Aaron Lundquist (The Beacon)
By Aaron Lundquist, Guest Commentary
Last semester, our student body read, discussed and wrote about the price war occurring between Bon Appétit and University students. I hope that any further discussion can begin with words of support from a student who still roots for our excellent and fair food provider.
Since my first month attending this school, I've been employed by The Commons. I've seen first-hand the commitment that the chefs have to making our food not only acceptable but exceptional. Meal preparation is not a matter of reheating a frozen package; it takes time, dedication and a few burnt fingers to make sure everything is done right. Let's take the fries at the grill station, which take over four hours of preparation.
A balance is made on every item between nutritional value, preparation time, taste, purchase likelihood and cost. Our meals aren't cheap for a very simple reason: Bon Appétit strives to provide restaurant quality meals at a reasonable rate. A burger costing six dollars is not unreasonable; have you been to Pattie's Home Plate Café recently? Their burger deal is priced nearly the same and the quality does not approach that offered by Bon Appétit. I'd take a pizza slice at The Commons any day over that offered by Escape From New York on NW 23rd Avenue. The overall quality is excellent and as far as I can tell the prices are well matched to the goals of Bon Appétit.
Last semester I asked my peers why many students were getting angry. The answer we arrived at was this: As adults finishing the last portion of our formal education, we are committed to a difficult learning curve that includes proper conduct in casual and business settings, learning how to balance work and leisure effectively, budgeting our money, time, relationships and self-interests to achieve maximum satisfaction as well as getting through classes for our degrees.
Somewhere in that mess is the necessity to budget our meal points each semester. At times, we aren't able to keep up with it all. Projects get away from us, friends grow distant and we buy an extra shot of espresso to get through the day. But that does not amount to a lack of Bon Appétit caring for its patrons' well being.
Going forward this semester I have a few suggestions for students: Stop stealing products. Bon Appétit loses money when you do and raises prices to compensate the following semester. If you have extra points at the end of the week, buy your friends a meal. Plan your meals. Don't buy expensive drinks and elaborate meals on impulse.
Let's try being grateful that we have professional caterers making our meals. The alternative (read: Pizza Hut, Panda Express, Taco Bell) would not be an improvement.
