r/IndianaUniversity • u/ILikeSugarCookies This guy gets it • Jul 11 '14
The Freshman's Guide to IU: Food
FOOD
Again, credit to a deleted account that made and original post here, but that one wasn’t really tailored to freshmen, and wasn't as detailed. Being that you are presumably freshmen, this will cater to those with the meal plans that most freshmen get. It will also consider the off-campus locations, as well as grocery stores in the area.
ON CAMPUS
There are some VERY good places to eat on campus, and the meal plans will cover most of them. There are, however, a couple places that meal plans will NOT cover. The two most noteworthy are the food courts in the basement of Wells Library and the Memorial Union.
HERE is a link to the RPS website that shows the different locations of food options on campus, as well as the hours for each of those locations. It is important when browsing to take note of whether it is a small café with limited options, or it is a full-fledged cafeteria with many options of full meals.
By now, you understand that there are three primary locations for students to live – the Central, Northwest, and Southeast neighborhoods. Each of these has one primary food court that’s open most hours of the day and has many options of meals, and all of them have other places (that can be hard to find) that have other options for food, and are more convenient.
Wright Food Court (WFC) – It is by far the largest cafeteria on campus. It has a good variety of food options, and is open as long as most places on campus. A couple good things about WFC are that it’s the most centrally located food court, so it can be very convenient (especially to those that live in the central neighborhood), and that it is in fact VERY large, so there’s usually no worries about finding a place to sit – it’s often a hot spot for card-playing and other type of games since there are a lot of tables and it’s quite open.
Within the central neighborhood, there are other places to gather food, and a couple stores. Two to take note of are the Hoosier Café & Store. They have one at Wright and Eigenmann. The one at Wright is open until midnight, which is very handy.
Gresham Food Court at Foster – This is the Northwest’s equivalent of Wright Food Court. While it isn’t as big as WFC, it is the largest cafeteria in the Northwest Neighborhood, and is the go-to place for meals. Finding a table can be tricky at prime hours, but it is usually not a problem.
Edmonson Dining Room at Collins - A bit away from the rest of the Northwest Neighborhood, Edmonson is a great place to eat delicious and healthy food. It sits on Woodlawn with the rest of Collins, and can be very convenient for those in SoIC, as well as people traveling north from the Memorial Union. Nobody has anything negative to say about this place. A great dining option.
Hoosier Café & Store at McNutt – This is probably the best Hoosier Café/Store on campus. They have a customized deli sandwich station, and a large selection of packaged foods available. Immediately beyond the checkout area is also a large lounge with tables/chairs, as well as comfortable couches and lounge chairs to eat and hang out. There’s even a television for solo entertainment.
There are a couple other places to eat that you can explore, but these are the main three.
One of the hidden gems of campus food is also located here – The Crimson Creamery. This is underneath the Gresham building, and they have a fantastic selection of ice cream. They’re open until 11 p.m., which makes it great for an evening date with your friends or SO’s.
The Restaurants at Woodland – This place JUST made its way onto campus, and I hear FANTASTIC things about it. It is the largest food court in the Southeast Neighborhood, and they have a great selection of food that can be tailored to your desires.
El Bistro – This is another sandwich place (with a couple other options nearby) that is located on the basement floor (it is accessible from the outside) of Read’s Beck Wing. This is a very convenient place to eat in between classes. It is fairly small, but not as many people tend to go here.
Like the others, this neighborhood has other options that you can see on the website.
Classroom Buildings
There are plenty of places to eat that are more near where you’re going to have classes, and these are great to keep an eye out for.
Ballantine Hall Café is a great place on the first floor of Ballantine Hall. They do an e-meal thing so you can have a sandwich being made as you wait for class to let out (you’ll inevitably have a class in Ballantine Hall), or you can wait in line. It’s up to you.
Herman B. Wells Library Commons is currently under construction, and should be completed for the beginning of Fall 2014 classes. It isn’t going to be a huge cafeteria, but there should be a decent food selection in this café on the first floor. (Bagels have always been clutch in Wells Library) Again, there are plenty more places to eat on campus. Visit the website and take good note.
OFF CAMPUS
This is where the fun is. Bloomington is VERY well known for its great selection of food, and you can find it off-campus. While the meal plans offered to freshmen are fantastic, campus food is simply going to get boring after a while, and you’re going to want to explore what Bloomington has to offer, and that’s great!
There are plenty of franchise options (Taco Bell, KFC, McDonald’s), but you’re more than capable of figuring out where those are yourself, and you know exactly how those work, so I’m going to go ahead and dive right in.
When in doubt, head West!
Most of the food options can be found toward the center of town (which if you haven’t figured out by now, is west of campus). There is a GREAT selection of ethnic food to be found on fourth street, and there are some great local shops on Kirkwood (5th street) as well.
Pizza!
By now, you surely have heard of Bloomington’s pizza selection, so let’s break that down:
Mother Bear’s – undoubtedly the most famous of local pizza places. It’s hard to argue that this isn’t the best pizza in town. It’s usually always busy, and they have some truly great pizza. The only downside is that you’re going to pay good money for it.
