There are certain places that I have decided that I need to visit. These places include New York City, Washington, D.C., Florida, Mexico, Graceland, the Summit Brewery, the Yeungling Brewery, Independence Hall, the SPAM Museum, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum. The list could go on for pages. While I have already visited some of the places on my list a couple of times, other places have not had the pleasure of being crossed off.

One of the places that I did not mention in my abridged list is the birth place of cookies and cream ice cream. I recently visited the SDSU Dairy Bar as part of my odyssey to eat at every dining venue SDSU has to offer.

From my understanding, dining at SDSU is not something that is viewed as a very positive experience. First off, the food is not worth the price you pay. The quality is government grade. Basically, it’s the same food that you were fed in all your years in public school. It’s pretty bland. While campus dining does have different dining options, not all students have access to all dining plans. First and second semester students are barred from purchasing the least expensive meal plans. In fact it is less expensive to eat at McDonald’s three times a day then it is to purchase the meal plans offered to first and second semester students (averaging $5 a meal and removing weekends and holidays).

Some places on campus are worth what you pay for. Generally, these places are not considered dining venues. I speak of course of the meat lab and the dairy lab. The SDSU meat lab has some of the best meat I have ever had the pleasure of eating. The steaks are nice and tender, the bacon is divine, and the Jackrabbit bratwurst is an innovation worthy of a Nobel Prize.

If you’re a Vermontophile you may want to brace yourself for what I am about to tell you next. SDSU’s dairy bar is home to the best ice cream in the country. That’s were cookies and cream ice cream was invented. Cookies and cream ice cream should be considered the pinnacle of man’s achievement. No other innovation comes close to the greatness that is cookies and cream.

A lot of student enjoy the over priced, over flavored gourmet coffee found at the numerous Java City locations on campus, as well as Einstein Bros. and the library snack shack. They all lack in comparison the coffee brewed at the SDSU Dairy Bar. At only 50 cents (the price of a cup last time I was there) a cup, the dairy bar is home to the best cup of coffee on campus.

Dining on campus has allowed me to discover some diamonds in the rough. Medary Commons has a great pita place. I recommend the one with mandarin oranges. The staff is pretty friendly too. At the Market in the union I recommend Pastabilities, mostly because of the clever name. Einstein Bros. has the best (and only?) bagels on campus. The breakfast bagels are fantastic. They also have a pretty good cup of coffee.

There are many options for dining at SDSU. I recommend carefully weighing your options before deciding on where to dine. Unless of course it comes your choice in bratwurst and ice cream; then the choice is clear. Happy eating and happy spring.

Tony is a non-traditional student majoring in economics. Reach him at [email protected]