Brown placed sixth on USA Today College’s list of “25 healthiest colleges in the country.” The article recognized our “accessible sexual health resources, positive reviews of the health centers, condom availability, health awareness programs for students, STI testing on campus,” and our number-two spot on Trojan’s 2012 sexual health report card.

But here’s the kicker: It’s kind of funny that in explaining why we placed sixth, USA Today College cited our—wait for it—crepe bar. The fact that the crepe bar is mentioned as a “healthy option” may confuse almost every student who dabbles in Sunday brunch. Public Health concentrators are facepalming everywhere. Sure, it may be the reason we go to the Ratty on a Sunday, but we’re not checking out the crepe bar—chock-full of chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and strawberry sauce (yes, sauce, not fruit)—to stay fit. That’s what Blue Room salads are for.

The article also showed some love for the “Roots and Shoots” line at the Ratty, for its vegetarian, vegan, and locally grown options. For those of us who are vegetarian or vegan at Brown, Roots and Shoots is the Ratty.  Seriously though—I dare you to find a vegan student on campus who doesn’t eat the brown rice pilaf at least three times a week. Or you can just take my word for it and focus on your finals.

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February is a delicious month. So much candy for Valentine’s Day, and now this! The Ratty is hosting a “Soul Food Night” for dinner tonight. Expect absurd crowds for fried chicken, cornbread, mac and cheese, and, of course, cajun chicken pasta. Weirdly enough, with all of the other great options available, this might make the line for CCP smaller than it would be for a regular 12:00 p.m. lunch. Make sure to send your thank-you notes to the TWC and the Brown University Black Heritage Series for putting this on.

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My first Geoff’s experience was four years ago when my family and I made the trek up I-95 for my older sister’s college visits. While I wish the instant I sunk my teeth into that superlative sandwich was the moment I knew Brunonia held a spot in my future, I remember being unimpressed by its flavor and only semi-appreciated the giant barrel of free pickles. Then again, I made the rookie mistake of creating my own boring sandwich. I now know that the extensive sandwich board serves to work in your favor — don’t mess with it. Four years later and over three months into my freshman year, I ventured down Meeting Street for a second taste — and, as my friend’s Instagram caption reveals, a meal that is truly “heaven between two slices of bread.”  Although the making of these sandwiches is debatably art, and the vibe of the establishment certainly plays into its deliciousness factor, here are some ways to recreate a Geoff’s original with the simple swipe of your ID: [Read more →]

As fun as this looks, we should have better manners

Call me the Lucifer of the Ratty. Last year I cut every line, smuggled food out every visit, and once I found myself snatching the serving utensil at the chef’s corner out of someone’s hands before they had served themselves.

I never questioned the ethics of what I was doing last semester because…well, I was hungry. But this year I’m turning over a new leaf.  Why?  Last time I cut the student centipede, the two ladies at my back kindly reminded me that there was a long file of Brunonians behind me (awkwarddd). My heart must have grown three sizes that day, because later I was at the V-Dub and paused at the thought of taking the last two chicken parmesan cutlets.

But why should I feel guilty? I am the overlord of the omelet line, sultan of the salad bar—that chicken is mine! As I was doing laundry that night, a stranger accosted me in the basement, calling me “THAT GIRL WHO TOOK MY CHICKEN.” He broke me.

I don’t want to be that chick who took the chicken, and neither do you, so here are some guidelines for being polite in the cafeterias while still doing good by your tummy:

[Read more →]

The newly introduced experimental concept of “bowl that holds non-negligible amounts of food/drink”

“Bowls” in the Ratty: We all know them. We all hate them. Until now (now being like a week ago, but I’d say that’s a pretty fair turnaround on getting a post written and published). For the longest time, a FlogDailyHerald piece on the offensively bad design of the Ratty bowls, which were probably the greatest problem confronting Brown and/or humanity in the past 30 or so years, had been gestating, gathering steam, being meticulously edited, scheduled for release at the perfect time, positioned to change our understanding of tableware/life as we know it… vaguely discussed every so often. Well, no need anymore. Thanks to the tireless efforts of Brown UCS, the Ratty now features bowls that hold more than half a ladleful of soup. The significance of this development can’t be put into words, but if we did put it into words, the words would be “life-changing,” “globally important,” and “infinitely better.”

UNFORTUNATELY, there is much work left to be done. For one, the mug size at the very Sharpe Refectory now boasting improved bowls has inexplicably plummeted, and the hot chocolate machine has been spotted failing to produce hot chocolate on multiple occasions. More importantly, the plastic cups remain fun-sized versions of the V-Dub’s big boy cups, because apparently mass-ordering normal cups became too expensive halfway through and we decided to downgrade so we could preserve funds to operate the SciLi during a blizzard do, uh, whatever it is we do with our funds. So, yeah, good work, Ratty-bowl-changers. Now fix our mugs and cups.

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Nemo may mean no classes, but it also means no Jo’s, Blue Room, limited (if any) Thayer, and the V-Dub closing at 2 p.m. (no one can take CFF away). There is no getting away from it; the Ratty is going to be terrifying tonight.

