There are a handful of places you can grab food and drinks on campus. Tufts has a wide variety of food and drink options to choose from. They change up the menus and have themed dinners at times. For example, this past Thursday, they had an Asian Food Night themed dinner at Carmichael Dining Hall where they had dishes from a handful of different countries in Asia. When I was a freshman, I mainly ate at the two main dining halls. However, this academic year, it looks a little different since all the places on campus take meal swipes. I’ll be sharing the different places you can get food and share some of my favorite things to eat on campus!
First, the two main dining halls are Dewick-MacPhie (Dewick) and Carmichael (Carm). Dewick is located downhill across the Pearson chemistry building. Dewick is bigger since it has two floors and it also has an All9Free (free of top 9 allergens) section. There is also a gluten-free and nut-free section! The second dining hall, Carm, is located uphill. Some say Carm is more homey since it is smaller and less crowded most of the time. So, you may hear some students saying they are a Dewick person or a Carm person! These are buffet style, however, due to the pandemic, it has become a takeout. Besides the two dining halls, there are other places you can grab food.
One of them is Pax et Lox (Pax), which is a Glatt Kosher takeout. You can choose from many different deli sandwich options as well as delicious sides. The homemade chicken salad and the smoked salmon are the most popular. I personally love the smoked salmon from Pax, and it comes with a side and a drink if you are using a meal swipe. Another one is the Commons Marketplace (Commons) and Hotung Cafe, which are both located in the Campus Center. The Commons has everything from chicken tenders to Kombucha. There are also many snacks and other food options you can order to-go. The Hotung cafe is mainly for coffee and tea, but they also have food and snacks there. They have baked goods, pizza, and acai bowls (new this year!). I love to get an acai bowl and a matcha latte from Hotung! Lastly, Hodgdon Food-on-the-Run (Hodge) is a convenient option for those who are in a rush. There are multiple options from burritos to Mediterranean bowls. Besides these four places, there are small cafes around campus. These include Kindlevan in SEC and Mugar in Fletcher.
Since all of these places accept meal swipes this year due to the pandemic, I have been able to try lots of new food. Before this year, all the places besides Carm and Dewick only accepted JumboCash, Credit Card, or cash. I enjoy trying new foods, especially the acai bowls at Hotung and Kombucha at Commons!