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Daily Meal's recent listicle, "10 College Towns with the Best Food," raised the question: Which college towns have the worst food? We scoured small-town newspapers, blogs, websites, free weeklies, chat boards, and student newspapers for data, seeking the lamest, greasiest, most average, or most boring things America's college students come face to face with in red plastic fry baskets or clamshell takeout boxes. Here, in no particular order of badness, is the syllabus of shame:
1. Muncie, Indiana: Ball State University
The city's official website lists Walmart as a shopping attraction. The same website also lists Baskin-Robbins under its grand total of four spotlighted restaurants, including "Muncie's first Indian Restaurant."
2. Ruston, Louisiana: Louisiana Tech
Not only is Ruston a minuscule town with little to do, it's also semidry: Only restaurants can serve booze. Plus, one of the most popular student restaurants appears to be named Dawghouse.
3. Waco, Texas: Baylor University
Waco is so bereft of good restaurants that a local food blogger actually praised the food at Chili's and Red Lobster. Options are so scarce that students routinely drive two hours to Dallas to visit the Cheesecake Factory.
4. Augusta, Georgia: Augusta State University, Augusta Technical College
Augusta is home to International Paper, which calls itself "one of the most productive paper mills in the world." You like your meatloaf with a side of stench?
5. Gainesville, Florida: University of Florida
This tiny backwater, home to your reporter's alma mater, is a snarl of generic sports bars with greasy wings and two-for-one pitchers of Bud. Florida's bugs and humidity are horrifying, but at least you can usually console yourself with excellent Cuban, Jamaican, and Puerto Rican food and decent barbecue. Except you won't find good versions of any of that here. More ammunition: The town's longtime popular Chinese joint, located directly across from the university, was named Chinee Takee Outee.
6. Holland, Michigan: Hope College
Long John Silver's and Pizza Hut are featured on the city's official website. Did you know Long John's specializes in batter-dipped fish? It's true. Also, there's a coffeehouse called Lemonjello's.
7. Farmington, Maine: University of Maine Farmington
"Everything in Farmington, ME is horrible," says tamerlanenj on the Chowhound boards. "Just a little warning in case you should find yourself passing through. Keep right on driving." Seems the three best-known restaurants in town are a controversial soup place, a diner specializing in Sysco cuisine, and a pub that serves "universally terrible" dinner food, according to tamerlanenj. Not to worry, though: There's also a McD's, a BK, a Pizza Hut ...
8. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama
It can't possibly be a good sign that the town's official convention and visitors bureau lists Bama Belle Riverboat under "fine dining." Meanwhile, on the restaurant site linked to Tuscaloosa's official city page, two of the five best restaurants in town appear to be a chain deli and a sports bar. More damning: The city's newspaper doesn't even have a dining section.
9. Erie, Pennsylvania: Penn State Erie
Dining options are so miserable in this podunk town that french fries appear on the plates of almost a third of photographed dishes reviewed in the local paper in the last few months.
10. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University
Aptly described by a wag on the City-Data boards as "just one giant strip mall," this charmless city offers its residents an unceasing menu of chains (Applebee's, Chili's, two Quiznos, two Schlotzsky's, six Sonics, and—dear God—18 Subways), undistinguished "cantina" Tex-Mex, and "college food" joints pushing pizzas, wings, and subs.
Image source: Flickr member Stephen To under Creative Commons
You put Holland, MI on here? Wow...I spent a week there and found it to have some of the best food of any city I've visited of this size...most restaurants downtown have excellent craft brew selections (many ONLY serve craft brews) and a number of places serve locally sourced foods.
Man. Lazy journalism, Chow. I've had great food in Holland, and ate pretty well in Waco, too. And I think I found the restaurants on Chowhound.
Since when does a town's industry or the name of a restaurant have any bearing on the quality of food? Next time you decide to write an article about food, please, do us all a favor and put some of it in your mouth first. Is there anyway to get the 3 minutes of my life back that I spent reading your rhetoric. I hope whatever college you went to had incredible food becuase they're obviously not...+READ
Since when does a town's industry or the name of a restaurant have any bearing on the quality of food? Next time you decide to write an article about food, please, do us all a favor and put some of it in your mouth first. Is there anyway to get the 3 minutes of my life back that I spent reading your rhetoric. I hope whatever college you went to had incredible food becuase they're obviously not known for their journalism.-COLLAPSE
I'm a Wacoan and I think you greatly misjudge the food selection here.
Outside of chains there are restaurants to fit your every craving just about here.
Craving Chinese? Try out the Cathay House. It has a great atmosphere and you get a lot of great food for a fairly low price. There is also Happy Wok which sits close to MCC(McLennan Community College) that is very popular and, though it is...+READ
I'm a Wacoan and I think you greatly misjudge the food selection here.
Outside of chains there are restaurants to fit your every craving just about here.
Craving Chinese? Try out the Cathay House. It has a great atmosphere and you get a lot of great food for a fairly low price. There is also Happy Wok which sits close to MCC(McLennan Community College) that is very popular and, though it is not the nicest looking for places, has great food.
Wanting Thai food? Try Bangkok Royal in the downtown area of Waco. You can more than get your curry fix in this cozy restaurants.
How about Mediterranean? Try D's Mediterranean. Waco's best place to get things such as shawarma.
