Tess Hunter

Foco Fun

The beginning of this blog post started with choices of what to write about, having had so many wonderful experiences so far. And so, I settled on a topic with even more choices—the food selection at Dartmouth College. For reference, our main buffet-style dining hall is Class of 1953 Commons (called "Foco"- short for food court). As part of the Ivy Unlimited dining plan that first-year students are automatically placed on, we have unlimited entries into Foco.

Firstly, let me just establish that I am a Foco fan. There are six main meal stations. This includes A9, which is a station that is free of the nine most common allergens, a pizza station (cooked in a brick oven!), a vegetarian station, a fried station (think burgers, grilled cheese, French fries), a stir fry station, and then the main meal station. 

So, which is my favorite? Well, it really depends on my mood. As I don't eat meat, I love the vegetarian station, but I also frequently like to mix it up by going to the other meal stations. The food here ranges from mac and cheese to stuffed cod. As it is getting colder outside, I am making more frequent visits to the soup station—three-bean chili  is my go-to. The stir fry station is also delicious. You customize what and how much of everything you want, and then they fry it up right in front of you! For breakfast, this turns into an omelet station.

Part of the dessert station in Foco

What sets Foco apart is the fruits and vegetables. There is always a huge variety of greens, which I love. A combination of yogurt, cut melon, and pineapple is a breakfast favorite for me, and I always get a banana to go. That is the other thing about Foco—students have the option to eat in or out. With "Green2Go box" students can get a to-go container and eat their food outside of the dining hall. At their next period, they can exchange the used-container for a green carabiner (wow, Dartmouth really likes the color green!). When we want another meal out, we just trade our carabiner for a clean to-go container.

Here are some of my Foco hacks; use them if you are ever on campus (you can eat at Dartmouth dining locations when you visit campus)!

1. Try the chocolate milk here. It genuinely is unlike anything you probably have ever had.

2. For breakfast, get oatmeal from the main meal counter, go to the waffle station and get brown sugar and cinnamon, cranberries and almonds chunks from the fruit station, granola, and top it off with chia seeds from the '53 easons Station. Yes, there are actually 53 seasonings!

3. Make the long-term investment of purchasing a Thermos—I already use it every day for my to-go mint tea.

4. Foco cookie (lovingly known as "fookie") + soft serve ice cream.

If Foco isn't for you, don't worry. There are so many other food destinations—maybe another time. I should be a food reviewer… Dartmouth Dining Services (DDS), hire me?