January 30, 2006:
Q: I had the most delicious chicken salad in the silo about two weeks ago- with large chunks of chicken and celery... yum! Will this chicken salad be making a reappearance in the silo or commons? Thanks for the great food!!!
A: It certainly can. Thanks for writing.

Q: Hello! The past two Friday dinners, my friend and I have had hamburgers.  Despite the thinness of the patty, the burgers have been very pink inside.  This disturbed both of us.  While some people enjoy ground beef medium well, it seems like Bates needs to cook everything well done to prevent food poisoning of hundreds of people.

Your thoughts?
A: You are exactly right - I appreciate your bringing this to our attention. Thanks for writing.

Q: Hi,
I have three comments to make.  first, the sun dried tomatoes in the salad bar were a great addition and should be there more often.  second, will crispitos be appearing weekly because they are the best lunch option?  lastly, can real sausages or bacon be available on a daily basis for breakfast instead of meatless sausage patties, baked ham or turkey sausage, of which i feel not many people choose to eat?  bacon and sausage are relatively cheap and staples in breakfast foods. thank you and have a good day.
A: Here you go:

1) Thanks , glad you enjoyed them
2) Probably not, but you will be seeing them more often
3) Sorry, but no

Thanks for writing.

Q: Would it be possible to get yogurt without fruit on the bottom?
A:  If not on the bottom, where would you like the fruit?

Q: How come Honey Nut Chex are only there like 1/3 of the time? Can you please make sure that they are there? Thanks!
A: Honey nut chex is a special order item and has been hard for us to get.
We just got some in this morning for your dining pleasure. Thanks for writing.

Q: If it true that Vegans make up 10% of the population. And I concede that what they eat reflects other aspects of their lifestyle. Let me offer you another hypothetical.

Bates is composed of around 5% Asians. Whose dining practices have serious cultural implications, which extend through their daily lifestyles. And find it just as difficult to find suitable dining options, as a Vegan would without a Vegan bar. Why are we not provided with an alternate dining bar, and options.

Extended.

Bates is composed of a population of Jewish larger then 10%, and Kosher dining requirements are clearly something which extend into other areas of their lives. Arguably more then Vegan or cultural preference. Why are they not provided their seperate eating section? To cater to their needs, the way we do the Vegans?

Appreciate your response.
A: We actually do provide some Kosher options and during passover change the menu to better meet the needs of those who wish to keep kosher
during this holy period. To provide truly kosher options - at all time -
would require a separate fully stocked kitchen - because of the many
requirements of this type of cooking, which is not the case with the
vegan options we provide.

As for the vegan bar being a special accommodation for those who choose this lifestyle, perhaps it would be better if we renamed this area because there are many more individual who take advantage of those offerings than just vegans. This area also provides options for those who with food allergies - there are many, many individuals who fall into this category - those individual with eating disorder as well as in many "mainstream eaters".

With this said, it is not that I am insensitive to your concerns. We are consistently looking at ways to better meet the needs of our customers. In the new facility, we are studying the possibility of providing kosher eating options for individuals who would choose this as an option.

Thanks for writing.

January 23, 2006:
Q: Do we have any idea into what percentage of Bates students are actually "vegan"? If less then one percent, just how many students.
A: It is hard to tell exactly how many individual are actually vegan. I
would guess that about 1/10th of the population is actually vegan - that
means not just eats vegan, but lives the lift style. Thanks for writing.

Q: Wondering, if ten percent of the Bates Population is vegan, what percentage of the posts on the Virtual Napkin Board comes from people adressing Vegan concerns? And why are they so much more vocal?
A: I'm not sure how many of the response on the napkin board are from
vegans, but those individual who are vegan tend to be more vocal because
what they eat has an impact on all aspects of their life. Thanks for writing.

Q: Hi.  My favorite dressing is the fat free country french, but I almost never see it.  Would it be possible to serve this more often, especially at the salad bar in the smaller room?Thanks!
A: I will check the rotation and see what we can do. Thanks for writing.

Q: West Soy makes a great fat-free soymilk.  Would it be possible to get this or a similar product for commons? Thank you :)  
A:  We can look into it. Thanks for writing.