For a great bar and grill type atmosphere you can go to Cricket's which, like Bangkok Royal, is in the downtown area of Waco not far from Baylor campus. You can sit down in their nice restaurant or go and play some pool or, my personal favorite, shuffleboard. It is also home to one of Waco's best draft beer selections. Another great bar and grill is the Salty Dog. Located on Valley Mills, this place offers a comfortable outside seating area where you can try your stomach at their Salty Dog challenge.
Want good southern food? You can't go wrong visiting the Lake Brazos Steakhouse off of MLK Blvd. Rebuilt after burning down, this places offers a great outside sitting area with a wonderful view of the river. It also offers and fairly good selection of food for reasonable prices.
Then there is also numerous Mexican, or Tex-Mex if you prefer, restaurants all throughout Waco. My personal favorites are the Taqueria located on 19th street near MCC and El Conquistador.
These places are just the tip of the iceberg regarding the good places to eat in Waco. It does not touch on many of the more mom and pop type places nor does it touch on the places located just on the outskirts of Waco (Such as Griff's which is located in China Spring. A great place to go if you're craving some southern cooking. Their chicken fried steak is some of the best in the area.)-COLLAPSE
Did you actually go to any of these places or did you just look at the city website? I live in Waco and went to A&M. There are some great places to eat and/or hang out in both towns. There's no mention of all the mom and pop's that make these communities great, just what you consider good chain food. Try actually eating the food in an area before criticizing it loser!
In the last month for work, I've visited community colleges in northeast Iowa; Flint, Mich.; and southwest Texas that would be wildly improved by the presence of even a Schlotzsky's. I haven't touched a vegetable—aside from iceberg lettuce—all month.
Holland, Michigan is actually a lovely little resort town with some terrific restaurants downtown in the campus area. Most importantly, Holland is home to one of the best breweries/distilleries in the Midwest--New Holland Brewing. Their brew pub serves great modern pub fare to go along with their excellent beers.
How about actually VISITING these locations before you write about them rather than just pulling random snarky comments from various websites to create your "reviews"???
how can blacksburg not be included!
I've lived in the Augusta area for a year now and I still haven't been to all the restaurants I want to try! Just this weekend my husband and I had excellent tapas at The Bees Knees. There are quite a few great eateries in the downtown area, we've enjoyed Soy Noodle House, Casa Blanca, and New Moon Cafe so far. Polka Dot Pig and the French Market Grille are good too. There is an excellent Turkish...+READ
I've lived in the Augusta area for a year now and I still haven't been to all the restaurants I want to try! Just this weekend my husband and I had excellent tapas at The Bees Knees. There are quite a few great eateries in the downtown area, we've enjoyed Soy Noodle House, Casa Blanca, and New Moon Cafe so far. Polka Dot Pig and the French Market Grille are good too. There is an excellent Turkish restaurant in nearby Evans. The CSRA area has diverse food options--German, Italian, French, Indian, Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, the list goes on. There's even a Peri-Peri chicken restaurant (DiChicko's). Sure, there's a paper mill, but I only notice the smell a couple of days a month, and it's certainly not a reason to discount the food scene!-COLLAPSE
Re: Gainesville, FL - It's obvious that this reporter never left the immediate university campus area! You have to cross the street in many directions, take a trip to Archer Road, go downtown once in a while, etc. While Gainesville is not a big city, it nonetheless has numerous good restaurants & has had since I moved here in 1982.
It's odd that I don't see Pullman, WA (Washington State University) on your list.
It was years ago, but the best bbq ribs I've ever had were at the original Dreamland Inn in Tuscaloosa.
This isn't food journalism. What exactly is CHOW going for with this caliber of writing? This article is to food what Star magazine is to celebrity: shallow, riddled with overstatements and inaccurate assumptions, and not even pretending to be intelligent. Don't even get me started on the contributor's apparent lack of understanding regarding the function of city websites and visitor's bereaus...
Hey, Farmington has a pretty good Thai place now! Maybe it should get a reprieve...
When was this writer last in Holland MI? Places like Boatwerks, Butch's, City Flats, The Currah and New Holland Brewing are just a few of the upscale places, but perhaps she only heard from students on a budget that is better suited to McD's and the like. Or, as been suggested, she probably has never been to any of these towns.
I think this whole thing was a gimick for them to get more people to like their facebook page and register. What do ya'll think?
Nashville has some great food for a college town with schools such as Vanderbilt, Belmont, and Lipscomb to name a few.
WHOA WHOA WHOA NOW. Really? I was all ready to nod my head and agree with your listings and then you had to put Waco on the list. That is a fight and a half. Just because some college students from Baylor don't have any clue where to go, and you said.. they went to the freaking cheesecake factory? Um. So Waco doesn't have a cheesecake factory? That sounds like a good thing to me. Joyce, try...+READ
WHOA WHOA WHOA NOW. Really? I was all ready to nod my head and agree with your listings and then you had to put Waco on the list. That is a fight and a half. Just because some college students from Baylor don't have any clue where to go, and you said.. they went to the freaking cheesecake factory? Um. So Waco doesn't have a cheesecake factory? That sounds like a good thing to me. Joyce, try Buzzard Billy's for great Cajun eats. Go to Uncle Dan's for Fantastic local barbecue. Diamondback's if you want a steak. There is the Bangkok Royal for great Thai food. Then there is fantastic little divey places for mexican that have great menudo, posole, barbacoa etc. Dee's Mediteranian Delite for great lebanese and hell they do great fried chicken. There's the Elite Circle for american pub fare. Then if you want a classic greasy burger, go to Healthcamp. Really 'drive 2 hours for a cheesecake factory' there are messed up people in this world who think that place is great. I don't know what or who you based your article on but you need to apologize to the food scene in Waco. Worst. Article. Ever.-COLLAPSE
I don't deny that Ruston is not a town with a lot of food options, but I do think your reasoning is absurd. In an article about bad food you gave no examples of bad food in Ruston. Not serving alcohol has nothing to do with food quality, and neither does the name of a restaurant.
