Of Cabbage Rolls and Kings

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."

                                -Lewis Carroll

                                Through The Looking Glass

A few weeks ago our beloved cafeteria served cabbage rolls.  These stuffed delights were topped with a tomato sauce, some cheddar cheese, and a dollop of sour cream, but not before being laid on a bed of rice.  They looked so good that they made me wonder if they had been made by somebody's grandmother who emigrated from Europe.

I was a little disappointed that the rice under the cabbage rolls was undercooked and had a slightly crunchy texture.  I have to be a little forgiving with plain rice, however, as it can go from undercooked to overcooked in as little as three minutes.  At least I am happy to report that the rice was genuine rice this time, and not the instant rice that was served with the Chinese combo last month.  I am also happy to report that the dollop of sour cream on top was proportionally correct, which was not the case a few weeks ago with the latkes.  Things are looking up.

Speaking of improvements, I am also happy to note that I have recently noticed some pleasant changes in the cafeteria.  The metal cutlery bins are full of clean cutlery at the beginning of the meal service time, the french fries are being kept in a heated area (although one of my classmates informed me that in spite of this measure her fries were still cold), and another classmate communicated to me that fries now come with a much more suitable portion of gravy than they used to.  Even though these changes are not entirely perfect, I am nevertheless quite proud of the improvements that have taken place.  My congratulations to the cafeteria staff for making the effort to mend these past errors. But I digress.

Yes, the time has come to talk about cabbages--or in this case cabbage rolls.  They were a little mild in spices, but otherwise delicious.  Stuffed with rice and ground beef, these little leaf-wrapped delights made me wish that I were in a little village in Eastern Europe, sitting around a humble kitchen table with a dentally-challenged family who were all telling me in their thick accents that I was too skinny and I should eat more. 

I highly recommend the cabbage rolls to any visitors who come to the VIU cafeteria.  Just be prepared to quote Lewis Carroll in-between bites.

Chicken and Risotto Repast

Occasionally forgetting to bring my lunch to school has its advantages and its disadvantages.  Normally it means that I have an opportunity to review a new food at the cafeteria, so I actually am quite happy on the days when I neglect to bring my lunch with me.  Then there are the days when I forget my lunch and there is nothing on the menu that is appealing.  This was one of those days.  At the suggestion of my classmates I had made plans to order fries with some gravy on the side so I could microwave the gravy before pouring it over top (see my post "Ce N'est Pas la Poutine"), however the culinary students on this day were not prepared to serve lunch.  After standing in line for five minutes while I waited for the students to be ready, I observed that the only prepared batch of fries had sat cooling without so much as the assistance of a heat lamp.  Even the employees at McDonalds know to discard a batch of fries that have been sitting under a heat lamp for that long, let alone a batch of fries that did not have the assistance of a heat lamp.  It would seem that I would need to choose another meal option.

On the related subject of customer service, I would like to point out that not presenting customers with the option of metal cutlery in an era of environmental concern is quite disappointing.  I can understand the cafeteria running out of clean metal cutlery half-way through the lunch-hour rush; however this was at the beginning.  Between the cold fries and the lack of metal cutlery, this was not looking good.  I was very disappointed in the poor customer service this day.

Since there was nothing exciting on the menu, plan B involved a rather plain lunch of baked chicken, risotto, and vegetables.  It did not excite me, especially after hearing my classmates complain about some dry chicken that the cafeteria had served only a few days earlier.  Nevertheless, I was looking forward to trying the risotto.

I am pleased to say that the baked chicken was juicy and hot, with a wonderful crispy skin on the outside.  While it lacked some herbs, it was still quite flavorful thanks to the natural juices that remained in the bird from cooking.  Likewise, the sautéed vegetables were also delicious.  If only I could say some nice things about the risotto. 

Risotto, a starchy rice dish, is supposed to be served with the rice having the same al dente texture as pasta, and the consistency of a thick stew.  The risotto that the cafeteria served, however, was neither.  It may have had a wonderful mushroom flavor, but it had a consistency that was so thick it stuck to my plastic spoon in a large lump when I turned it up-side down.  Additionally, the aborio rice was so undercooked that hours later I was still searching for a toothpick to remove it from my teeth.  This was not good.

Unfortunately, I cannot recommend the risotto (unless the culinary students have since learned a lesson in how to cook risotto, such as this one).  I would also like to see the fries be served hot, and for the cafeteria to have metal cutlery ready at the beginning of every meal service.  In the meanwhile, I can at least recommend the chicken.  The chicken is, rather appropriately, tender enough to eat with the plastic forks and knifes that are provided, and for this I am grateful.

Hot Apple Cider and Happiness

It's -6° outside, not including the wind chill, so what could be a more appropriate food to review but a warm drink.

A few weeks ago I dropped into the Jumpin' Java coffee shop, which is located in Building 305, and ordered a hot apple cider.  This was not the same caramel apple cider that is treated to a shot of caramel syrup and topped with a dollop of whipped cream that the famous Seattle-based chain serves.  No, this was the kind of hot apple cider that you used to drink at holiday parties as a child while you sang Christmas carols with your Aunt Beatrice and looked through the window at the icy white snowflakes congregating in the yard.  This was the type of drink that needed to meet the high standards of sentimentality.

In spite of what some may think, there are actually several ways to make a hot apple cider.  Some baristas will have you believe that a hot apple cider is simply warm apple juice or an instant powdered mix with added water (*shudder*), but there is more to the drink than that.  A good hot apple cider will have the flavors of cinnamon sticks, orange peel, and cloves infused throughout the apple juice.  The flavors will taste as though they have been simmering for several minutes (or better, yet, several hours).  An even better hot apple cider would have all this and be made from raw apple juice, which is cloudy. Raw apple juice, however, is expensive and difficult to find, so most coffee shops stick to using ordinary apple juice.  I wasn't sure what to expect from an independent coffee shop, such as the Jumpin' Java.

On a side note, I would like to pause here and address the topic of customer service.  While I am a food reviewer, the fact remains that customer service is a part of an overall food experience.  I seldom mention this in my blog posts because most of the time the customer service is fairly standard.  I feel the need to mention it here, however, because I was very impressed with the service that I received at Jumpin' Java.  Both of the baristas who served me were happy, polite, and hasty, even though there was no line-up to make them rush my order.  I was impressed; kudos to them for holding to those standards while serving hundreds of coffee-craving students.

As I stated earlier, my hot apple cider arrived quickly and I was delighted to have my first sip.  The flavors of the spices in the cider were neither weak nor overpowering.  I could tell that it had been made from apple juice, and that there was no instant mix involved with this drink.  It was simply wonderful.

I highly recommend the hot apple cider and the customer service at Jumpin' Java.  And at this time of year, I also recommend that after you order your hot apple cider you go find some students and ask them if they would like to sing Christmas carols with you.