dining

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All for Cheesecake, Cheesecake for All

February 6, 2012 in Scott's Blog by Scott Yim | 7 comments

I think something like 98 or 99% of students live in the awesome dormitories on campus, but there are a handful of people who choose not to. Two of my blockmates (a group of up to 8 people who you choose and are all put in the same upperclassmen House after freshmen year), Lauren and Wes, moved off campus last year, and they have a nice apartment about a 10 minute walk away from where I live in Quincy House. This weekend, they invited a group of us over for a Super Bowl party. Lauren and Wes had prepared wings, oatmeal cookies, brownies, chips and dip, and a lot of other delicious treats for the big game. I don’t really follow football (I’m more of a basketball guy–go Celtics!), but, born and raised in Massachusetts, my allegiance was to the Patriots, of course. I apparently fell asleep during Madonna’s halftime performance, and then dozed right through all the screaming and cheering until there were 4:00 minutes remaining in the last quarter. Oops?

Things have started to pick up a bit. The first few weeks on campus are always very social and lively since everyone is back and reuniting and talking about their breaks. I haven’t gotten into a routine, nor have I been too stressed out just yet, but I guess I shouldn’t be complaining. One new thing I’ve noticed since being here are all the new food choices from Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS)! While there are always multiple entrees available, a sandwich, soup, and salad bar every night, and a grille, the following new foods are just some of the specials on their schedule:

  • Monday – Peking chicken and tofu bar
  • Tuesday – fruit bar
  • Wednesday – Korean beef barbecue

Being Korean-American, I’ve become very used to my mother’s home cooking. Therefore, HUDS’ Korean food isn’t exactly authentic, but it’s definitely a great imitation. The students here love it. I’ve heard people talking about Korean BBQ night during the day on Wednesdays, as well as going up for seconds and thirds. Personally, my favorite HUDS initiative is the new line of frozen yogurt flavors, which they describe as tasting more like the flavor options at Berryline, a super popular frozen yogurt shop in Harvard Square. If you have a chance to go, Berryline is definitely a staple that you need to check out. I have friends who go once every week or two, even in the cold weather, because they love it so much. HUDS conducts a school-wide survey at the end of each semester, where students can voice their opinions online. The dining hall staff have told me that the Korean BBQ is the most popular and most demanded meal out of anything they offer. My one request? Cheesecake! It’s funny because I’m that person who begs for cheesecake on those surveys, regardless of what the comment box is actually asking for. If a survey question asks, “What are the most important aspects of your meal? (i.e. temperature, appearance, etc.)” or “What is your favorite breakfast offering?” or basically any question that includes a box for an open-ended answer, I usually dodge whatever the actual topic is supposed to be and just write something about cheesecake. I’m still hoping they’ll have it on a more regular basis, but I’ll make sure I keep you updated. I’ll probably take a picture of the cheesecake if they decide to put it in there. But I’m guessing I might have to recruit some more folks to fill out the survey in a similar, aggressive, cheesecake-minded manner. Cheesecake for all!

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Things I Miss, Things I Don’t

November 27, 2011 in Reid's Blog by Reid | 1 comment

After spending a lovely few days in Vermont for Thanksgiving, I returned to campus today. This is what I have learned: I miss a lot of aspects of my old life, but I also am glad to be in this new environment; in fact, my life at Harvard is easier in some ways! Here are some mini-lists, interspersed with some recent photography!

 

Things I miss:

1. Fresh _____ (food, towels, air, sheets, silverware, etc.) There is nothing like the clean air of Vermont, and living in a city is quite the contrast. While my lungs miss the fresh air, my skin misses the fresh sheets and towels. This could easily be solved by increasing the frequency of my laundry runs, and has been ameliorated by the smuggling of ANOTHER towel from home to my dorm room. Laundry is normally not my top priority, but I’m not lazy enough to have it done by Harvard Student Agencies (although that’s offered, for those of you who are repulsed by dirty clothes). As for food and silverware, this is another problem that I could probably solve. Although Annenberg is very good for the number of people it serves, I miss the fresh veggies and fruits that my mom would bring home every day. Shaw’s is just a short trip by T, and I technically could go out and purchase some delicacies for my fresh food fix. (For silverware, please see ‘laundry’ above.)

