(Emma G. Schaible / Fourth Estate)
Vegetarian and vegan friendly dining hall has room for growth
BY EMMA G. SCHAIBLE, OPINIONS EDITOR
While more plant-based options are being added to the forever-popular Ike’s and Southside dining halls, The Spot — a safe space for vegans — has been reimagined. To talk about the changes, Fourth Estate interviewed GMU Vegan, an anonymous food reviewer of Mason Dining’s vegan options since August 2023.
GMU Vegan has been vegetarian for their whole life and a vegan for seven years, motivated by their love for animals and the planet. Although they are an off-campus student, they have invested in a dining plan due to promises of innovation, sustainability and student-first experiences.
After committing to following a vegan diet, GMU Vegan decided to take it a step further and share their opinions anonymously on Instagram in hopes that Mason Dining would hear them. For the most part, that mission has worked.
GMU Vegan has been welcomed into kitchens and given exclusive behind-the-scenes tours of Mason Dining facilities by employees of the former dining contractor, Sodexo. However, the new dining provider, Chartwells, has made significant changes to The Spot, a favorite dining hall of Mason herbivores.
Though George Mason is one of the 1,400 universities to provide vegan dining options, many Mason students are still disgruntled about the changes to The Spot.
To understand the problems that they are experiencing, there are a few clarifying definitions necessary. First, vegetarian diets do not include any meat, poultry or seafood and instead have meals made up of foods that come mostly from plants. Second, vegan is defined as food that does not contain products that come from animals, including meat, eggs and dairy products, which the Spot used to focus on. Catering options toward vegans inherently include vegetarians, but they are not interchangeable.
As GMU Vegan explains, The Spot’s hot meals have become more diverse under Chartwells, but the overall selection has included more options for vegetarians than vegans, making The Spot feel like a shell of what it once was.
One particular element that makes the spot feel empty is the loss of former Head Chef of The Spot Monica Bastidas.
Bastidas was always around; GMU Vegan recounts her taking the time to talk to the regulars, showing students the kitchen, sharing recipes, following up on reviews and even giving out leftover vegan ice cream from earlier pop-up events. She was committed to creating sustainable and enjoyable vegan food options for all students, no matter their diet.
While The Spot used to have dairy products, they were limited, and even when the main entrees were not vegan friendly, there were constants like vegan pizza, Impossible burgers and an entire salad section that provided vegans with all the different food groups. GMU Vegan argues the removal of salad bar vegan staples including pesto pasta, crispy kale, seasonal rice salads and soy sauce-soaked tofu makes it impossible to create a substantial vegan meal when the hot meals do not cater towards vegans.
The most devastating loss to GMU Vegan was the freshly baked vegan chocolate chip cookies, which was the go-to sweet treat for anyone who ate at The Spot. Instead, they diversified with puddings, cakes, brownies and elaborate cookies; however, those items are merely vegetarian, not vegan.
GMU Vegan argues that centering their attention on vegetarians was the worst decision for Chartwells to make because they alienate a core target group of students in doing so.
“People eating at the Spot have already made the decision to tailor their meal towards plant-based options, and many find a very inconsequential line between veganism and vegetarianism. But the line for vegans is much more pronounced; by neglecting their diets, The Spot serves two groups poorly,” GMU Vegan said.
Overall, GMU Vegan still chooses to eat at the Spot, although they hope the new administration finds their footing and re-centers their focus on vegan food.