Did you visit any of these places or just check what people are saying on City Data? That's some fine journalism. Your entry on Augusta, GA didn't even mention any restaurants, you just implied that decent food and a paper mill can't exist in the same city. Maybe I'll write an article on "The 10 Laziest Writers." I've already found one, so to copy your technique I'll only have to Google nine...+READ
Did you visit any of these places or just check what people are saying on City Data? That's some fine journalism. Your entry on Augusta, GA didn't even mention any restaurants, you just implied that decent food and a paper mill can't exist in the same city. Maybe I'll write an article on "The 10 Laziest Writers." I've already found one, so to copy your technique I'll only have to Google nine more.-COLLAPSE
apparenty, while visiting Erie,Pa., you failed to get off the interstate. within 10 min of PSU Erie, there is a fine Italian rest, a place that has BBQ that would make a Memphis resident drool, The usual chain food places, & more mom & pop diners than you can shake a stick at(most known for some specialty or another) go 20minin any direction, we have more choices for steak, fish, or vegan than...+READ
apparenty, while visiting Erie,Pa., you failed to get off the interstate. within 10 min of PSU Erie, there is a fine Italian rest, a place that has BBQ that would make a Memphis resident drool, The usual chain food places, & more mom & pop diners than you can shake a stick at(most known for some specialty or another) go 20minin any direction, we have more choices for steak, fish, or vegan than you could possibly choose from. Not to mention some very fine wineries-COLLAPSE
Wow. Maybe you should, I don't know, do some research or check your sources. Farmington actually has some pretty amazing food. It's actually rare that I meet anyone that doesn't like Soup For You. The Homestead Bakery is actually all homemade food. The ladies that do the baking of bakery items also make homemade breads for the local school lunches. The Granary isn't even there anymore (despite...+READ
Wow. Maybe you should, I don't know, do some research or check your sources. Farmington actually has some pretty amazing food. It's actually rare that I meet anyone that doesn't like Soup For You. The Homestead Bakery is actually all homemade food. The ladies that do the baking of bakery items also make homemade breads for the local school lunches. The Granary isn't even there anymore (despite having the best food in that area of town), so it shouldn't appear on your list, anyway. But, I see that you are just choosing one person's opinion and calling it fact, so feel free to disregard this and all the other comments telling you how great the food is in these towns.
Enjoy your mediocrity.-COLLAPSE
I'm no fan of the politics of Holland/Hope College but Holland has some great restaurants, local sourcing, great wines, plus really good architecture/design with the proximity of Steelcase and their cadre of designers. Nice city with a charming downtown.
Gainesville is a "tiny backwater?" Did you get your degree on line or something? What city are you from, Slicker?
Can you get paid for writing under reseached articles? Because I can pump those out pretty quickly. All I do is go to the municipal board of commerce website and pick out the chain restaurants, right?
You are clearly wrong about gainesville. You say you graduated from here? I thought we trained our journalists better than this... This article is untrue, ridiculous, and one of the reasons I HATE the media.
What about Mi Apa, Flaco's, Leonardo's, Leonardo's 706, The Top, Dragonfly, MT's Chophouse, Emilianos, Manuel's vintage room, Harry's, Liquid Ginger, Mark's Prime, Munchies 420, and the...+READ
You are clearly wrong about gainesville. You say you graduated from here? I thought we trained our journalists better than this... This article is untrue, ridiculous, and one of the reasons I HATE the media.
What about Mi Apa, Flaco's, Leonardo's, Leonardo's 706, The Top, Dragonfly, MT's Chophouse, Emilianos, Manuel's vintage room, Harry's, Liquid Ginger, Mark's Prime, Munchies 420, and the HUNDREDS of others? Not to mention hundreds of popular chains. Clearly you have no idea what you are talking about.-COLLAPSE
Farmington has a lot of locally-owned places within walking distance to campus that are worth checking out. Saying that it's one of the college towns with the worst food choices based on one person's comments is pretty bad, especially since those comments must have come from a while back--the diner went out of business a few years ago. I've visited a lot of college towns and colleges--I've always...+READ
Farmington has a lot of locally-owned places within walking distance to campus that are worth checking out. Saying that it's one of the college towns with the worst food choices based on one person's comments is pretty bad, especially since those comments must have come from a while back--the diner went out of business a few years ago. I've visited a lot of college towns and colleges--I've always thought Farmington had some of the best food.-COLLAPSE
Holland, MI may not have any restaurants worth talking about, but a friend of mine runs the food service at the college, and he's an excellent chef. The students DO have the opportunity for some good food.
I'm with the rest of the crowd here.Joyce you should stuff your face with cheese puffs and stay home. Keep your base-less opinions to yourself.
The article is written from the "Local eatery = good" standpoint as well. Many times correct, but many times incorrect. One should remember that chain places, while boring compared to great food, are still very popular in many locations for they do serve some good eats.
