Friday, February 26, 2010

Dinner Out


So I don't often get away from the nearest restaurants here on campus, the two closest to me are Foodworx and Canyon Vista. But there are times when I feel that I really want to "go out and eat". Most people would assume I want to leave campus, this is not true. I find it quite like going out when I visit Cafe V. It takes either a decent walk or a bus ride to get to that side of campus, not to mention it is completely different than Foodworx. I love sushi and here I can get fresh sushi, there is a giant salad bar, soup/chili, a grill, a full scale meal, and pizza/pasta.


The food at Cafe V is a lot like going out for me. But I think this would be the same for you but at different locations. I suggest that you break your habits and get out, try a new place. For example if you mainly eat at Canyon Vista try Goody's, if your at Plaza try Cafe V, if your at OVT try Foodworx, I think you will find the experience rewarding.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

RECYCLEMANIA is ON at UCSD and ACROSS the NATION!


It's going on now! Here is an excerpt from the website: http://recyclemaniacs.org/index.htm

"Sunday, January 17th marks the beginning of the 2010 competition. Runs until March 27th!

Over a 10-week period, schools report recycling and trash data which are then ranked according to who collects the largest amount of recyclables per capita, the largest amount of total recyclables, the least amount of trash per capita, or have the highest recycling rate. With each week’s reports and rankings, participating schools watch how their results fluctuate against other schools and use this to rally their campus communities to reduce and recycle more."

WHEN THE WASTE IS COLLECTED, THE AMOUNT IS COMPARED TO OTHER SCHOOLS AND RECORDED EVERY WEEK!

Here's the latest update from the website...

"RecycleMania Passes Halfway Point: The 2010 RecycleMania is off to another great start with over 600 colleges and universities participating across the United States, Canada and as far away as Qatar. With each bottle or piece of paper they place in a recycling bin, over 5 million students and 1.3 million staff and faculty are participating in this year’s competition. To see the full list of colleges and learn more about each, visit the Participating Schools section and click on specific school’s names to see their profile."

Just to reiterate, all this info can be found at http://recyclemaniacs.org/index.htm !

Woohoo! It's on Tritons : )

Step up to the challenge!

~ Hilary

Monday, February 22, 2010

Chocolate



There is nothing in the world like good chocolate.


So it's a real treat that all of the marketplaces on campus carry Endangered Species Chocolate!


My absolute favorite is Tree frog – Organic Health Dark Chocolate with Cacao Nibs, Yacon & Acai (70% cocoa). Not only is it organic, it is considered health chocolate because it contains healthful ingredients to the already antioxidant-rich dark chocolate.


Try all three dark chocolate bars in the Organic Health collection knowing that your indulgence helps support species, habitat and humanity.

They are:

• Tree frog – Organic Health Dark Chocolate with Cacao Nibs, Yacon & Acai (70% cocoa)
• Toucan – Organic Health Dark Chocolate with Golden Berry and Lucuma (70% cocoa)
• Spider monkey – Organic Health Dark Chocolate with Goji Berry, Pecans & Maca (70% cocoa)

But remember that there are only 3 kinds of the Endangered Species Chocolate that are Organic Health– so make sure you buy those!

Chocolate will put some kick in your step and is a nice treat to get the brain working.

Happy crunching,
Jessica

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Produce Patch Keeps Gettin Better!!

Hey hungry Tritons!

The patio of Cafe V was the setting for Farm 2 U today.
Nancy Filtz, Retail Manager of the UCSD Place and Markets, came out with yet another gorgeous display of local and organic produce. Woohoo!The samples keep getting better and better! Today there were three beautiful glass dispensers filled with incredible naturally infused waters.
To the left was pineapple water with orange slices, in the middle was water infused with cucumber and mint leaves, and finally (my favorite) cantaloupe water to the right.
They were the most delicious natural flavor combinations when paired with ice cold water!

The Villagers are familiar with these Chico bags, but for those of you who don't live in the transfer housing, these bags are awesome! They are made from several recycled plastic water bottles (7 I believe).
They're cool because they collapse into themselves to fit into a little bag (seen here), and can be pulled out to the size of a book bag. They come equipped with a carabiner, so you can hook the bag onto your key chain. Yep, HDH hooks it up!

