With the beginning of a new semester, it’s important to know the best dining hall on campus to go for your meals.  Unless you’re aspiring to become a regular at Harbaugh’s, like me.

However, money doesn’t grow on trees and eating out can be expensive. Those of us living on campus must resort to eating the majority of our meals in one of two dining halls: Lentz or Trueblood.

So which is the best?

Advertisement

To properly compare, I had to head over to Trueblood thinking it wouldn’t even be a competition, Lentz was already the winner in my mind.

As someone who has proudly lived on West Campus for two years, I choose Lentz for all my meals.  Lentz never fails me with quesadilla night and is closer to my residence hall at Thompson point.

Walking into Lentz I am always greeted by the incredibly friendly staff, who know my name even before they swipe my student i.d.

Shoutout to you, Michelle Odem and Eli Reed.

Lentz is smaller than Trueblood and has four different spaces where students can sit.

There is one space to the left as you walk into Lentz that is usually quiet for studious eaters, whereas the other areas are louder and usually filled with more students.

My personal favorite is cuban sandwich day, where the staff create a freshly-made specialty cuban on the finest bread, just for me.

Advertisement*

No matter the day, I can always count on Lentz staples including, pasta, sandwiches, waffles and cereal.

I can also create my own pizza, unique to Lentz.

As personalized pizza is only available at Lentz, it earns a point on my scale to determine the better dining hall.

Lentz = 1, Trueblood = 0

If that doesn’t make your tastebuds water, there is a salad bar that stretches across the main room filled with options, like pre-made pasta, chicken salads and some desserts.

If the desserts in the salad bar don’t catch your eye, then just wait until you get your hands on some Lentz cookies.

In response to a DE question on Facebook in regards to the better dining hall, Lentz was said to have more of a restaurant-feel to it, have friendly staff and “fewer laxatives in the food than Trueblood.”

Lentz = 4, Trueblood = 0

As I walked into Trueblood there was a display for the desserts next to the ice cream machine, then I turned right and entered a big room with food lining every wall.

There was display cooking, a main line, and an action station along with an entire section devoted to vegan and vegetarian options.

Sorry Lentz, but you only have two trays for vegan and vegetarian options, and one is always sweet potatoes.

This impressed me that Trueblood had so many options readily available for those with dietary restrictions and an entire action station for even more specialized food.

Lentz = 4, Trueblood = 2

Even though Trueblood has more food, there are more students on East campus, so it makes sense.

As a lover of cheesy garlic bread, it was hard not to notice there was no “make your own pizza” station at Trueblood.

Lentz = 5, Trueblood = 2

As I kept walking around and looking at my options, I felt my loyalty to Lentz fading with every step.

Trueblood has a salad bar with over 60 choices, which is considerably more than Lentz as well as more cereal options, and oh, the drinks!

There was wild cherry pepsi and four different fruit-enhanced waters.

For me, Trueblood’s Saluki-branded waffle makers really tipped the iceberg.

Lentz = 5, Trueblood = 6

It was hard to face the truth that my once favorite dining hall had some serious competition.

I still love Lentz for its convenience and scenic view, but when it comes to food, my heart splits.

Whether you’re a Trueblood-er or a Lentz-lover, today the trophy for best dining hall goes to Trueblood.

While I prefer the options Trueblood has, I’m still a Lentz-Lover at heart because of the homey-feel, friendly staff and familiar faces.

Staff designer Josie Arnett can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @JosieArnett. 

To stay up to date with all your Southern Illinois news, follow the Daily Egyptian on Facebook and Twitter.

Advertisement