You are to hard to please. For one thing you don't know what your talking about when it comes to G-ville. You must be one of those people who frequent G-ville just to watch their team get the crap beat out of them. People like you don't stick around after the game to go out and eat.They get their food on the interstate homebound.
Muncie, Indiana is Number 1? Obviously the writers have never been to Terre Haute.
Oh, wow. You went to small town Texas and checked it on a website? Dumb you. You missed some incredible Mexican and Tex Mex, some seriously amazing and authentic (to the point of being scary) Chinese, and well obviously you just screwed up in all kinds of ways on the bar b que front. There is incredible Tex-Czech and German food around as well. None of these are chains, I doubt any are online,...+READ
Oh, wow. You went to small town Texas and checked it on a website? Dumb you. You missed some incredible Mexican and Tex Mex, some seriously amazing and authentic (to the point of being scary) Chinese, and well obviously you just screwed up in all kinds of ways on the bar b que front. There is incredible Tex-Czech and German food around as well. None of these are chains, I doubt any are online, and if you didn't bother to look, ask or listen, your problem.
I grew up in Dallas-Fort Worth and Austin, I have lived in London and Milan, and trust me there is amazing food in College Station fully on par with large cities and even better, there are amazing food producers all around the town. Eating, cooking and learning there was a complete joy. Don't be an idiot and don't be afraid to explore, and leave your judgments at the county line.
Gainesville is the same damn way. If you don't know how to navigate a small town, don't assume you, no matter your foodie-cred, have even scratched the surface. Gainesville, best chicken wings ever and some seriously yummy pizza. As far as Baylor students driving the the Cheesecake Factory in Dallas, get a grip. As if freshmen in college aren't going to express their freedom by getting for themselves what might have been a very special treat when they were younger, that has nothing do with what may or may not be available in Waco. I have also been a guest in Tuscaloosa, same thing.
Seriously, from the four examples of the belittled towns I know of, I feel safe in adding the rest to my list of places to visit, and I imagine that with a little exploration and willingness to listen, I could be a very well fed, very welcomed visitor.
Finally, I really have to ask, did you GO to these places, or look online and judge? Actually, regardless of the tack you took, you would have had a horrible eating experience in the places I know. No one likes an uptight snob, and why would we share our food and hospitality with you? We'd just want you out.-COLLAPSE
Man that 's a really unfair rep to throw on Gainesville. It has awesome ethnic food as you stated, but it also has a great selection of inspired vegetarian food (The Top), good old School subs (Hogan's) and one of the coolest pizza joints ever (Satchel's). There are many other places I won't list for brevities sake. I know it's become cool to knock where you are from, but at least be fair. It's a...+READ
Man that 's a really unfair rep to throw on Gainesville. It has awesome ethnic food as you stated, but it also has a great selection of inspired vegetarian food (The Top), good old School subs (Hogan's) and one of the coolest pizza joints ever (Satchel's). There are many other places I won't list for brevities sake. I know it's become cool to knock where you are from, but at least be fair. It's a working class college town that loves football so if you see a lot of wing joints it makes sense. Something tells me you were one of the kids in G-ville pissed off on saturdays because football games interupted your sulking walk to the common grounds. (To be fair the common grounds is a cool spot.)-COLLAPSE
Charmless city? You clearly have not been to College Station, as mentioned by many commenters. I currently live in Paris, have travelled to or lived in many major cities in the US and Europe, eaten at many fine dining restaurants, and find that Aggieland has more charm than many of these placex. Go have a drink at the Chicken, dinner at The Republic or Cenare or Casa Rodriguez, a milky waz latte...+READ
Charmless city? You clearly have not been to College Station, as mentioned by many commenters. I currently live in Paris, have travelled to or lived in many major cities in the US and Europe, eaten at many fine dining restaurants, and find that Aggieland has more charm than many of these placex. Go have a drink at the Chicken, dinner at The Republic or Cenare or Casa Rodriguez, a milky waz latte at Sweet Eugene's, and talk to the owners and patrons. Then write an article. What is the point in bashing these towns you have never visited? Plus towns like College Station are COLLEGE towns, catering to college students, not the elite of Manhattan. Regardless, I'd say they are doing pretty well and are always growing.
PS- Where is the other Quizno`s? I only saw one in my 3 years there and it was always empty.-COLLAPSE
Erie, PA is not a 'college town.' We're talking a county population of over 280,000 and with four colleges/universities with a total student body of about 18,000. To me a 'college town' would be defined by a population of greater than 6% students! Six percent! I think the definition would be around 30-40%?
Also, the PSU branch is not even called "Penn State Erie." In fact, it's not even...+READ
Erie, PA is not a 'college town.' We're talking a county population of over 280,000 and with four colleges/universities with a total student body of about 18,000. To me a 'college town' would be defined by a population of greater than 6% students! Six percent! I think the definition would be around 30-40%?
Also, the PSU branch is not even called "Penn State Erie." In fact, it's not even located in the City of Erie.
If I wrote this article I'd think about finding a new career that you are actually good at.-COLLAPSE
You should give yourself a dozen whips with a wet noodle for your pure superficialty.
I dont have time to go through them all but a couple minutes on that Waco blog reveals 15 bbq places, a place with really good cinnamon buns and mexican and salvadorean places. The fact that students that LIKE chains travel for cheesecake factory is a judgment on those students, not the town.
And Erie PA...+READ
You should give yourself a dozen whips with a wet noodle for your pure superficialty.