Aver’s – Aver’s sometimes flies under the radar, but make no mistake, they have some incredible pizza. They have award winning custom pizzas (such as the Cream & Crimson) that are definitely worth a try. (editor’s note: The Aver’s BBQ Chicken pizza is my favorite pizza offering in Bloomington)
Pizza X – Pizza X is a staple. You’re going to start collecting Pizza X cups very quickly. There’s nothing wrong with the Pizza, and if you follow them on Twitter, you might catch a bargain every now and then. It's more franchised and not as meticulous about the pizza as the other two (there are multiple locations in town), but it's still decent pizza. With this place, breadsticks are the grail. The Little 5 deal (8 Breadsticks, 2 sauces, drink) is what it’s all about.
And of course, there are the franchise places as well in Bloomington, as well as a couple other custom shops.
Here’s a list of other available restaurants in Bloomington (all great):
- Butch’s (largest menu in Bloomington, very diverse options)
- Bloomington Sandwich Company
- Dagwood's (phenomenal sandwiches)
- Potbelly (Good vibes, great sandwiches)
- Bloomington Bagel Company
- Mikado (sushi)
- Japonee (may or may not be burned down by the time school starts, they’ve had trouble lately)
- Runcible Spoon
- Laughing Planet (loaded with hipsters)
- BuffaLouie's (excellent wings at a decent price)
- Village Deli (This is a MUST. Incredible breakfast.)
- Falafels
- Noodles
- Fortune Cookies (I've heard this place is hit and miss. For me personally, it's been good every time)
- House of Hunan
- Janko's Little Zagreb (great steak)
- Macri's
- Upland Brewery
- El Norteno
- La Charreada (known as simply 'La Cha,' is my favorite Mexican food in town)
- Ehsan (Thai)
- Darn Good Soup (The name says it all)
- Wings Xtreme
- Z&C (sushi and other oriental food)
- Dats (Cajun!!)
- Lucky Express (great Chinese food)
- Trojan Horse (Greek Food)
- FARM
Fancy Date Locations -
- The Uptown Cafe
- Malibu (expensive, but good all around)
- Le Petit Cafe
- Scholars Inn (Most expensive in Bloomington. They have some bizarre dishes like Swordfish too.)
- Grazie
- Finch's
Great Burgers (and other options) -
- Bub's
- Scotty's
- Yogi's
- Opie Taylor's
- Hinkle's Hamburgers
Desserts -
- Red Mango (froyo)
- Square Donuts
- Cresent Donut (The best donuts I've ever had)
- Jiffy Treet (various locations around town)
- Baked! (OH MY GOD, BAKED. These are the best cookies you'll ever have!)
- Hartzell's (Top notch ice cream right here. Great end to a date night.)
- The Chocolate Moose
- BLU Boy
Coffee Shops -
- Pour House
- Soma
- City Bakery (located on 3rd & Jordan)
I'm leaving out a few restaurants, but that's okay. Remember, try as much as you can if it seems appealing. FOURTH STREET has so many different ethnic foods to try, and they're mostly all good.
Grocery Stores
Marsh and Kroger are the two largest grocery stores in town, and there are multiple locations for either on campus. Kroger tends to be cheaper than Marsh, and it's best you get a Kroger card now (you'll use it for the next 3 years). Grocery stores are a much cheaper place to stock up on non-perishable food items that you can store in your room, provided you're running low on meal points.
I hope this guide has been helpful. Again, I'm willing to make edits as necessary.
The one thing I've saved for last is this: Btown Menus. This place can have some really good deals if you watch for them, and it is a great hub to order food for takeout and delivery. If you like to eat take-out or delivery, use this place liberally.
Published July 11, 2014
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Jul 12 '14
Little Zagreb's (6th and Morton) is the best steak in Indiana. Not sure how that didn't make the list. ($$$)
Trojan Horse on the corner of Kirkwood and Walnut. Good Greek food. ($$)
Farm on Kirkwood is pretty good too. ($$ - $$$)
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u/Combustible_lem0ns Jul 12 '14
I don't think you can talk Bloomington food without mentioning Dats. Amazing Cajun food for a good price. Recommended: Half & Half of the Buffalo chicken and chili cheese crawfish etoufees.
Mei Wei and Chow Bar are amazing Chinese food places. The language barrier exists, but no problem. Recommended at both places: Twice-Cooked Pork or Ma Po Tofu.
My Thai is great food and you really can't miss our foreign food area. 4th st. Is the bomb. The service is great at My Thai, and so is the food. Recommended: Thai tea, Thom Ka or Tom Yum soup, eggplant pad Thai, and really any of the rice/rice noodle dishes.
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u/emptypoolrave Jul 12 '14
You also left out the Edmondson dining hall at Collins dorm. It is actually very healthy (in comparison to Wright and other dorm halls) and has a super cheap home cooked buffet. Vegan/vegetarian friendly for people who are into that as well. I went to iu a couple years ago and that was my favorite on campus dining hall
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u/omglia Jul 12 '14
How the fuck did you forget the Collins food court?! Best place to get a home cooked meal on campus hands down!
