Stop and think, what’s your favorite food spot on campus? To help you decide, here is my top five list.
#1: Café 76
Starting strong, we have Café 76 located in the Travis Roy Campus Center (Stu). Most Tabor students only refer to this campus hotspot as either “Debbies” or “Café”. Throughout the halls, you will hear Seawolves say to one another, “Want to go and grab a smoothie?” or “I really want a cookie from the café”. For me, when I step up to the counter, I know exactly what I’m getting. I will start by getting a strawberry lemonade refresher, and I will also order a chicken quesadilla. While I wait for my quesadilla to come out, I will sip my flavorful refresher while having a lively conversation with none other than Debbie herself. Overall, this place reflects Tabor as a whole: great people, great food, and good conversation.
#2: Dunkin’ Donuts
Now I know this is a fan favorite within the Tabor community. There’s nothing better than a walk to Dunks in the springtime with your friends while basking in the hot sun. Now my order changes throughout fall, winter, spring, and summer. To begin in the fall, I go with none other than an iced pumpkin spiced latte and maple sugar snakin bacon. Taking a sip of my latte always makes me feel like watching a Halloween movie on the couch with a fluffy blanket. My winter order, I think, might be my favorite, which is an iced cookie butter latte with sweet cream cold foam. It has such a smooth and sweet flavor to it that makes me literally want to order three a day for each meal. In the winter, I typically get a plain bagel with cream cheese on the side because, instead of it just being spread on the bagel, I like to rip apart pieces and dip them myself. Somehow it tastes better that way. Next, in the Spring, I will get an iced caramel craze latte and a plain bagel, but NO cream cheese this time. Now this is probably my most basic order, just because I don’t get it as often in the spring. I think that the caramel craze might be my favorite coffee I get at Dunkin because of how creamy and sweet it is. Finally, the best season of the year: summer. Now this is where my order gets a little bit excessive. I will get a strawberry dragon fruit refresher with lemonade, a bagel (cream cheese) on the side, and hash browns extra crispy. For me, I spend a lot of my summer on the boat or at the beach, so I choose the refresher because even if the ice melts, the flavor is strong enough that it will still taste delicious.
#3 Dining Hall
I do realize this should be my first choice because this is the main source of food for Tabor students. I do love to still partake in dining hall food, so here are my top dining hall favorites. At number one, it has to be the grilled chicken wrapped in a hamburger bun. The chicken has never disappointed with flavors and texture. The bun adds a sweetness to complement the savory flavors. Next for number two, we have none other than Vince’s chicken tenders. Every Tuesday, each Tabor student looks forward to their lunch block to indulge in the crispy and tasty chicken tenders. For me, I like to create a Chick’fla sauce using BBQ sauce, mayonnaise, and a little bit of buffalo sauce. When you dip your chicken tender in that sauce, a burst of flavors will pop in your mouth. Lastly, number three is the creamy mac and cheese. But it’s not just regular mac and cheese if there is a meat option like chicken, pulled pork, etc. I like to mix them to get a little extra protein in, and it adds so much to the already incredible flavor.
#4 Kate’s Simple Eats
Kate’s Simple Eats is a Marion town staple. If you are ever looking for a delicious sandwich made with real, whole products or even a refreshing, healthy salad, this is your place. It’s safe to say that I know what to get at Kate’s because I have basically tried their whole menu. But, like Dunkin, it depends on the season. Instead of all four seasons, though, it’s separated into the school year and the summer. As I said before, in the summer we are on the boat, so I like to have a sandwich that won’t get gross in the heat, so I chose a buffalo chicken wrap, but with buffalo sauce on the side and no lettuce. I like to have the buffalo sauce on the side because my spice tolerance is very low, so I enjoy choosing how much sauce I dip my wrap into. Between the blue cheese, chicken, and lettuce, it creates a perfect conflict of flavor. Then, when you dip all of that into the buffalo sauce, it adds a nice little kick that leaves you wanting more. Now, during the school year, I go with the classic grilled cheese sandwich. This might be the most beloved item on Kate’s menu. The cheese pulls apart so nicely when you split the sandwich in two. It always has such a cozy flavor, and it makes you warm on cold winter days.
#5: Cumberland Farms
To finish this list off, we have the beloved Cumberland Farms. Now I would argue that this is also a Tabor Academy staple, especially for boarding students. When I lived on campus my freshman year, I would always walk there with either my friends or my roommate just to get basic things/ food that I could fill my room with. This often ended up being some sort of candy, so not necessarily a nutritious choice, but still really delicious. It may not be a traditional food place, but it still has a lot to offer. Growing up in Marion, I would always beg my parents to go to Cumby’s for one thing, and that was the chicken and cheese empanada. This has been one of my favorite snacks since I was at least seven. So, whenever I venture there, I get my empanada, and I get a medium Sprite, but I put the cherry flavoring in to make it a Shirly temple. Last year, when dirty sodas were a huge thing, my friends and I would go to Cumby’s at least three times a week just to get a Dr. Pepper with cream and a little bit of lime flavoring in it. So, although its last on the list, it’s still so, so delicious, especially when you need a little pick-me-up drink or even an empanada!