I dont have time to go through them all but a couple minutes on that Waco blog reveals 15 bbq places, a place with really good cinnamon buns and mexican and salvadorean places. The fact that students that LIKE chains travel for cheesecake factory is a judgment on those students, not the town.
And Erie PA is a pleasant and dignified city with its own tradition of "dinors", hardly podunk. We ate some non-Sysco non chain food there last year.
i feel confident that there are many college towns with worse food than those two. dont have time to pass judgement on the rest of the list. Weve been thru Clarion PA a few times recently for example and it has to stack up worse than ERIE.-COLLAPSE
Not sure what is so bad about Erie, PA. Only one week looks like it has french fries in it. the rest of the food looks like it is pretty good.
I agree with half of the commenters, your seriously mistaken and it seems you got all of your information from poor sources. You may need to take a primary course in research gathering. As for Tuscaloosa, home of my almamater, the Bama Belle Riverboat is fine dining, do some more googling Slaton. There are numerous restaurants within in Tuscaloosa that revival any major city. The resturants range...+READ
I agree with half of the commenters, your seriously mistaken and it seems you got all of your information from poor sources. You may need to take a primary course in research gathering. As for Tuscaloosa, home of my almamater, the Bama Belle Riverboat is fine dining, do some more googling Slaton. There are numerous restaurants within in Tuscaloosa that revival any major city. The resturants range from dives all the way to fine dining. You use the word "appear" all too often in this piece. I feel your writing style will work for fox news better then chow, go write some bias/uneducated garbage on that site.-COLLAPSE
Did you even read the article you sourced for Waco? It seemed to make a fairly strong argument IN FAVOR of their local restaurants:
"Nonetheless, there's a certain stigma that has been attached to chain restaurants. I don't want to dissect it, but let me suggest one place that it might originate. We love our local places. Why shouldn't we? We have a ton of spots here in town that were started...+READ
Did you even read the article you sourced for Waco? It seemed to make a fairly strong argument IN FAVOR of their local restaurants:
"Nonetheless, there's a certain stigma that has been attached to chain restaurants. I don't want to dissect it, but let me suggest one place that it might originate. We love our local places. Why shouldn't we? We have a ton of spots here in town that were started by people who live here, people you still see whenever you walk through the door. And that's a wonderful thing. It's ideal really. It makes our town unique, it gives us good places to dine and socialize and therefore local people have a successful business."-COLLAPSE
Waco is nothing to write home about in general, but there are at least a dozen good places to eat...and no chain restaurant is included in that dozen.
But I guess when you don't research...you write articles like this.
By the way Hullabaloo barely counts as it was very recently annexed. When it was featured on Food Network it belonged to the Wellborn community and if you ask the wellborn people, it still does. Therefore Hullabaloo doesn't count and anyways its a greasy diner. Yes it adds color to a dull town but its far from fine dining with its mediocre food.
I have lived in BCS for the last 5 years. While this article does fail to mention many restaurants, many of the restaurants it fails to mention also fail to perform. I would not give College Station enough credit to even call it a strip mall. The only restaurant worth mentioning is Veritas Wine & Bistro. Christophers World Grill is overpriced garbage with terrible service, Maddens gets an...+READ
I have lived in BCS for the last 5 years. While this article does fail to mention many restaurants, many of the restaurants it fails to mention also fail to perform. I would not give College Station enough credit to even call it a strip mall. The only restaurant worth mentioning is Veritas Wine & Bistro. Christophers World Grill is overpriced garbage with terrible service, Maddens gets an honorable mention and everything else is either a chain or just plain terrible food, especially Chicken Oil which the locals here seem to think is fine dining.-COLLAPSE
Dear College Station:
We'll take some of those extra Sonics you have here in No. VA. We could give you some good ethnic food in return.
One glaring omission from this list is Storrs, CT, home of UConn, the Huskies, and no place worth eating.
You obviously have never been to Bryan/College Station. Since you like citing other people research, The Food Network Has been blessed by the food scene in B/CS twice. Diners, Drive ins and Dives featured Hullaballoo which is a great diner that any local could have told you about, and Chef Tai's Mobile Gourmet was in first place for much of the voting in the Next Great Food truck Race. A...+READ
You obviously have never been to Bryan/College Station. Since you like citing other people research, The Food Network Has been blessed by the food scene in B/CS twice. Diners, Drive ins and Dives featured Hullaballoo which is a great diner that any local could have told you about, and Chef Tai's Mobile Gourmet was in first place for much of the voting in the Next Great Food truck Race. A competition that featured competitors from all over the country and the winner will be revealed on September 25th. Had you taken the time you could have easily found these two establishments already highlighted. If you had, as any true foodie would, visited B/CS and talked to anyone, you would have found a plethora of dining options covering nearly every cuisine and every budget. Your laziness disappoints me. Had you toured our food scene and come up with an objective opinion taking into account what our town has to offer. I could at least respect you for your opinion and Chow.com for publishing it. Your inept attempt at journalism is a stain on this website. I would expect such an uneducated. poorly researched opinion to appear on someone's blog written in a basement by someone with no appreciation for food or journalistic integrity. The next time you have an idea for an article that you either don't have the time, passion, or ability to pursue, keep it to yourself.-COLLAPSE
I live in the BCS area and love the variety of food available. I really think this list is just a way to bash cities and towns you probably have never been to and never spent more than 10 minutes driving down University Drive. There are other popular streets that have plenty of different food places. So what if we have chain restuarants, I thought that was why they were called chain restuarants...+READ
I live in the BCS area and love the variety of food available. I really think this list is just a way to bash cities and towns you probably have never been to and never spent more than 10 minutes driving down University Drive. There are other popular streets that have plenty of different food places. So what if we have chain restuarants, I thought that was why they were called chain restuarants because they are EVERYWHERE! I completely disagree with your ENTIRE article, but if you have a small brain you know that the BCS is a great place to party!-COLLAPSE
College Station, Texas has more to offer than what is mentioned above...Koppe Bridge, Casa Rodriguez, Papa Perez, Mr. G's, Christopher's World Grille, Cenare's, Martin's BBQ, Chicken Oil Co, Freebirds, Zappado's...you just have to get of of University Drive to find anyone of these....