 

2. My old friends!

This is not Harvard’s fault; it is just part of growing up. I had to start a new life at college, and that means losing a lot of contact with my friends, who are at colleges such as Middlebury, Denver, and Queens or living and working across the country. I miss them a TON, especially my lovely friends Tucker and Georgie, who happen to be chillin’ on the  West Coast. This problem, too, will be solved by J-term: FLYING TO LAX!

 

3. Driving!

It’s really, really fun to drive on dirt roads. If you’ve never done it before, you’re missing out.

 

4. My family

Okay, so I miss my mom. And my dad. And my stepdad, my sister, my half-sister, my dog, and my cat. But video chatting on iChat is the best! It was awesome catching up with them all over Thanksgiving break, as well as an extension of this family in the form of cousins, uncles, and aunts.

 

5. Vermont itself!

I hail from the best state in the Union, no doubt. We have maple syrup, cider, and leaves: you know that. We also have COWS, TREES, MOUNTAINS, FLANNEL, TRACTORS, MY HOUSE, MUD SEASON, STICK SEASON, 6 MONTHS OF WINTER, THE ONLY CAPITAL WITHOUT A MCDONALDS, THE BEST SWIMMING HOLES, GORGEOUS RIVERS AND LAKES, AND NOT THAT MANY PEOPLE!!! Maybe you can tell that ILOVERMONT.

 

Things I Don’t Really Miss That Much:

1. Driving

Okay, so it may be slightly contradictory, but driving isn’t always the best. Not paying for gas, worrying about speeding tickets or about where you’re going to stay the night in poor weather is very pleasing. As much as cars are fun, they are also a pain and a drain (of cash), and I’d rather be outside walking in the cold air than trying to drive with these crazy Boston drivers!

 

2. Living at Home

Don’t get me wrong: I have the best house in the entire world, the best family I could ever ask for, and live in the best state. Here at Harvard, though, I don’t have to cook my own meals, do my dishes, worry about making a fire when I get home (yay heating!), share the dessert, feed the dog, or drive an hour to find a town! The Boston area is incredible; there’s everything you need, from British candy at Cardullo’s, to hot-pot in Chinatown… it’s really the perfect city for me, and not too overwhelming for a country girl.

 

3. The Endless Winter

I am a huge snowboarding/skiing enthusiast. Vermont is a great place to do both of those things, but by the time March rolls around, it’s getting a little old. The temperate climate of Cambridge (comparatively, to Northern New England) is really, really nice. For example: there was 6 inches of packing snow in Vermont over break, and it was about 35 degrees most of the time. In Cambridge, there is no snow, it’s around 48 degrees, and spring comes a lot earlier. Way to go, Massachusetts! I really dig this weather!

 

4. My Old Classes

Though my four courses may or may not be kicking my butt right now, they’re waaaay better than the eight I had to take in high school. Having a bajillion courses to choose from is something very novel to me, so I spend a preposterous amount of my free time drooling over all of my options. (Yes, I have already decided on my second-semester courses, but that remains a surprise until I finalize my schedule!) Harvard is great because you can take any class you want to and be guaranteed an incredible professor, as long as you check the handy-dandy Q guide (rating system) to see just what you’d be getting yourself into. There’s nothing quite like the level of academics here, and I sure am glad to have access to all this learnin’!

 

5. Wondering Just What To Do Tonight…

I am now at college, where the number of people in my class exceeds the number of people in my town. Therefore, there are plenty of things going on, which can be seen here. Examples of my week ahead: Eleganza (a fashion show) fundraiser, Opps–Kroks jam (super great a cappella groups), band rehearsal, Little Shop of Horrors, and House Formals. There is no way to become bored here! One would truly have to try in order to do nothing.

