October 31, 2006:
Q: Hi... the chicken with spinach and gorgonzola was excellent today! Thank you! It would be very kind of you to serve it a little more often...
A: Can do. Thanks for writing.

Q: I was wondering if it would be possible to get hummus in the silo more often? I LOVE it on my turkey sandwiches, but lately I have been quite disappointed because it hasn't been there. Also I want to say thanks for having red and yellow peppers available in the silo (more often than the hummus). It's wonderful, but hummus would make my sandwiches so much tastier!
A: Can do. Thanks for writing.

October 26, 2006:
Q: Hi, this has probably been asked before, but where did the Kashi cereal go? I can't wait for its return! Thanks
A: Kashi is a special order item for us which we have been unable to get
from our vendor. We are working on the problem and hope to have the
situation corrected soon. Thanks for writing.

Q: Thanks for the red peppers at the salad bar at lunch today! I like them so much better than green peppers.  Can we have them more often?
A: Thanks ! I'm glad that you enjoy them. We will try and offer them more
often. Thanks for writing.

October 16, 2006:
Q: Could we pleeaaase have apple blintzes on weekday breakfasts, too?? THANK YOU!
A: This is one of the very few items that we do not make in house and are
having trouble get them in. We will keep trying ! Thanks for writing.

Q: i can't seem to find the crushed red pepper flakes anywhere in commons! i keep mistaking the bacon bits for spicy pepper and then i don't like my salad! could the delic crushed red pepper flakes please make a comeback?  thanks.
A: They are on their way. Thanks for writing.

Q: Vegan Pizza ever a possibility on the pizza or vegan bar? Thanks!
A: Sure are. Thanks for writing.

Q: I generally sit in the little room, and was wondering if it would be possible to have spices available on that side of commons.  At popular meal times, it can be difficult to get over to the spice rack in its current location. Thanks!
A: We can look into making this happen. Thanks for writing.

October 5, 2006:
Q: The vegan yam/carrot/nut cake tonight was the best dessert I've ever in Commons. Any way we can get it more often?
A: Glad you liked it. You will be seeing it more often.

Q:
1. The tea station is where the cider machine used to be. Are we getting cider back??? Can we, please?

2. The mugs program is a great idea, and I'd also like to point out another BIG source of paper-waste: paper napkins. It most certainly will NOT be a good idea to replace them with cloth napkins, however, the way they are presented can be changed to cut back on their usage. Napkins are simply stacked on tables, and a lot of student just grab a whole bunch, collapse the stack by mistake to make a mess (to be thrown away eventually), and even spill beverages on them to ruin the entire tower of napkins. Napkin boxes that dispense them McD-style would prevent the current gross over usage of napkins. Think about it!
A: 1) The cider is located at the far end of the high ceiling side of
commons in the single dispenser located next to the microwave.

2) Actually it is just the opposite. The McD style you refer to tends to
make people take more because it is harder to judger the napkin. We
actually use to dispense out napkins that way, but about six years ago
began putting them on the table in their current dispensers and realized
a 1/3 decrease in napkin consumption. Since then, the usage altogether,
remember the napkin product we use is of the unbleached variety that is
compostable and all ours go to Ricker Farms where they are used to
produce compost.

That said, I certainly agree that we should do an educational program on the use of paper products in general and remind students to just take what they
will use. Thanks for writing.

October 2, 2006:
Q: The recycle mug is just so nasty...what if someone left some bacteria on it and you just can't simply WASH it?
A: The washing process we use is very stringent and is the exact same one
we use for all of our of other wear - which is designed to wash sanitize
and temperature on the rinse alone ( 180) will kill any potential
hazards. To further ensure that the items are properly cleaned, we wash
the mug covers twice like we do with the silverware - and the mugs are
specially designed and sealed to prevent any build up. Lastly if you
don't like using the reusable mugs, there are ceramic coffee mugs
available for hot beverages and the traditional plastic pebble cups for
cold beverages. Thanks for writing.

Q: Would it be possible to bring back those crisp red apples(not macs) from the orchard like we had earlier in the year? Thanks.
A: Let me see what we can do. Thanks for writing.

Q: I enjoyed the Southweat Chicken Salad today.  I don't know if I'm not paying attention, but it seems like I never get the "southwest" chicken when this is served, but only get the plain.  The "southwest" was certainly a pleasant and enjoyable surprise.  Also, there were these brown crispy things instead of croutons.  I don't know about you, but they were great!  I'm sure they're something that's fried and not terribly healthy, but what are they exactly?  Could I buy them on my own?
A: Let me check into this and get back to you. Thanks for writing.

Q: Hi! I'm a freshman here, and I'm very impressed with the quality and
high level of dining services offered here at Bates. In seeing that you
openly take suggestions, I would like to ask if there was any way you could
ever offer fresh mozarella and basil so that we could make our own caprese
salads- which are really good on toast, with a bit of balsamic and olive
oil.. Also, is there any way you could ever offer brie? one last thing would
be that honey toasted walnuts/cashews and jicama are great salad bar items.
A: First let me thank you for writing, but to be honest there is no way we can
provide these items for the number of individual we feed on a daily basis,
this would just not be cost effective. In terms of the nut we would never do
this, no matter the nut, because of the chance of cross contamination and
the number of individual we have with life threatening nut allergies. Thanks for writing.

Q: Will the cider dispenser be appearing in commons this fall? Nothing complements a fabulous fall day at Bates like cider.
A: Yes it will. Thanks for writing.