Here are some of the College Station eating establishments that you failed to mention: Cafe Excell, Christophers World Grill, Luigi's Patio Ristorante, Pey Wei, Cenare Italian Cuisine, Fontana's,Veritas - Wine - Bistro, The Republic,La Bodega, Blue Baker, C&J's BBQ,Newk's Express Cafe, Freebirds World Burrito, Laynes Chicken, Shiraz Shishkabob, Madden's Casual Gourmet, Fuego Tortilla Grill,...+READ
Here are some of the College Station eating establishments that you failed to mention: Cafe Excell, Christophers World Grill, Luigi's Patio Ristorante, Pey Wei, Cenare Italian Cuisine, Fontana's,Veritas - Wine - Bistro, The Republic,La Bodega, Blue Baker, C&J's BBQ,Newk's Express Cafe, Freebirds World Burrito, Laynes Chicken, Shiraz Shishkabob, Madden's Casual Gourmet, Fuego Tortilla Grill, Bostons Gourmet Pizza and these are just a few I thought of off the top of my head!
I think our selection of eating establishments is great! The only problem is the lines you have to wait in in order to go to them! Gig'em Aggies!-COLLAPSE
I've lived in Muncie, and Waco and have travelled to College Station several times. Sounds like Joyce Slaton didn't bother to visit or even pick up the phone to ask locals about where they go. Muncie has some great sports bars and Mexican restaurants. Waco and College Station are also home to some of the best barbeque joints in Texas. Anthony Bourdain even did an episode on it! And seriously,...+READ
I've lived in Muncie, and Waco and have travelled to College Station several times. Sounds like Joyce Slaton didn't bother to visit or even pick up the phone to ask locals about where they go. Muncie has some great sports bars and Mexican restaurants. Waco and College Station are also home to some of the best barbeque joints in Texas. Anthony Bourdain even did an episode on it! And seriously, these are small cities we're talking about. Of course they have fewer options. Joyce I don't know much about you but this article makes you look lazy.-COLLAPSE
You can tell by the author's sources cited that she's never been to these cities; she's simply basing her list on food bloggers and convention bureau's lists (the latter, oftentimes, are paid for by the restaurants). I lived not the typical four, but SEVEN years in College Station; it's not a foodie mecca but you could easily eat out for weeks worth of meals and not enter one chain. Honestly,...+READ
You can tell by the author's sources cited that she's never been to these cities; she's simply basing her list on food bloggers and convention bureau's lists (the latter, oftentimes, are paid for by the restaurants). I lived not the typical four, but SEVEN years in College Station; it's not a foodie mecca but you could easily eat out for weeks worth of meals and not enter one chain. Honestly, there's a small part of me that wants to find the author in a dark alley in Bryan and take her by the collar and say "bitch let's take a walk and I'll show you good eating. And by the way, you're paying."-COLLAPSE
No question that College Station is berift of decent eateries. Some have tried and failed to improved the selection, but they all go out of business within a year or two. The culture just does not support much difference of opinion ... or excitement, for that matter.
I've never known a Baylor student to drive 2 hours to Dallas for Cheesecake Factory. Why would you have to? Gratzianos, The Elite, or 135 Prime will all work. There are plenty of good hidden places like Baris, D's Mediterranean, The Olive Branch, and Amelia's. You clearly didn't do ANY research on this article except to look up an idiot local food blogger (by the way, I couldn't find this blog)
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I've never known a Baylor student to drive 2 hours to Dallas for Cheesecake Factory. Why would you have to? Gratzianos, The Elite, or 135 Prime will all work. There are plenty of good hidden places like Baris, D's Mediterranean, The Olive Branch, and Amelia's. You clearly didn't do ANY research on this article except to look up an idiot local food blogger (by the way, I couldn't find this blog)
Also College Station has PLENTY of awesome places. Veritas, Maddens, and Christophers all come to mind. They have a pretty wide array of food choices too: everything from sushi to Indian to Vietnamese.-COLLAPSE
Teeum, appreciate the great list. My parents live close by so I can visit, and now I have a bunch of new places to try.
