The previous post on Saveur's April 2006 issue highlighted a short article on how college students are dismissing their standard dining halls, even if they're serving sustainable, free-range, organically grown, slow food, and turning to things like taco trucks and food carts. Maybe they're cheaper, faster, easier to get to than trekking all the way back up the hill to the dorm. College was a long time ago for me, but the article still got me thinking about some of the great (dinners out in the Bay area), some of the not so great (joints around Berkeley), and some of the downright horrific foods (stuff I "ate" at home) that made up my diet, er rather gave me a reason to diet.

1. Instant ramen -- not even the kind you have to boil water in a pot on the stove top: this was the stuff that you add hot water to from the Sparkletts water cooler, cover, and wait three minutes.
2. Steamed white rice with canned tuna and soy sauce -- I have no words. It hurts me to think about it, too.
3. Top Dog -- one bird dog = not so bad. Two bird dogs with everything, plus a bite of someone else's hot link at 2 am = very very bad.
4. Fat Slice vs. Blondies -- with an occasional treat of Zachary's if I found someone with a car
5. The baked potato cart parked at the edge of Sproul Plaza -- I think it was called Spud Brothers. A baked potato doesn't sound so bad, until you add butter, sour cream, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses!
6. A full day diet of pure sugar -- starting with a bear claw (Go Bears! that was the excuse) from King Donuts, a sugar shake disguised as a "smoothie" from Fresh Blend (the store was later replaced by Jamba Juice), and then more sugar! Ice cream from Double Rainbow
7. Steve's Barbecue -- Wuan ordah numbah two! Dae-jee bulgogi when I really missed home, because steamed white rice with canned tuna doesn't remind me of home
8. Chez Panisse -- made up for four years of crap.

Now don't let me be the only one. I know you didn't eat grilled mahi mahi with pineapple mango salsa at 3 am in college either!