When everything from the cereal to the salad bar is fair game, students get creative in the dining hall. Having many meals’ worth of experience, they shared tricks to making Metz’s food in the Knorr Family Dining Room to their taste. 

Saga’s soft-serve ice cream machines are many students’ favorite, but some put a twist on it. 

“I’ve found mixing hot chocolate powder with chocolate ice cream makes a much richer flavor than just regular chocolate ice cream,” junior Luke Becker said. “Also, two pumps of hazelnut creamer from the coffee station go well with the ice cream.” 

Junior Meredith Vanderweide said she enjoys putting ice cream in coffee to create something like a coffee milkshake. 

“It’s really good,” she said. “It really helps you survive the day.” 

Saga’s toaster, microwave, waffle irons, and panini press also lend themselves to various culinary creations. 

Senior Clare Oldenburg said she uses the panini press to create the “pizza sandwich,” which is made up of two slices of pizza with salad bar ingredients inside, such as spinach, green peppers, tomatoes, and cheese.

“It was born out of freshman desperation,” Oldenburg said. “I wanted something tasty and calorie dense but also somewhat healthy.”

Junior Annika Monson created a dessert version of a taco using ingredients from the waffle and ice cream bar. 

“So your tortilla shell is going to be a classic waffle, and from there you want to add any sweet topping — I personally want to put fruit from the waffle bar on mine, so you could do that,” Monson said. “You’re probably going to put some ice cream on there, maybe some sprinkles, chocolate syrup, and whipped cream.”

Senior Gwen Thompson explained the key to creating a Saga salad is assessing the available salad toppings before filling one’s plate. 

“If the black beans and corn are there, then it’s a good day for a Texas salad,” Thompson said. If the blue cheese is there, it’s a good day for a balsamic salad. But if the chickpeas, tomatoes, and pepperoni are there, then it’s a great day for a Greek salad.”

VanDerWeide said she enjoys using toppings from the salad bar to make her own dishes. 

“If they have plain rice, I would go to the salad bar and get carrot or cucumbers and then I put soy sauce on it, and it’s like my own little Asian medley,” VanDerWeide said. “Another thing I really enjoy is making my own bruschetta: I toast an English muffin, and then I add tomatoes, cucumbers, maybe some balsamic vinegar and olive oil. It’s really good, healthy, Mediterranean, and it brings me a lot of joy.” 

Between the salad bar and the often long burger line, the soup bar is another convenient option for lunch and dinner. 

“Don’t skip the soup station. Sometimes they’ll have really great options and you’ll get to skip the long lines, especially when you’re craving warm food in winter,” senior Caitlin Filep said. 

Filep said the best tip for navigating the dining hall is engaging with the employees. 

“I’ve loved getting to know them over the course of four years,” she said. “It’s always going to make their day when you make an effort to remember them and call them by name.”