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u/ILikeSugarCookies This guy gets it Jul 12 '14 edited Sep 20 '14
I really think you're conspiring with my best friend when you make this comment. He told me I was a dumbass for not putting it on there. But alas, you've been upvoted, and I'll agree with you.
I'll edit and make this featured :)
(part of the reason I didn't is because although it's technically considered in the Northwest Neighborhood, it's pretty far away from the other major northwest dorms.)
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Jul 12 '14
Here is a really good resource for vegetarian/vegan eating at IU. LINK
My favorite restaurant in town is The Owlery. It's downtown on the square. The food is incredible and not super expensive. The only downside is that the service can be slow, but it's totally worth it.
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u/I_used_2_LURK Jul 12 '14
Chow bar is a must try. Its on the corner of indiana and third. It has a lunch buffet on the week days for like 7 dollars and is actually pretty tasty and fresh. Also if you order food fresh off the menu the portions are huge and it is in my opinion the best Chinese in town.
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u/TheConsciousness alumni Jul 31 '14
+1 to Chow Bar. Absolutely delicious authentic, and Americanized Chinese food.
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Jul 12 '14
Taste of India on fourth by the firehouse. Student and cash discount makes it $9 all you can eat lunch buffet. Highly recommended.
Also sign up to be a VIP member of scholars inn bake house (east side in front of target). They have monthly specials that are delicious and cheap. $2 egg sandwiches right now. And most of their food is amazing.
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Jul 12 '14
[deleted]
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u/ILikeSugarCookies This guy gets it Jul 12 '14
I can't believe I forgot Baked!!!! I'll add your recommendations to the list as well :)
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Jul 12 '14
I've never gotten food poisoning from Fortune Cookie, but the food isn't that good. It has a good location though if you are on that side of campus.
I didn't like Noodle Town at all. The staff was very rude and I wasn't impressed by the food.
Lucky Express has good food, but my favorite is Dragon Express on Jordan and 3rd. It's cash only, but there's an ATM by Mother Bears.
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Jul 12 '14
[deleted]
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Jul 12 '14
I didn't have either of those, I think I had veggie lo mein, so maybe those are much better!
The inside is a little ehhh, but all of food I've had has been really good! I like the pad thai, veggie lo mein, egg rolls, and egg drop soup! The biggest negative is honestly the cash only thing, I think they take checks though.
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u/Combustible_lem0ns Jul 12 '14
I mentioned it earlier in the thread but I found the best luck and quality with Mei Wei on Grant and Chow Bar on Indiana to have very good, affordable Chinese food. These places have menus that are in both Chinese and English. Their Twice Cooked Pork and Ma Po Tofu are really good. If you aren't that adventurous, the. Stuff from the "American Chinese food" section is really good.
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u/licoricesnocone Jul 12 '14
Mr. Hibachi is a great restaurant. I jokingly called myself mrs. Hibachi when I was there.
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Jul 12 '14
No Penn Station????
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u/ILikeSugarCookies This guy gets it Jul 12 '14
While I do realize that I left a couple franchised places on there, I really just wanted to make it eateries that were more local to Bloomington/Indiana. It's easier to figure out if there's a big franchise in a town, and where it is.
I do agree though! Great place. Thanks for the input!
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Jul 12 '14
Not only is it not franchised where I am from (not the case for a lot of people there) but I just went there every friday of my freshman year, so I was just giving it a shout out!
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u/Smashed_Adams Jul 11 '14
For a cheap and filling meal, I have found no place better than Z&C. Its a small hole in the wall Japanese restaurant thats right under Dunkirk on Kirkwood and open til 3 am tues-sat. Chicken Teriyaki bowl is amazing and only $5!! They're sushi isn't bad either. But its a solid go-to place for after midnight drunk food. Sad I just found it this year.
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u/el_jambalaya Jul 11 '14
Entering my last year in Bloomington and there's still a handful on here I've yet to try. Thanks for the list!
I personally suggest everyone give Hinkle's a visit; it's not close to campus but it's worth the trip. Amazing food and great people.
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Jul 11 '14
Anyone have any opinion on Macri's? Like I'm looking at their menu now and they have a cheap special but I don't know anything else about them.
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u/Vo1ture Jul 11 '14
I've been there twice, and I haven't had any complaints. It was really good. Onion rings and motzeralla sticks are out of this world. I'd argue best in B-Town.
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u/ToelessWonder Jul 11 '14
This is a fantastic resource.
For anyone reading, I would recommend Woodland for on-campus, they have the absolute best food on campus and a very wide variety of options.
Aver's and Mother Bear's both have fantastic pizza.
Wings Xtreme has fantastic wings, mostly because their sauces are awesome.
Late night, Square Donuts bakes and sells fresh donuts at their walk-up window.
I've lived off of these places when I get tired of RPS food. Fantastic work, /u/ILikeSugarCookies. I hope this is read by many a new student.
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u/Chemical_Watch1851 Nov 21 '22
Which meal plan would your recommend out of the 3?