Haven't been to Gainesville in a few years, have you? Here's a quick list to debunk your junk: Satchels(If you think it's just pizza you haven't been there.), The Jones Eastside(Local food, amazing folks, would even do well in wine country), The Top(there are reasons these places start as nothing and are wildly successful!), Dragonfly(amazing sushi! Right upstairs is the World Headquarters of...+READ
Haven't been to Gainesville in a few years, have you? Here's a quick list to debunk your junk: Satchels(If you think it's just pizza you haven't been there.), The Jones Eastside(Local food, amazing folks, would even do well in wine country), The Top(there are reasons these places start as nothing and are wildly successful!), Dragonfly(amazing sushi! Right upstairs is the World Headquarters of GROOVESHARK!), Bento's (if you're looking for inexpensive boxes, sushi, sashimi look no further), Boca Fiesta (eclectic mexican, gotta love that name eh?), Las Margaritas(a favorite of many. I grew up in El Paso, so I'm pretty hard to please when it comes to Mex, but Las Marg ain't bad). That's a short list of good reasonably priced (well, maybe not Dragon Fly). We also have great Thai, and seafood restaurants, barbeque and steak places if that's what you're looking for. The last thing you'll go away from Gainesville with is an empty belly!-COLLAPSE
Wow. I would suggest that chow.com retract this whole article and reprimand the author for a poorly thought-out, unresearched, libelous excuse for an editorial. The author and chow.com owe an apology to every city on this list, and every hometown, independent restaurant that works hard to provide good food and an enjoyable atmosphere to the students, faculty, staff, and residents of their...+READ
Wow. I would suggest that chow.com retract this whole article and reprimand the author for a poorly thought-out, unresearched, libelous excuse for an editorial. The author and chow.com owe an apology to every city on this list, and every hometown, independent restaurant that works hard to provide good food and an enjoyable atmosphere to the students, faculty, staff, and residents of their communities. It's obvious that the author has never visited any of the places on this list, or if so didn't bother to actually find out where the students and the locals eat. From fast food (Layne's Chicken Fingers, Freebirds World Burritos, etc) to BBQ (C&J's and many others) to damn fine burgers (Chicken Oil Company, Koppe Bridge Bar and Grill) to fine dining (Veritas Wine and Bistro, Christopher's World Grille), I can say that College Station has the variety, the taste and the quality to meet any expectations.-COLLAPSE
I have to agree with the posters on here. UF has a ton of good food and is hardly some podoke town with one stoplight. There is a huge variety of food from upscale chains to local eats. You name it, you can find it. Granted I haven't lived there in ten years, but I can't imagine it's gone that downhill since then.
Why would you be citing Leonardo's Pizza in your reaction? It's not even in the top 3 best pizza places...try Satchel's and Big Lou's. Seriously, do you just eat at McDonald's when come to town?
Having dined at great restaurants as far away as Sydney & Paris...& I'm NOT talking about Paris, Texas, I can say without reservation that Veritas Bistro & Wine Bar in College Station, Texas, can hold its own with any Michelin starred restaurant in the world. Do I also eat at the proverbial cheap chain when visiting my son at Texas A&M? Sure. But when a good meal is desired, look no further than...+READ
Having dined at great restaurants as far away as Sydney & Paris...& I'm NOT talking about Paris, Texas, I can say without reservation that Veritas Bistro & Wine Bar in College Station, Texas, can hold its own with any Michelin starred restaurant in the world. Do I also eat at the proverbial cheap chain when visiting my son at Texas A&M? Sure. But when a good meal is desired, look no further than Veritas.-COLLAPSE
This appears to simply be a gratuitous opportunity to be snarky...
Get out from behind your ipad, quit reading Yelp, and actually go to the cities you've just slammed. 5 of the 10 have quality restaurants... but, of course, that wouldn't make for good reading.
Leonardos pizza: not very good. I'm sorry. I like going there, I like the place, I eat the food. The pizza is not good.
Hee hee, it's so true about my name. I know it's an old person name. What are you gonna do, it's my name? And I'm 42.
I lived in Gainesville for 8 years, and I go back many years for the punk rock festival. I love that town. But not the food. Granted, Caribbean Spice is awesome. And I do still have a soft spot in my heart for 706.
So are the lowered editorial standards at CBS Interactive a new corporate mandate, or just a legacy CNET thing?
You know how I know how old you are? Late 30s...wanna know how? Because you mention a place that hasn't been in Gainesville for 15 years. If you ever happened to drive this this "tiny backwater" (250,000, by the way), you would know how wrong you are. Are you seriously this hard up for blog topics?
As for Tuscaloosa, the ORIGINAL Dreamland BBQ. Forget the franchised knock-offs. Home turf is still great for ribs. Not fine dining by any means, but good food all around.
I am surprised by the addition of Holland, MI on this list. I reviewed Urbanspoon's list of restaurants, and they looked pretty good. I think that the city council should review their city's food options...
If you'd like good college town food visit Baton Rouge, great cajun fare : )
You obviously have not been to Gainesville in the last... Let me re-phrase. You have obviously never been to Gainesville. It would be wise to avoid commenting on things you know nothing about.
One of my favorite things about living in Gainesville is the food. Most restaurants are vegetarian- and vegan-friendly (and many source locally, if possible).
Good food places in Gainesville include: Leonardo's (By the Slice, Bistro and 706), The Jones Eastside, Mildred's, New Deal, Flaco's, Reggae Shack, Caribbean Queen, Tasty Buddha (formerly Buddha Belly), El Indio, Chopstix, La Tienda,...+READ
One of my favorite things about living in Gainesville is the food. Most restaurants are vegetarian- and vegan-friendly (and many source locally, if possible).
