By Abby Kohlberg

QU’s cafeteria, known as Hawks Dining, served up an entire iced coffee bar on Friday, January 31st. Besides the obvious components of coffee and ice, cafeteria patrons had several items to choose between. First, the usual coffee flavors were available; French Vanilla, House Blend, and Highlander’s Grog. Next, there were options for milk; coconut, almond, and soy, as well as the usual creamer.

They had four syrups to choose from as well. These were from the La Flavour de Monin brand and included Caramel Apple Butter, Cinnamon Bun, Brown Butter Toffee, and Iced Coffee. Finally, there was whipped topping, chocolate syrup, and caramel sauce for anyone who liked to, to try.

Some of the students at the cafeteria put in a flavor they hadn’t tried before, while others created drinks they had tasted before, but everyone seemed pleased with their coffees. Lang Baredore and Dayson Croes are regular coffee drinkers, but they had never tried the milk alternatives before.

“It’s good,” Baredore and Croes said nearly simultaneously.

They seemed to prefer creamer in their coffees. Sarah Brown also made an iced coffee for herself.

“They’re good! I want these again,” Brown said.

They later decided they appreciate coffee without syrup the most, but Brown and the other students present at the time chimed in to say it was good. Reactions to the coffee seemed to vary depending on how much syrup was used and how much coffee the drinker was used to having.

On the same day, they had “Create Your Own Grain Bowl” as an option. Cafeteria-goers could choose from Sunrise Quinoa Blend, Wheatberries, and Farro. For toppings, there were baby shrimp, peas, chopped tomato or apple, bleu cheese, roasted red pepper, cucumber, carrot, and bacon. On top of all that, there were a couple of vinaigrettes to choose from, including Smoked Peach and Blackberry Balsamic.

With so many choices, there were several flavor combinations available. More students seemed to shy away from the grain bowls, even though they are very much worth a try or two. At the very least, no one can complain that the cafeteria never serves anything except fried food!

These are just the most recent cafeteria events. Over the course of the last few semesters, cafeteria workers have been coming up with ideas for events at Hawks Dining. It can be a bit difficult to tell how popular these are, since students tend to come in waves. However the most adventurous of Quincy University’s students undoubtedly appreciate the opportunity to try new things, whether it’s a new flavor of coffee or a new type of meal altogether.

Award-winning Hawks Dining has events regularly. They post about them on the window near the conveyor belt, so check regularly and try something new!