(Photo courtesy of Eric Shultz) “Both dining halls feature the new spice racks.”
Andrew Livsey
Connector Contributor
Students who have been to the South Campus dining hall recently may have noticed a fun new feature that has been implemented this semester. The South Campus dining hall now features a spice rack where students can add a variety of different seasonings to their food. This addition could expand the flavor options for students and help spice up their dining experience.
A similar spice rack could already be found in the Fox Dining Hall on East Campus, so it is no surprise that this change was made on South Campus. “I would appreciate a better variety of hot sauces on South, they have more on East Campus,” said student Asa Webster, comparing the two. “Though that might be because they are out of stock, it looks like they are running low on a few things,” he added.
Otherwise, students have had widely positive reactions to the spice rack. “I think this is an absolutely fantastic addition to the dining hall. In terms of the quality of the food they put out, I think this is really important,” said South Campus resident Ethan Lucier. Similarly, Webster said, “A lot of food I’ve gotten before has been horrifically under-seasoned, the spice rack is a godsend.”
The spice rack has multiple different seasoning options including sauces and dry rubs. Though students could already find similar rubs and sauces throughout the South Campus dining hall, the spice rack expands the options. “They already have a pretty impressive variety; a lot of the spices I haven’t even heard of myself, and I consider myself kind of culinarily minded,” said UMass Lowell student Patrick Woods.
Some seasonings are already becoming clear favorites, the sriracha dry rub was mentioned as a personal favorite by Lucier, Webster, and Woods. “One spice that I am enjoying a lot is the sriracha dry rub seasoning you can pour on, it’s quite good,” said Woods.
However, Ethan Lucier did have one complaint about the spice rack’s presentation. “This is just a small nitpick on my end I do not like the shape of the spice rack. On eye level, some of the labels are completely blocked out by a black bar attached to the rack itself. I think it would be a lot more convenient to have a see-through basket of some kind,” said Lucier. This could make it difficult for students to utilize the different spices available to them.
Despite this issue, the spice rack is becoming an integral part of many students’ dining experience. “I probably will use the spice rack every time I come to the dining hall, it can always add a little something,” said Patrick Woods. “I don’t think there is anything that doesn’t benefit from the spice rack being available on campus,” Ethan Lucier said. “I’ll probably use the spice rack every time I go to South Campus, but I might bring some of my own hot sauce,” said Asa Webster. The spice rack is helpful for anyone looking for a greater variety of flavors on South Campus.