Q: Hello. I just wanted to write that the sugar free lemon cake was really excellent the other day. All of your sugar free cakes are really tasty, but I was wondering if the lemon cake could be served more regularly (we see the blueberry and blackberry cakes a lot more often). The fruit salad in the morning really is a delight too. Thanks again for the all the hard work!
A: Glad that you liked it and thanks for writing.

January 19, 2006:
Q: I love, absolutely LOVE it when you guys serve Salmon. It makes my life worth living.
A: Glad you liked it. Thanks for writing.

Q: The beef stroganoff was AMAZING tonight!  It made me sooo happy on such a dreary day.  I actually got two plates of it, and left commons so full, but so satisfied.  Thanks for bringing back great memories of food from home, and for making my day!  Have it more often please!!
A: Glad that you enjoyed it. Thanks for writing.

Q: Dear Commons,
You have made me one happy kid tonight.  This is entirely due to the superb beef stroganoff you served.  Thank you so much for making my day.
A: Glad that you all enjoyed it. Thanks for writing.

Q: I got no complaints. Just thought you guys deserved a little credit once in a while, so I wanted to say Thanks. You're clearly a hardworking, extremely nice staff, and everyone appreciates it. Keep the chicken crispitos comin' too. Thanks, again.
A: Thanks for your kind words.

January 18, 2006:
Q: Thanks so much for the fruit salad at breakfast!!!  It is amazing!!!!
A: You're welcome. Thanks for writing.

Q: Bring back the chicken crispito
A: They never went anywhere. Thanks for writing.

Q: Do the sesame nuggets contain any protein? If so, for what serving size?
A: There is indeed protein in the Sesame Nuggets- soy protein concentrate.
In a 40z serving- aprox 5 nuggets- there are 15 g of protein. Thanks for writing.

Q:  Is minestrone soup vegetarian. It is not labeled as so? Thank you.
A: Yes it is and that we will make the correction.

January 14, 2006:
Q: Tonight (Saturday the 14th) you had roast chicken breasts - thank you so much for providing a plain chicken option! I hope you can continue to offer this in addition to the other main dish options!
A: You're welcome.

Q: Would it be possible to get diet dr. pepper?
A: Sorry, but this is not an option. Thanks for writing.

Q:  I would like to know what happened to the crispitos.  and please bring them back!!!!!
A: They have gone no where.....You will be seeing them.

Q: Just wanted to say "Thanks!" for doing so much to keep our mouths happy and our bodies healthy :)  Keep it up!!
A:  Thanks for writing, I will pass your kind words on.

January 12, 2006:
Q: I loved the caramel apples, peanuts, and cotton candy! Can we have it again?
A: Thanks. Glad that you enjoyed it.

January 11, 2006:
Q: Thank you so much for having cooked green beans in the salad bar tonight at dinner! could we please have these more often!?
A: Sure can.

January 10, 2006:
Q: Thanks so much for having grilled cheese on whole wheat bread- we really appreciate it!  Would it be possible to also have whole wheat french toast?  I love french toast but it's much better (and healthier) on whole wheat bread.  Thank you for all you do!
A: We can certainly look into doing this. Thanks for writing.

Q: I love the edamame beans; thanks for having them this year! Unfortunately, however, they always run out - when I arrived at 5:45 on Sunday, the edamame beans were all gone.  I could understand if it was 7:00 and they were all gone, but 5:45 isn't even halfway through dinner, and those of us who can't get there at 5:00 like edamame beans too!  Could we please have edamame beans all night?  Thank you!
A: Thanks for writing and we are aware of this. I have spoken with the
purchaser and we are changing the par in hopes that we can eliminate
this problem.

January 5, 2006:
Q: Are any of the juices calcium fortified? If not, could you add calcium to one of them (maybe the oj?) and notify which one it is? This would be an easy way for people to get calcium, especially us girls. Thanks!
A: The orange juice we presently serve is not fortified. In the past, we did try a fortified juice and it was not received well by the students - there were taste issues- in addition to the fact that it was not available on a consistent basis. I will look into the possibility of reintroducing this product on a limited basis. Let me see what I can do.