Mess food monotony
SUDEEP POPAT
Going from home made food to the hostel mess can be a painful process. I managed to avoid it for three years of my college life, but when I shifted to a hostel this semester, I realized why my friends kept moaning constantly about mess food.
To be fair, the food at my hostel mess isn't that bad. It's just the monotony that is irksome. Potatoes are the order of the day for practically the entire week. It is understandable that they are cheaper, but even then a hostel (one owned by a charitable trust) that is making six-figure annual profits thanks to donations, should not be afraid to spend more than the bare minimum.
Wednesday evenings are slated for a "change" with the regular Gujarati food being shunned for something different. I have heard that Pau Bhaji, Idli Sambhar, etc. are offered on this day. However, for the seven Wednesdays I have been there, Chhole Puri has been all they have managed to serve. The logic being, once again, economy. I wouldn't actually mind Chhole Puri once a week, but when chick peas (Kabuli chana) of the cheapest quality are used, which incidentally don't go easy on one's digestive system and cause a few extra hassles in the morning, it gets annoying.
Despite all these shortcomings, this is still one of the best messes in the university town of Vallabh Vidyanagar. It is clean and the prices are affordable (Rs. 12 per meal, compared to a minimum of Rs. 15 elsewhere). The daal served every morning is quite famous and is so good that some students easily gulp 8-10 rotis (offered steaming hot during lunchtime) along with it. I had tried a few messes while commuting, so as to avoid carrying a tiffin, but none of them offered buttermilk every day. This one does.
All it needs is a bit of variety and the management to realize that they have enough money with them to make a few menu changes.
(Sudeep Popat lodges at Shri Jalaram Lohana Vidyarthi Bhavan.)
Going from home made food to the hostel mess can be a painful process. I managed to avoid it for three years of my college life, but when I shifted to a hostel this semester, I realized why my friends kept moaning constantly about mess food.
To be fair, the food at my hostel mess isn't that bad. It's just the monotony that is irksome. Potatoes are the order of the day for practically the entire week. It is understandable that they are cheaper, but even then a hostel (one owned by a charitable trust) that is making six-figure annual profits thanks to donations, should not be afraid to spend more than the bare minimum.
Wednesday evenings are slated for a "change" with the regular Gujarati food being shunned for something different. I have heard that Pau Bhaji, Idli Sambhar, etc. are offered on this day. However, for the seven Wednesdays I have been there, Chhole Puri has been all they have managed to serve. The logic being, once again, economy. I wouldn't actually mind Chhole Puri once a week, but when chick peas (Kabuli chana) of the cheapest quality are used, which incidentally don't go easy on one's digestive system and cause a few extra hassles in the morning, it gets annoying.
Despite all these shortcomings, this is still one of the best messes in the university town of Vallabh Vidyanagar. It is clean and the prices are affordable (Rs. 12 per meal, compared to a minimum of Rs. 15 elsewhere). The daal served every morning is quite famous and is so good that some students easily gulp 8-10 rotis (offered steaming hot during lunchtime) along with it. I had tried a few messes while commuting, so as to avoid carrying a tiffin, but none of them offered buttermilk every day. This one does.
All it needs is a bit of variety and the management to realize that they have enough money with them to make a few menu changes.
(Sudeep Popat lodges at Shri Jalaram Lohana Vidyarthi Bhavan.)
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