Pitt tosses salad bars, wilts some students’ hopes

When Stephanie Magness and Lindsay Sharrin went to dinner with their friends Sunday night,… When Stephanie Magness and Lindsay Sharrin went to dinner with their friends Sunday night, they figured they would head to Eddie’s. Both of them had been told it was open on Sundays, and they knew they could get a good salad at the eatery’s salad bar.

By the time they got to Eddie’s, they found the restaurant closed. But they peeked inside, only to find that their beloved salad bar had been removed.

Discouraged, they headed over to the Schenley Cafe, where they were told the same thing: no more salad bar. Finally, as a last resort, they headed to the Marketplace, where they found a salad bar.

“I don’t understand why they would do this,” Sharrin said. “Everyone I’ve talked to has been in complete shock.”

The removal of the salad bars from the eateries poses a problem for two sub-cultures of Pitt students: vegetarians and Jewish students, who keep kosher.

Sharrin, who keeps kosher and, therefore, can only eat animals slaughtered in a prescribed manner, feels her options are limited.

“As a Jewish student, I’ve had a hard time finding foods I could eat,” she said. “At Eddie’s, there’s a lot of chicken, which is great for everyone else. But for me, the salad bar is my main source of food here on campus.”

A campus resident, Sharrin is required to purchase a meal plan. In the past, she used her Dining Dollars to purchase what she wanted to eat. Now, with only the Marketplace offering a variety of foods that meet her needs, the price of Sharrin’s meals has gone up. She must spend an entire block on her salad at the Marketplace, while an Eddie’s or Schenley salad would cost her fewer Dining Dollars.

In her quest to get answers Sunday, Sharrin approached Panther Central about terminating her meal plan, only to find out she would have to pay $120 and obtain either a medical excuse or documentation from her rabbi.

“That, itself, is absurd,” she said.

As a ten-year vegetarian, Magness comes from the opposite side of the salad-audience spectrum. She worries about the healthiness of the foods offered, not only for returning students, but also for incoming freshmen, who might not be accustomed to planning their own meals.

“This is about eating healthy and having options,” she said. “I don’t know why they would take away the salad bars.”

After finding out about the decrease in healthy food at the eateries, the pair approached Student Government Board, The Pitt News and dining services. They hope to recreate salad-bar options on campus.

“I hope it can be brought back to at least one [cafeteria], because this is really inconvenient,” Magness said.

Sharrin agrees.

“With all the options I used to have, I have even less now.”

University officials and dining service officials did not return phone calls and could not be reached before press time.