When the members of the Class of 1999 return to Hanover after their freshman outing club trips, one of the first things they will want is a home-cooked meal.
Instead, they will have to settle for Dartmouth Dining Services food.
DDS really is good -- for college food. In fact, the Princeton Review's Guide to the best 306 Colleges ranks Dartmouth seventh in its "great food" category.
DDS also has a great deal of variety, with five different dining halls from which students can choose.
Food Court, offering an assortment of a la carte items, is the place to go for those looking for many options or a late-night snack.
It is open from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m.
Daily dinner specials, such as chicken, turkey or even prime rib, satisfy the meat-lover's appetite. There is also a grill that serves cheeseburgers, steak sandwiches and other hot sandwiches.
A pizza station, dessert counter, and frozen yogurt stand appeal to those who want to splurge, while a salad bar and sandwich counter satisfy the healthier sort. Don't miss all-you can eat pasta night for Thursday dinner.
Sometimes, a student may feel very hungry after a long day of studying or sports practice. In this case, Full Fare is the answer.
Full Fare is the only all-you-can-eat place on campus, and serves daily breakfast, lunch, and dinner specials. It also has a salad bar and dessert counter.
Full Fare's Sunday brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. offers not only a meal, but also a social place to catch up on weekend activities.
The Courtyard Cafe offers the closest alternative to McDonald's on campus.
It is open every day for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
The cafe serves hot and cold sandwiches, the best cheeseburgers on campus,the famous spicy fries and wonderful breakfast sandwiches.
It also serves ice cream, breads, and breakfast foods.
For health nuts, vegetarians, and those watching their diets, Home Plate and Collis Cafe are the perfect alternatives.
Home Plate, open weekdays for lunch and dinner, serves healthy entrees as well as a daily vegetarian alternative.
The Grill at Home Plate offers veggie burgers in addition to regular hamburgers and chicken sandwiches.
Staple items such as a salad bar, a baked potato bar and a pasta bar are always offered, as well as a daily stir-fry special. Home Plate also has a kosher deli and a frozen yogurt machine.
Collis Cafe, located in the Collis Center, is a very popular lunch stop. It is known for its home-baked goodies and exotic entrees.
Collis posts a list of ingredients for everything it serves, which is sometimes (and sometimes not) a great selling point.
Collis also offers bagels from The Bagel Basement, the local bagel deli.
The sandwich line is always crowded with students, bagel-in-hand, waiting for their own personalized creation.
DDS also operates its own convenience store, Topside. It is located on the top floor of Thayer Dining Hall. Soda, chips, ice cream, school supplies, over-the counter medications and shampoo are just some of the things you can find there.
For the first time this year, freshmen have the option of a meal plan which operates entirely on a declining balance account.
Under this system, a computer simply subtracts the price of each meal from a student's running total.
Students can choose how much money they want to have in their account depending on their needs, although DDS requires a minimum of $400.
In addition to the amount of DBA in the account, students must pay a subsidy fee for DBA, depending their year.Freshmen pay $100 a term, sophomores pay $25, juniors pay $38 and seniors pay $70.
The DBA is fully refundable at the end of the term, except for the fee.
Students will also have the option of a 14,10 or five "punch" meal plan.
One "punch" allows a student entry into full fare where he or she can partake in an all-you-can-eat meal.
At any other dining hall a punch can be used for varying degrees of value, depending on the time of day. A "punch" is worth $3 at breakfast, $4.25 at lunch, and $5.25 at dinner.
