by Julia Mathew

The amount of vegan options at Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore has increased since I was a freshman in 2013. Now in my last semester and graduating this May, I am hopeful that the demand for vegan options will only continue to increase. The main dining area/cafeteria on campus is Boulder Café in the Andrew White Student Center. There is also a much smaller dinning area under the student housing in Newman Towers called Iggy’s, as well as a small kiosk with sandwiches and snacks on the ground floor of Sellinger. I think it’s essential that one gets creative and mix different options together when dining on campus.

Boulder offers salads, sandwiches, and warm food such as pizza. Personally, I love getting mixed greens from the salad bar and loading it with a mix of edamame, kidney beans, chickpeas, and black beans. I also love topping my salad with corn, dried cranberries, peas, red onion, sunflower seeds, sriracha, and balsamic vinaigrette. Hummus is occasionally served at the salad bar as well! Boulder also has a self-serve drink station for Silk soymilk and offers Naked fruit smoothies near the breakfast area.

This year, the sandwich station introduced a selection of vegan items such as vegan ‘chicken’ patties, deli slices, cheese, and mayonnaise. There is also whole wheat bread, spinach wraps, grilled vegetables, and a variety of raw veggies and sandwich toppings available. Sandwiches can be warmed in the oven or eaten cold as preferred.

In terms of warm food, pizza can be made without cheese. There are usually cooked vegetables offered, as well as pasta and potatoes. I suggest getting some carbs such as pasta and potatoes, and putting some additional seasoning (salt, pepper, or Old Bay) on it. The potatoes are cooked in oil and not butter or lard. I usually eat pasta or potatoes with a hearty salad, cooked vegetables, or some soup in the evening. The vegetables are either boiled in water or sautéed in oil. There is usually one vegan soup offered daily, such as a mixed bean or veggie soup. Both are really nice, however the bean soup is my favorite!

Iggy’s is quite limited on vegan options but has a small salad bar and some fruit. There are also some nutritional bars offered, such as Nature’s Bakery’s Fig Bars and Cliff Bars.

The small kiosk in Sellinger generally doesn’t have any vegan-friendly prepared sandwiches or salads. However, Stacy’s pita chips and Sabra’s pretzel & hummus packs are often available as snacks, which are great for in-between classes.

For other college info, see
http://www.vrg.org/teen/#college