To be clear, I think the Ratty can be scary on a normal day at noon, and that’s with other options available. When it’s the only option available, like it was during our old friend Sandy or awkward last-day-before-break or first-night-back, it is nearly unbearable. Everyone gets so mean! And pushy! And there are SO MANY PEOPLE.

Tips on how to survive tonight:

1) Establish a home base. This is key. Get a table, make sure everyone in your party KNOWS where the table is, and use your excessive extra layers/scarves/layers/hats to mark your territory. You don’t want to be finding a table when you’re already carrying plates on a crowded night like tonight—spillage would be a tragedy waiting to happen. Also, I really hate the whole follow-around-whoever-you-came-with Ratty experience, but really, if you haven’t gotten your table YOU WILL LOSE EACH OTHER. It’s highly likely tonight will bring about many a table-sharing experience. This is very doable if you have the correct ratio of friends to randos – you DON’T want to be the pair tacked onto the end of an 8-person party, with no chair in between. (This is especially bad if you find yourself sitting at a sports team’s table. Repeat: Do not sit with a team). [Read more →]

It’s unavoidable: even if we don’t always feel comfortable speaking our minds, there is some diversity of opinion at Brown. Everyone has different tastes and feelings, and it can be tough to voice our true thoughts if we know they go against the grain.

Unpopular opinions usually come to light in terms of the Big Questions, things like politics and religion. But what you might not realize is that some of your fellow students have thoughts about life in Brunonia that would shock you to the core. Or maybe you do realize, because you have feelings about Brown that don’t quite go along with the majority yourself.

Dialogue is important, so I solicited unpopular opinions from other Blog writers and constructed a highly scientific BlaspheMeter to determine exactly how ashamed you should be of your seemingly unacceptable Brown opinions.

[Read more →]

In middle school I went through a quick-bread-making phase. They were all banana breads, but I would put a whole bunch of other things in there. I made pear bread with walnuts. Then I made apple bread. Then carrot cake bread. And maybe, if I was feeling unoriginal, I made some plain ‘ole banana bread. Baking was something I did when I was extremely bored, and, while it was fun, I don’t think I was getting the point yet.

Maybe it was because I was just baking. I continued to sporadically bake throughout high school, but since I had exhausted the quick bread (may it rest in peace) I had to expand my repertoire. My new baked goods of choice were cakes, because I liked decorating them (and pretending like I worked at Charm City Cakes…a back pocket career move that I’m still saving). But baking’s downfall is that no one really wants to eat what you make. Baked goods are extra. Put them on the table in your home or dorm, and people will devour them when stressed out or drunk, but that’s not very glamorous. My cakes were pretty, but they would usually go to waste unless I forced any and all visitors to have a slice.

But cooking a meal is different. People really want to eat a meal. If you make dinner (especially if you time things wrong and it’s not ready until 9:00 p.m. and your family almost wishes you would just go back to college so they could eat at a decent time of night) people will be hungry when it’s served. Remember: hunger is the best sauce. They will be planning on eating your food, and they’ll spend more than a minute doing it.

It took me until this past winter break to start seeing why cooking is fun and fulfilling and communal and delicious. And I wouldn’t have delved into such a wonderful pastime if my little brother, Ben, had not recently become so interested in the culinary arts. Fortunately, I had nothing to do over break — a time I usually devote to a combination of eating and sleeping — so I became his devoted sous chef. Preparing meals with Ben soon became a part of my busy schedule. We made lamb filled wontons, duck gumbo, bibimbap, salted caramel ice cream, black bean burgers, and potato leak soup, among other things. I even learned how to use a mandolin to cut fruits and vegetables so thin that you could see through them.

But the mandolin (to to be confused with the instrument) wasn’t the only thing I learned about. Cooking, especially with someone whose company you enjoy, can change the way you think about food. And if you’re anything like me, food is a HUGE part of your life. Check out some things I learned that you can apply to even the smallest cooking excursions (like when I make an adapted Tiramisu in the Ratty) after the jump:

[Read more →]

Need mixers for the weekend? Wanna use the world’s most preposterously large vending machine?

There’s a vending machine in the Ratty as part of the Coke Happiness Project, where you can get a free bottle of C&C. It’s simple: go up to the machine, hit a button, and a black gloved hand will pop out and hand you your beverage. Very Guillermo Del Toro.

UPDATE: The machine dispenses more than just coke. Reports are coming in of bottle openers, iPods, and mini-fridges. Could we get one of these permanently?

We know what’s in your future: great, tasty Ratty dinner tonight.

Guess what’s going down at the Ratty tonight? It’s Super Asian Day!

BDS is teaming up with the Asian/Asian-American Heritage Series and the TWC to bring those of us on meal plan slightly more variety than usual! There will be no table slips, no to-go boxes, and no guest meals… but there will be lots of yummy Asian culinary favorites, including Korean-style beef and lots of teriyaki. Vegetarians and vegans, don’t fret: there will be lots of veggies and rice for you to enjoy.

Be sure to get there early to beat the rush.

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