As someone who has been a vegetarian for the majority of my life, one of my concerns when looking at colleges was the options offered by dining services. When I toured Naz I was pleasantly surprised. In our dining commons, each food is separated from the next, and the staff is knowledgeable about ingredients. A station may be serving chicken, rice, and broccoli, but all are cooked and displayed individually. I was thrilled I was able to eat what I wanted from each station. I loved that my options varied each day and that dining services understood the differences between vegan and vegetarian. Our dining commons is buffet style, and unlike other schools, you don’t weigh your food and get charged by the pound. You simply “swipe” your NazID at the door and pick whatever you would like to eat. If you want more food, or to try something else, you just get a new plate and fill up! It’s truly a no-judgment zone. 

I enjoy having staples in the dining commons that I can always count on being there. What I appreciate the most is that there is always a fresh option. There are a ton of stations. Every day we have a bagel station, salad bar, made-to-order omelet, pasta, sandwich, and stir fry station. At lunch and dinner, there is always a new dish for students to enjoy. Students can check out what is offered in the dining commons every day by downloading the “Bite U” app. 

The Cab

Also on campus:

  • Our “late-night bite” (or anytime) place is the “Cab,” which features a variety of grilled options such as sandwiches, wraps, burgers, quesadillas, and so much more!
  • The Roost offers a lot of fresh options such as made-to-order sandwiches, salads, and smoothies. 

For first-year students who live on campus, there are several options for meal plans.

  • “Freedom Flyer” gives you unlimited swipes to our buffet-style dining commons.
  • “Naz 225” gives you 225 swipes at our buffet-style dining commons, divided however you wish across the semester. I had the 225 swipe meal plan and this averaged to about 15 a week or 2-3 times a day.
  • There’s also a “Naz 180” and “Naz 120” plan.

With each meal plan comes a set amount of dining dollars that function like a pre-loaded debit card. For the most part, my dining dollars are spent at our on-campus Starbucks, but I could also use them at retail locations like the Cab for any meal, drink, or snack.

Regardless of whatever meal plan you have, every student has one meal trade a day. This meal trade is a swipe that you can use at any retail dining location. For example, I could go to the Cab and order a cheese quesadilla, a fruit cup, and a drink, or the Roost and order a salad and smoothie as my meal trade for the day. If I already used my meal trade for the day, I could use my dining dollars to purchase from these locations. 

Throughout any month, there are a variety of events hosted by dining services. Before college, I never realized how many holidays are dedicated to food! 

For my friends with dietary restrictions, every dining place on campus also conveniently has supervisors’ offices for any concerns.