The food served at Price Commons gets a bad rap here at Stout. People love to dunk on it for having terrible food and would rather go anywhere else to get their daily nutrition than force themselves to endure the food at Price. In my opinion, that infamous reputation is undeserved. In this article, I won’t try to convince you that Price has the best food on campus, because it’s clear that this isn’t the case. However, in this article I will convince you that the food at Price Commons doesn’t deserve the poor reputation it has gained recently, and it deserves a spot in your rotation of places to eat on campus.
If you ask any of the upperclassmen what they think of Price, they are sure to bring up the incident with fruit flies last year. While this did happen, the details were wildly blown out of proportion and the lingering fear of eating bugs is completely misplaced. I spoke to Justin Krahn, Director of University Dining, and he confirmed that in November of 2023, Price Commons dealt with a problem with flies in their food. Despite their best efforts to find the source of the insects, the flies remained a nuisance. This was not helped by the fact that there were students reportedly throwing food into holes in the ceiling, where it would be difficult to remove. After a week and a half, it was discovered that the source of the problem was a tray of food that was delivered from an entirely different part of campus! The fly problem wasn’t the fault of the people working at Price Commons. Once the source of the issue was discovered, it was swiftly dealt with, and the dining experience was quickly returned to normal. This was an isolated incident, made worse by a strange combination of circumstances. Due to the enhanced awareness that was enforced in light of the whole ordeal, it is unlikely to happen again. While this was an unpleasant experience for many students, it should not continue to cloud the judgment of the student population.
One of the biggest benefits of eating at Price is, ironically, the low price point. College students are well known for needing to pinch every penny, and eating at Price is way cheaper than eating anywhere else. Price Commons charges $3.25 for an entire tray of food, while at the Blue Devil Market, $3.25 can only get you a muffin and a bag of chips. Everywhere else on campus charges you an arm and a leg for the same amount of food, but at Price you can load up your tray with as much food as possible—including desserts, drinks, and ice cream—without any extra charge. Once you’ve had your fill, you can go back for more food to bring home and eat later. I can hear the freshmen saying “Oh, but I can just put it on my dining plan, it’s already paid for!” However, those of us who have been at Stout for more than a semester can recognize that those meal plans can run out quickly, and our pocketbooks could appreciate the lighter load. An average meal at Price would cost $10 or $20 anywhere else, and that value should not be overlooked.
With all of this talk about how cheap Price food is, you might expect the food itself to be terrible to compensate for this price difference. However, I would argue that this isn’t the case. Their food is far from five-star, but most of their meals are more than tolerable. There are numerous options available, so you are almost guaranteed to find something you will enjoy. There’s pizza, burrito bowls, pasta, chicken and rice, stir fry, and a bunch of other excellent entrée options. Additionally, the vast array of side dishes provides a fantastic way to augment your meal with something tasty or something healthy. Finally, the selection of desserts on display is always top-notch, and if you don’t like what’s been prepared, you can choose between hard or soft-serve ice cream as well. Furthermore, the quality of the meal is influenced by the quality of the company you have during the meal. A mediocre meal eaten by yourself can leave a bad taste in your mouth, but a mediocre meal shared with friends is always a good time. Price’s vast selection of food, which can range in quality from average to quite good, means that you will always be able to find something for you to eat.
The food served at Price Commons tends to get a bad rap, and it has become fashionable to dunk on cafeteria food. But this misrepresents the efforts that the students and professional staff put in to ensure that the food served at Price is as high-quality as they can make it while only charging $3.25. Their kitchens are clean and safe, and when issues do come up, they are dealt with quickly. The food they serve is affordable, delectable, and plentiful. While it’s true that eating from the same place day in and day out can get boring quickly, I think it’s foolhardy to toss out the most convenient dining option for many on-campus students. The food at Price Commons has been hated for too long, and it deserves a place in your eating routine.