 

 

So that’s it! School’s great, home’s great, but they each’ve their own pros and cons. I am very excited to go home after finals, but I think I’ll be even more excited to come back to start second semester. (Yes, this is a little premature….) Check out some of my photos of Vermont!

 

Vermont over Thanksgiving

 

 

Snowy Snowy Porch

 

 

Cider Making! Yummmmm

 

 

Hockey vs Dartmouth!

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Freshmen + Faculty + Food = Dinner

November 9, 2010 in Kate's Blog by Kate Meakem | 1 comment

The tall, vaulted ceiling, the warm glow of the overhead chandeliers, the wood paneling, the largest secular collection of stained glass in the world, the “OMG! This looks exactly like the Great Hall at Hogwarts!!!!!!” – it was all old news.

I turned to my guest. “Welcome to Annenberg Dining Hall, where I eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner everyday.”

[This isn’t exactly true.  I never eat breakfast.  I simply cannot motivate myself out of bed in the morning to go grab the most important meal of the day when stuffing my face with a cereal bar as I run to class is an option.  I also sometimes take naps during lunch… you can see where my priorities lie.]

My guest looked impressed.  “You mean, you have white table cloths and flowers at every meal?”

“Um… no.  That’s a treat for the Freshman Faculty Dinner.

The Freshman Faculty Dinner is one of those special opportunities provided by Harvard to encourage students to really get to know their professors.  Oh sure, you can ask professors to dinner any time, you can go to their office hours, you can even approach them after class, but for we freshmen sometimes all of this can be intimidating.  So, the Freshman Dean’s Office, in an attempt to shove us out of the nest, organizes dinner for us.

Students and faculty gather in the Queen's Head Pub for a reception prior to the Freshman Faculty Dinner hosted in Annenberg Hall.

My guest, as it turns out, was Professor Simon Innes of the Celtic Languages and Literatures Department.  Why the Celtic Languages and Literatures Department, you ask?  Well, that is actually an interesting story.

So I arrived here on campus in August with zero idea of what I wanted to study.  I knew that I was interested in something to do with Government… or Economics… or Social Studies… or Sociology… or Anthropology… (need I continue, or do you get the gist?).  The sheer volume of fascinating-looking courses that Harvard had to offer overwhelmed me (there are over 3,500).  I decided on taking a few basics – I knew I was interested in Government, so why not enroll in an Intro to Comparative Politics class?  Economics 10 (the famous Greg Mankiw course) was next on my list.  Then for fear of losing all of the hard work I put into the Spanish Language during high school, I decided it would be best to take the placement exam and enroll in Spanish 40.  Great.  But I still had an extra class slot to fill… hmm…

And that’s when inspiration struck.  I thought, “Wait a minute… I love history… and I’m Irish… but I know nothing about Ireland… ” So I enrolled in Celtic 118: The Gaelic World from the 12th to the 17th Centuries.  It was the best decision of my life.

Here I am, one of the luckiest girls on the planet for having gotten into Harvard, and in my first semester I get to be in a class of two students (yes, TWO STUDENTS) sitting across from one of the most knowledgeable people in the world in the field of Celtic history!  HOW COOL IS THAT?!?!  I get to ask as many questions as I want, offer whatever opinions I may have, and engage in stimulating conversation on a topic that really interests me.

Since there are only two students in the class, my classmate Katherine and I decided to invite Professor Innes to the Freshman Faculty Dinner, as sort of a ‘thank you for being so awesome.’  And if we thought our classroom conversation was interesting, dinner did not disappoint.  We got to learn why Professor Innes decided to concentrate on Celtic studies as a profession, what life as a professor at Harvard was like, how his childhood was in Scotland, and what he was like as a person, beyond just our professor.

As I walked back to my dorm after dinner with a sea of other freshman, I couldn’t help but feel excited.  I had reached out and gotten to know one of my favorite teachers on a more personal level (plus, the food was amazing).  And I think based on the loud voices, the chorus of laughter, and fast-talking going on around me, the other freshmen felt the same way.

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