Gotta love samples....slices of organic grapefruits, oranges, and lemons were free to try.
I sampled the Pink Lady Apples because I had never heard of them before. They were amazingly crisp and sweet!
Nancy was being the gracious host that she is, by offering to cut up some lemons for me to try. She's the greatest!
Check out how the setting sun highlights the broccoli.......so fresh and so green green. : )

The freshly picked local flowers were bursting with color. I was told the organic strawberries to the left were selling fast!
I sampled the free hummus that complimented the three different pita chip samples, which all can be found in your local Place and Market on campus. The pita chip variety consisting of cinnamon and sugar, cilantro and jalapeno, and garlic were all incredible!
Dining dollars go a long way at these farmer's markets because you get incredibly fresh produce, and the comfort of knowing you're contributing to fair-trade practices in support of local farmers.
These venues provide a chance to come hang out, and enjoy the beautiful weather we've been having. Today we had the privilege of experiencing the incredible sunset on the Cafe V patio.
Come out next Wed. the 24th to Foodworx Place and Market (3:30-6:30pm), where you can expect more Farm 2 U treats.

Housing and Dining truly loves to see UCSD students and the surrounding community happy and thriving! Keep up the great work HDH!

Wishing you health and happiness Tritons. : )

~Hilary

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Tritons love Farm 2 U fresh and local produce !!!

Wow! Who'd-a-thunk-it........that people love easy access to fresh and local produce. : )

Honestly students are consistently making it out to the farmer's market that now travels to dining halls all over campus. Every Wednesday Tritons!

Today the place to be was Roger's Place and Market.
Look at this beautiful fruit!
There was an awesome mix of colorful carrots. I sampled one of the purple ones to find it was surprisingly sweet. Yes there are samples people!I had to get some avocados again because they were so creamy last time. Yum.
That's broccoli at the end of the table.
The white carrots were not as flavorful as I'd hoped, but they were really good with some fesh salsa that I got in Roger's. No joke. They make a great substitute for chips! They're crunchy, so I challenge you to try it. : )
The fresh lettuce was impressively beautiful.....and yes, I'm raving about lettuce. It's at a whole other level when it's organic.
They had bags of fresh greens that could easily make a few salads. The Produce Patch hooked students up with free samples of Naked juice too. Other samples included chocolate, coffee, and yummy protein bars.
Jess and I both went crazy for the organic apples, mainly because of their size. If this apple was directly in front of her face, it would take up most of it!
The natural size variety of the apples was noticable, which differs from the carbon copies of fruit you get at the chain supermarkets.
Right at 3:30, when the market starts, there was a line of happy customers forming to purchase their goods.

Jess was checking out the locally cut flowers. Some of which I actually bought for my boyfriend for Valentine's day. : )
HEADS UP: Next Wed. Feb 17th, Farm 2 U will be on the patio at Cafe V (3:30-6:30pm)!!

THEY ACCEPT DINING DOLLARS!! IT'S A WIN-WIN GUYS!

live in love
*Hilary*





Monday, February 8, 2010

Rush EKO!

Rush EKO Feb 2-5, in pictures:


Above is a photo of your beloved Housing and Dining EcoNauts during fifth week tabling on this day specifically about the $10,000 Green Grant opportunity for students living on campus.

Below are some "graphics" done by Marketing to illustrate the gloom of the growth of our local Miramar Landfill--- reduce, reuse, recycle, restrain.


Below shows some opportunities we provided for students to get more involved.



If you have any questions about Rush EKO or would like to get involved, please do contact us!
jbaltman@ucsd.edu


Best of wishes on midterms and papers!
-Yessi.



Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Super successful screening of "FRESH" film!!! Thanks for comin out!

You guys are awesome! Thank you so much for coming out to our "Fresh" screenings!

We had a screening at the Village tonight.....

It was held at the top floor of the Tower (bldg. 1). So we got to catch an epic sunset!Students from all over campus came out to enjoy this fantastic film, the food that Dining provided, and a chance to mingle with other attendees. : )
The attendees got to check out the EcoNaut's extensive spread of informative posters on our eco-initiatives, sign up to "pledge for the planet", preview our Rush EKO shirts, pick up a "Farm 2 U" farmer's market flyer, and look at a list of San Diego restaurants that incorporate sustainable ingredients in their dishes.
Thanks again to the group of 25 strong that came to the 5:30pm screening, and the handful of students that made it to the second round at 7pm!!

The chance to talk about the film with students was great, and I hope you guys took something away from the experience. : )

Keep inspiring others...

*Hilary*

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Missing: Plates

Greetings friends!

I hope studying for midterms and midterms are coming along swell.

OVT is having a little bit of a problem.. it is just so happening that 200 plates from dining halls are not returned every week. Sysco can't keep up with the growing demand for plates, so we cry out to you, "Please return the plates!" It will make HDH very happy and you will be doing the right thing :)

On a similar thread, there will be a Fresh film screening tonight in OVT at 6 PM. Make sure to come by to be enlightened and inspired!


Keep shining,
Jessica