Something to Chew On

Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS) already provides the food in campus dining halls, but now it even offers friends to eat dinner with. The HUDS Advisory Council is coming to a dining hall near you, and its members want to hear what you have to say. After HUDS drew much criticism earlier this year for ignoring dining concerns, it is extremely heartening to see it reaching out to students. Now, however, it is up to us to dish out constructive feedback.

Given Harvard’s reputation for bureaucracy, it is nothing short of miraculous that HUDS has asked students how it could serve them better. The College administration has an unfortunate tradition of opaque decision-making that has made undergraduates understandably cynical. HUDS, though, has bucked this trend and seems genuinely concerned with students’ beefs against it.

Such accessibility seems to come around once in a blue moon at Harvard—and that is a big reason why we should seize upon it. Efforts like HUDS’ should always be rewarded with a receptive student body. Students are clearly hungry for change, and this is their chance to effect it. Moreover, we should uphold our end of the deal; after all, HUDS has come to us hat in hand, and we owe it an audience for its good faith. When students see that the Advisory Council has camped out in their dining hall, hopefully they will take advantage and share their thoughts.

We have our own two cents to share. First, we would like to see HUDS give more consideration to students on specialized diets—specifically, vegetarians. Often, HUDS seems to focus most on an entrée with meat or theme night, only adding a hot vegetarian entrée has an afterthought. Replacing a piece of meat with a slab of tofu does not, however, a tasty dish make. (Ask anyone who has ever tried the tofu parmesan.) Instead, a hot and healthy vegetarian entree should take its rightful place alongside each main course.

Second, we hope that HUDS does not lose sight of its commendable goal of sustainability. We understand that students thus far have been more concerned with food quality—certainly an important issue—but we reject the idea that it is an either/or proposition. With more locally grown foods and some original thinking, HUDS has done more than its fair share for a greener Harvard. We hope that other students will not forget the environment in their conversations with the Advisory Council.

Students should not take sessions with the Advisory Council merely as opportunities to whine and dine. Constructive criticism is always preferable to unrealistic requests that would be hard for HUDS to swallow. For example, students have always yearned for longer dining hall hours, but this is beating a long-dead horse. Another recommendation is to consolidate the House dining halls into two massive messes, but this too is a half-baked suggestion. (For one thing, it would destroy House life; for another, where would Harvard put them?) HUDS trusts us to help make an actual difference, and we should not disappoint.

And although HUDS has taken the initiative in soliciting feedback, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences should not assume that this can fix all of Harvard’s dining issues. We still invite its members to eat more often in the dining halls so that their voices are counted among the heard. The more input, the better, HUDS has quite rightly realized. Indeed, the Advisory Council’s grassroots campaign is only the latest example of its remarkable responsiveness to student concerns. Just as HUDS has been the model College agency, it is time for students to be model college citizens and participate in the process themselves. So take some time this week to give HUDS representatives your opinion—we guarantee they’ll eat it up.