s Place, featured vendors along every wall, handing out samples of their products and eagerly talking them up. Sugar, salt, and convenience—staples of the college diet—were available in abundance to be sampled or hoarded and smuggled out in large quantities.

One of the most popular tables was filled with seven different varieties of Pretzel Crisps, pretzel snacks that are thin and dippable. The average salted and honey mustard chips were situated next to the more bizarre buffalo-wing-flavored and chocolate-covered crisps. Conveniently located next to the display was a large bowl of Sabra hummus, which is currently sold at Ferris Booth and JJ’s in individual packages, so that students could experience the dipping pleasure of the flat pretzels.

Many vendors represented beverage companies. Vitamin Water, Gatorade, Guayaki Yerba Mate tea, Naked Juice, and packets upon packets of Crystal Light On The Go were handed out to students and consumed almost as quickly as they could be poured.
Energy bars were also abundant. Luna Bars, TLC chewy granola bars, Powerbars, and Larabars all made an appearance, promoting either health, performance, or meal replacement.

Though much of what was offered at the expo could be considered junk food, the outlook is not all bad. On the whole, the food was trans-fat free, and much of it was geared toward specialized diets. Pretzel Crisps are certified pareve for those who keep kosher, Guayaki tea is certified fair trade and USDA organic, vegetarian sausages were being served up over by Wilma’s grill, and French Meadow bakery had a selection of certified gluten-free desserts along with their whole grain organic pastries and breads.

Prepared foods also had a few new surprises. There were several different varieties of chicken at the entrée station, taquitos that seemed wildly popular, and salmon omelettes served up by Wilma. The pizza station featured pies from a new distributor, and included a brightly-colored veggie-lovers’ as well as a meat-lovers’ to satisfy the most ravenous carnivore.

If John Jay were this interesting every day, people might just begin to like it.