Spicy Chicken Sandwich Review by Max Petit

From 11:05 to 1:10, kids’ stomachs at Somerset Berkley Regional High School are rumbling. Before entering the cafeteria, they have to stand in shame for a couple minutes outside the closed doors. When the doors open they rush like maddened bulls in a stampede, towards the line for lunch where they get their fill.  At SBRHS we have daily food offerings such as pizza, deli sandwiches, chicken sandwiches and burgers. They also offer daily fruit and buyable items like chips and fruit snacks. However, special lunches are offered such as walking tacos and chicken wings. Today, I interviewed my friend to ask for his opinion on the lunch that he got, which was the spicy chicken sandwich. Compared to other lunches, the chicken sandwich looks much more appealing as its simple nature makes it hard to mess up aesthetically. My friend said that it was mediocre at best, not offensive, but not something that blew him away. The quality of the meat, being a school lunch, is questionable at best. The chicken, for a chicken sandwich, is certainly not crispy enough for my appetite but when push comes to shove, it seems as a good option. Lastly, my friend said that for a spicy chicken sandwich, it was not all that spicy. After our conversation at lunch, I looked up the meal on the school’s lunch website and I found that the picture included vegetables such as lettuce and tomatoes. Notably, vegetables are not included in the sandwich that you are given nor is it implied or made apparent that vegetables are a potential option to put onto your sandwich. One change that the school could make to improve on the spicy chicken sandwich is to find a way to get good quality meat at a reasonable or affordable price for the school. Secondly, they could use different spices or rubs in the chicken in order to increase the spice level. Lastly, to increase the crisp of the chicken, the chicken could be cooked for longer or at higher temperatures. I have not had a spicy chicken sandwich however, I have had a chicken sandwich which I got from a cafeteria hall restaurant in Philadelphia. I noticed that in the school sandwich, it does not have pickles in the sandwich which the sandwich that I had did have. The meat was also a much better quality, the bun looked and tasted better and the chicken was crispy. Overall, the chicken sandwich that I had was much better than the school’s.

Gluten Free Options Review by Emilee Biello

In the welcoming Somerset Berkeley Regional High School lays a large student dining center offering a wide variety of breakfast and lunch options for high school students to enjoy. Its dining hall holds and serves over hundreds of students each day catering to each and every student. However due to the high capacity of guests and their age group the facility is often messy. I find myself dodging other people’s chicken gravy that had been spilled on the table or have to watch where I sit making sure there won’t be any mystery substances on my pants when I finish eating, and I was quickly rushed out of my seat after just 20 minutes of eating, when it took me over 10 minutes to even get my food. 

As someone with severe celiac disease I can safely eat there and so can people with all other allergies! I have eaten there for two days, the first day receiving a ham sandwich and the second day a cheese pizza (pizza is pictured below). I only waited 5 minutes to receive the ham sandwich rather than the 10 minutes I waited for the pizza the following day. It was supposed to have ham, cheese, lettuce, and tomato. Both the ham and cheese were soggy, but tolerable after I pressed all the juice out with a napkin, and there were no tomatoes to be seen. I was given oranges and cucumbers as a healthy side and I enjoyed those. The next day the pizza was tolerable but not something I would enjoy. The only thing I would actually enjoy from this facility is their add on sides like chips, flavored waters and more, however they cost at least double the price than if you were to buy them from a local supermarket. 

Overall the menu had a wide variety and was very inclusive to all people. However this establishment needs to improve their service and food quality.

Italian Sub Review by Theo Murphy

On Monday, January 5th, the Somerset Berkley cafeteria menu offered an Italian sandwich. This sandwich came from the “SO DELI” station of the lunchroom and had many options for toppings. These options included four meats, five cheeses, lettuce, tomatoes, banana peppers, pickles, and black olives on one of three breads or wraps. I chose to eat mine with salami, ham, provolone cheese, lettuce, pickles, and banana peppers, topped with olive oil and vinegar. The staff was very kind and made a relatively good sandwich. The sub was very flavorful; however, it was also very messy. When I first picked it up, the majority of the olive oil, vinegar, and some of the lettuce and pickles spilled off.

