Avoid the UOttawa food
I think I rather eat three year old rations
I’m presently at the University of Ottawa campus. I have been wandering around Ottawa since about 6am. Managed to get myself lost on a bus into Hull. I couldn’t seem to find a breakfast place that looked decent downtown. I figured that since I planned to visit UOttawa later in the morning anyway, I should grab breakfast here – BIG MISTAKE!
I arrived on the campus, went to the information booth and asked "Where’s a good place to grab breakfast on campus?" The lady replied by suggesting a restaurant just off-campus. I said I was looking to eat at a university food outlet. She advised me that I may want to reconsider. I knew I was in trouble then.
I grabbed breakfast from the university food service outlet in the student centre – wow, I haven’t had a breakfast this bad since…. while, since I was eating rations during army training exercises and I’m tempted to think they were better.
Welcome to uOttawa’s horrendous cafeteria.
I cried when they replaced sausage links with sausage patties.
I cried when the university renewed the contract with Chartwells, without any student consultation.
Cafe Nostalgica, run by the grad students council @ 603 Cumberland (across st from the music building) is open from 8am to 2am. You can get your English breakfast (bacon & eggs & taters etc) from 8 until 11ish.
Not to mention the horrendous service. The Second Cup and Starbucks on campus are always fraught with horribly long lines and employees who just can’t seem to get an order right. Just because we’re students it doesn’t mean that the University should feel that they can give us sub-par food service and take us for all we’re worth.
See also the cost of parking tickets on campus (they cost MORE than City of Ottawa ones) and terrible, overpriced student residences built in the 60s.
As the writer of this article, I will say that the customer service was not a problem at this cafeteria.
- Joey Coleman
If you didn’t find the service was a problem, you either went between classes, or on a less busy time/day. The employees are often rude, slow, sloppy and just plain don’t care. If you have food allergies, you can’t eat at the caf, as nobody cares about food mixing and contamination. It closes way too early, and sometimes they just pack it in far before the closing time. The food selection is terrible, and there is no variation. Eating healthy is very difficult, unless you eat the same things every single day. It is also extremely overpriced. The most affordable things are the least healthy, and even those aren’t cheap. The uOttawa caf is TERRIBLE!