It's Sunday morning. The campus is quiet after a lively Saturday night featuring the usual three frat parties, drama and hundreds of students milling about in the cold and with special appearances from Moe's, the Cookie Guy, and TUPD. I look at my phone, noticing a text. "Dewick at 12?" It's only 11:00, so if we wanted to eat in Carmichael, that would certainly be an option, as nobody really takes an hour to climb that hill (regardless of what Tufts memes say). But this morning, we choose Dewick. In fact, most mornings, afternoons, and evenings we choose Dewick. And really, that's how it should be.
Now the staunchest Carm-ites (yes, I made it up - just go with it) will definitely disagree with what I'm going to say, but I ask you to read on and give it a chance. We'll start with the obvious: the food. At Dewick, there is a greater variety of food, and it certainly seems fresher. The salad bar has many more options for your plate, and while Carm does have spinach, Dewick must have three or four more options. Dewick also has a twenty-rack cereal holder, which is most helpful on those mornings when you're racing to class, or when you need a snack in the mid-afternoon. Carm-ites will argue that Carm has its specialty nights, namely the Stir-Fry night, but Dewick has also begun to have nights to represent special occasions as well as cuisines of different nations. For example, on Feb. 16, Dewick had Caribbean night. And this was just two days after the Valentine's Day buffet. So who says Dewick doesn't have its own fair share of specialty nights?
My next pro-point for Dewick is actually a grouse against Carm, and that's regarding the order in which the food is laid out. At Carm you form a line, and that's how you get all your food. But once in this line, you find that after pastas and pizzas come desserts, and following that are the entrees. Now to me, this makes very little sense. Perhaps I am old-fashioned, but I like to have my dessert once I am done with my meal. I don't exactly want to have a plate that has spaghetti, chicken and a brownie on it. At Dewick, the desserts are completely separate from everything else. Actually, in Dewick, all the options are separate from one another. Each station is on its own, so if you want salad, you go to that line. If you want vegetarian food, it has its own line. Pizza? Separate too. You will never end up in a situation in which you're standing in line for dessert but having to wait for somebody agonize over what sauce goes best with fettuccini.
I'm sure all of you have watched "Batman Begins" (2005) or "The Dark Knight" (2008) or read the Batman comics or seen the older movies. Now, I appreciate the idea of the Bat-cave as much as the next person. However, I don't envision myself eating in there. That's the feeling one gets from Carm. It's dark, mostly, and it resembles a cave. Dewick, with its large European-style windows, gets all the sunlight, which makes eating, or even studying there, a pleasant experience. At Carm, you can only get that if you sit right next to the window. Otherwise, you're more or less fumbling around in the darkness.
If I haven't convinced you yet, I suggest you go down to Dewick. Sit on the upper level and people-watch. Sit at the round tables and talk to everyone instead of just the person next to you. Eat well and actually see what's going into your mouth. Once you've given that a shot, then we'll talk.
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Angad Bagai is a freshman who has not yet declared a major.