When compared to the other food offered by the school, the sandwich was close to the top of the list, but other places make Italian sandwiches that are far superior. The sandwich was free, so it is hard to complain about it, but the portions weren’t very large. Also, although the sandwich was flavorful, there are many sandwiches I’ve had that are much more flavorful, notably Jersey Mike’s Italian grinder. The bun also wasn’t toasted and wasn’t cut in a way that contained the ingredients that fell off. 

Although the environment in the deli was good, the environment of the eating space, the cafeteria, was not great. It was chaotic and loud, with at least 100 high school students in it. Considering I ate the food in a school, this is the type of environment to expect; however, this is not a place I would recommend other people to eat in. It was also difficult to find a seat, and the tables were cluttered with other people’s food and belongings.

In addition to the Italian sub, the school offered other lunch options. Some of these were ravioli, hamburgers, cheeseburgers, spicy and non-spicy chicken sandwiches, cheese and pepperoni pizza, a tuna melt, and other deli sandwiches. I’ve heard from peers that the ravioli was okay, but the cheese wasn’t very warm. I’ve also heard that the tuna melt was pretty good, but the fries were unusually bad.

Overall, my dining experience was okay. It was not anything special, but I also can’t say that it was bad. Out of ten, I would give the environment a seven and the food a five, giving my experience a six out of ten. However, I have had experiences in the past that were better than this. My food has been larger and less messy, and the environment was less chaotic, though this wasn’t the case today. I wouldn’t recommend others to get food here, but I also wouldn’t tell them not to come.

BBQ Chicken Review by Piper Estabrooks

I walked into a crowded and loud environment of the cafeteria full of hungry kids crowding the lines. The cafeteria was full of different options I could choose from to enjoy. I chose to grab a BBQ pizza but there were two other pizza options that included cheese pizza and pepperoni. On the menu, the BBQ pizza was described as a whole grain crust topped with BBQ sauce, chicken, onions and mozzarella. They also offer a main meal that changes every day; today was a chicken and mashed potato bowl. Different types of salads, premade sandwiches, parfaits, and an option to create your own sandwich, sub, or wrap are also available.  Students have the option to choose different types of sides such as a variety of fruits and vegetables. I personally did not grab a side to go with my pizza. Once I sat down and picked up my pizza, all the cheese and toppings began to slide off my food. I then came to the realization that the only thing that didn’t fall off were the alleged onions, that’s because they were falsely promised, which only made a sad pizza more depressing. The bread on the falling apart pizza tasted a little raw and microwaved and most of the artificial frozen chicken squares had already fallen off. I finished most of the meal, but was unsatisfied and disappointed that a usually enjoyable meal turned out so badly, though I did enjoy the sauce on the chicken.  I feel as though if it were made with better quality ingredients this would’ve helped the synthetic taste. I’ve enjoyed many pizzas from many places. One of my favorite places to enjoy a nice hot quality pizza is Dominos. Personally, I feel that the school’s pizza is much lower quality and not comparable to a classic Dominos pizza.

Cheese Stuffed Ravioli by Gisele Pimental

SBRHS student dining center has all the tokens of your classic high school cafeteria. From the long tables to the line up style serving station to the student chatter. Dishes served that day included of various chicken sandwiches (spicy or regular). The cafeteria was also running the deli offering a Subway style service with the choice of wraps, rolls, or slices along with the Chicken Caesar salad and vegetarian salad. I chose to review the main dish, which was cheese stuffed ravioli described by the lunch menu as “tender pillows of zesty flavor that are always a popular crowd pleaser.”  The meal was served with a generous amount of breaded cheese filled ravioli with a marinara sauce dip, green beans, and a cheese stuffed breadstick in a tin lined tray to retain heat. The ravioli itself resembled a circular version of mozzarella cheese sticks with breading. The marinara sauce was smooth however it lacked a strong flavor that is usual with marinara dip. The green beans were seasoned with salt and black pepper. The breadstick has a flat shape stuffed with mozzarella cheese which you can see from the sides. The ravioli itself had the texture of reheated mozzarella sticks as in slightly chewy and lacking crunchiness. The internal temperature was significantly hot, and despite this the cheese wasn’t melted. The sauce itself was warm and helped add flavor to the dish, cutting the oils and dryness you would get from the breading and cheese. The overcooked pasta was a bit chewy, but that was mostly masked by the breading and sauce. The meal was saved, however, by the side dish. Thanks to the melted cheese, butter, and rightfully toasted bread, the breadstick was the best part of the meal.