With one day left in the annual Jewish holiday, Dartmouth's Passover food offerings have been characterized by mix-ups and mixed reviews.
The eight-day Passover celebration began last Monday evening and ends tonight at sunset. Traditional Jews observe Passover, among other customs, by refraining from eating leavened bread and certain grain products in remembrance of their ancestors who fled Egypt and, according to legend, did not have time to allow their bread to rise.
Although the Pavilion, Dartmouth's kosher and halal dining facility, remained open on Sunday during the holiday to accommodate kosher for Passover students in 2003, the facility remained shuttered April 11.
Pavilion manager Robert Lester said the Pavilion would have opened on Sunday despite the Easter holiday. But Hillel Rabbi Edward Boraz, however, reportedly stepped in and told him that it was not necessary because the Roth Center was stocked with an abundance of Passover food and leftovers from Seder meals.
Still, the majority of Jewish students on campus were never alerted about the food in the Roth Center because Hillel President Rachel Bender '04, whose job privies her to a list of all Jewish students on campus, failed to e-mail students notifying them that kosher-for-Passover food was available.
"I didn't know the Pavilion was going to be closed, so I didn't take any action in regard to blitzing out," Bender said.
Additionally, Bender said she did not think that it was necessary to e-mail out because few students had sent messages to the Hillel account asking about the availability of Passover food for the weekend.
Most kosher students, not knowing that there had been food available in the Roth Center, indicated that they were upset with the Pavilion's closing because it left them with no kosher for Passover dining options for over two days.
"I wish it were open over the weekend particularly for kosher for Passover students who don't have kitchens," Elana Bannerman '05 said. "I think [DDS] should have looked into making ready-to-go Passover food packages for the weekend."
Dining woes spread elsewhere as well. Dartmouth Dining Services presented misinformed matzo offerings throughout the week, adding more confusion to the holiday's observance, students complained.
"I didn't find one piece of kosher for Passover matzo in the entire school," Alexandra Levine '07 said, noting that the Pavilion has served not regular, but egg matzo, throughout the holiday.
Egg matzo is not normally regarded as a kosher for Passover item. Only sick and old people are allowed to consume it during the holiday, according to traditional Judaism.
But in other regards, praises were still to be had for DDS, only in its second year of offering an extensive choice of Passover foods.
Bannerman and many other students who patronized the Pavilion over the past week commended it for its lower prices in comparison to those of last year.
"I spent an average of $3 to $4 a meal this year," Bannerman said.
DDS director R. Tucker Rossiter attributed the lower Passover prices at the Pavilion to better purchasing practices by DDS.
Additionally, "a lot of the food prices were subsidized by the Roth Center," Rossiter said.
Rossiter also said that the Pavilion operates during the holiday despite anticipating monetary losses, which DDS expects because non-kosher for Passover students tend to dine elsewhere during the holiday.
