As my stomach growls, eager for some food to fill its emptiness, I, like many other students who live on Dorm Road, take the short, easy trek to the Bobcat Den. And when I arrive in the occasionally fly-infested dining hall, I can’t help but notice how dirty everything is. When I think of the alternate nickname for the Bobcat Den, “The Rat,” I can’t help but wonder if an actual rat would have it in itself to eat the food served at the Bobcat Den. I know I barely do. But why do I find myself going back time and time again? Because when the cafeteria is closed, the Bobcat Den is the only place to eat. The cafeteria has more food selection, better food selection, and is a lot cleaner than its little unkempt brother, the Bobcat Den. I know I am not alone regarding my take on the Bobcat Den.
“The food is terrible,” senior public relations major Kyle Taylor said. “It’s been terrible since my freshman year.”
Since the opening of Mondo Subs I have not heard one complaint about the Subway-style sandwich eatery except for the long lines it draws because of its popularity. I’m happy they added Mondo Subs because it is a nice alternative once in a while to get away from the grease-dripping foods served at the upper Bobcat Den. Located in front of the Bobcat Den, Mondo has brought business to an obvious low for the upper part of the dining hall compared to last school year, and simultaneously the food is at an obvious low. “The hot food is cold, the chicken is dry, and all the meat is greasy,” complains one sophomore communications major.
The selection of food on a day-to-day basis rarely changes, and the selection of food, especially at night, looks as if it has been sitting there since the early afternoon. It seems as though the “Rat” has given up.
“The Bobcat Den is gross,” said junior nursing major Caitlin Cullen. “The choices are few and the nutritional value is also low.”
The Bobcat Den wasn’t always this way. Last school year the “Rat” was actually not such a bad place to get some food. Keyword: “get.” Not “stay there and eat the food,” because it was still filthy back then, too. Last year it seemed as though they had more selection of food, and that they actually took away the food that had been sitting after some time to replace it with newly cooked food. To throw some more salt in the wounds of Quinnipiac students, the workers at the upper Bobcat Den haven’t been getting the best reviews from students I talked to either. Students have described some workers to be “unfriendly” and “mean.”
In a survey of 25 random Quinnipiac students, I asked each to rate the Bobcat Den in three different categories, on a scale of one to five; one being the worst, and five being the best. The results were not shocking to me: 3 for its cleanliness, 2.2 for its variety of foods, and 2.5 for its quality of food. I also found that 21 out of the 25 students surveyed said they would choose the cafeteria over the Bobcat Den.
I think it is time for Quinnipiac to make a complete reassessment of the upper section of the Bobcat Den, and hopefully realize that it is not a nice place to eat.