Good food places in Gainesville include: Leonardo's (By the Slice, Bistro and 706), The Jones Eastside, Mildred's, New Deal, Flaco's, Reggae Shack, Caribbean Queen, Tasty Buddha (formerly Buddha Belly), El Indio, Chopstix, La Tienda, Gator Dawgs, Karma Cream, Sweet Dreams, The Bull, Uppercrust (bakery), Harvest Thyme, Terrell's BBQ, The Top, Civilization, Green Mango. We also have a good local brewery: Swamp Head and several beer and wine bars (Alcove, Stubbies & Steins). And good locally-roasted coffee: Sweetwater. We have a good local grocer, Ward's, and a newly opened grocery co-op (Citizen's co-op). There are more than a handful of farmers markets throughout the week. I could go on.-COLLAPSE
Just gonna point out (as a current student at Louisiana Tech) if you haven't eaten at the restaurants, how do you know it's bad? The reason one of the most popular places to eat here is called the "Dawghouse" is because we are the Bulldogs (referred to unofficially as the "Dawgs"). It makes a lot more sense when you take it in context. Then Rabbs steakhouse has some of the best steaks I've ever...+READ
Just gonna point out (as a current student at Louisiana Tech) if you haven't eaten at the restaurants, how do you know it's bad? The reason one of the most popular places to eat here is called the "Dawghouse" is because we are the Bulldogs (referred to unofficially as the "Dawgs"). It makes a lot more sense when you take it in context. Then Rabbs steakhouse has some of the best steaks I've ever eaten. Do internet reporters have to actually do any research other than Google?-COLLAPSE
I grew up in Farmington, ME and while there may be just a few restaurants, there are definitely choices. Omitted from the list are a great hippie coffee shop, a new gelato and sandwich place, Homestead Bakery making fresh bread and serving a full menu in the large dining room, the "controversial" soup restaurant is actually quite good, there's a good ol' house of pizza serving authentic maine...+READ
I grew up in Farmington, ME and while there may be just a few restaurants, there are definitely choices. Omitted from the list are a great hippie coffee shop, a new gelato and sandwich place, Homestead Bakery making fresh bread and serving a full menu in the large dining room, the "controversial" soup restaurant is actually quite good, there's a good ol' house of pizza serving authentic maine italian sandwiches, not to mention the new thai restaurant that just opened right in downtown. It may not be "fine dining", but for rural Maine the selection is not that bad. Good job using just one biased source for your list entry.-COLLAPSE
This article just described more than half the college towns in the country. It has more to do with the size of the town than anything else. Visit any small college town in America and you'll find more of the same - all fast food, with perhaps 1 or 2 "sit down" restaurants - and those are chains. What do you expect to find in a city with a population of less than 25,000? Alinea?
Bob W, sorry to hear that Mama Lo's is no more. It was one of our favorites too.
A look at Trip Advisor restaurant reviews shows dozens of well-thought-of independent restaurants in Gainesville, Augusta, Waco, Muncie, College Station etc. The owners of which are going to be mighty annoyed when (and if) they read this slop.
Thanks for the support, redchief. When I was in Gainesville (91-92), there were no shortage of good eateries from junk food to fine dining. There was even a soul food restaurant that was so good it was featured in Roadfood -- Mama Lo's. I even got Mama Lo herself to autograph my copy. Sadly, when Mama Lo died, the restaurant went with her. 8
CHOW is really batting a thousand this week. Do they make you cross a snark threshold before they will publish your condescending and lazy pieces? There are 132 restaurants in Gainesville, 60 in College Station, 165 in Augusta, GA, 72 in Erie, PA, 65 in Waco, TX, 113 in Muncie, even 23 in little Ruston, LA (pop 23000). This tarring with such a broad brush is not only patently unfair, it's an...+READ
CHOW is really batting a thousand this week. Do they make you cross a snark threshold before they will publish your condescending and lazy pieces? There are 132 restaurants in Gainesville, 60 in College Station, 165 in Augusta, GA, 72 in Erie, PA, 65 in Waco, TX, 113 in Muncie, even 23 in little Ruston, LA (pop 23000). This tarring with such a broad brush is not only patently unfair, it's an insult to the many fine restaurants in these towns. As the daughter of UF Alums and one myself I also find the notion of Gainesville (pop 124,000 NOT INCLUDING the 50,000+ UF students) as a "tiny backwater" ridiculous. And for the record, Chinee Takee Outee wasn't there in the early 80s, and is hardly representative of available Chinese food in Gainesville. Maybe you should get off your butt, Miss Slaton to do your "research." You ought to be ashamed of yourself.-COLLAPSE
ClevelandRandy, it's been a while since I've been in Hogtown (19 years!), but it's my understanding that Leonardo's Pizza is still really good. Their pizza alone takes G'ville off this list!
There is plenty of crap right around the UF campus for sure, but there were some very nice restaurants downtown that in no way resembled college-type eateries.
list + article = listicle : clever. kinda sounds like testicle though. i'll be sure to avoid getting the munchies in these towns.
Bob W -- I'm on my way to Gainesville in mid-October. Let me know your suggestions for good quality chow.
The inclusion of Gainesville on this list has to be some sort of joke. Tiny backwater? Did you ever venture more than a block off campus, idiot?
I have to nominate my hometown, and home of the University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK. In many ways, it makes Bryan/College Station look like a foodie mecca.
Heaven forbid that I defend anything Texas, but to be fair the College Station convention & visitor's bureau site lists exactly 25 *pages* of restaurants and bars. Under "Where to Eat" you click one of those newfangled "Search" buttons and voila! Chuck E. Cheeses, delis, and "roadhouse" type restaurants as far as the eye can see...