Harvest is Rutgers’ healthy eating hidden gem

New year, healthier me

Beep Beep Beep.

My alarm clock rings sending a sudden twinge through my brain as I wake up remembering that it was I who set it to 7:30 AM the night before, mumbling “new year, new me” under my breath as I ponder my old habits of staying up late watching Netflix shows and ordering Hansel N’ Griddle to get me through the night.

That ends here.

The start of the new semester marks the start of new beginnings! Indeed, being a college student can easily veer us towards a seemingly toxic cycle of balancing school work, a social life, and mental health, which at times can be hard to overcome. Balancing a healthy diet becomes almost increasingly difficult as the semester progresses because the convenience of ramen noodles at 2 AM after studying all day seems rather comforting. But it does not have to be that way. There are hidden gems that shed an entirely new light on dining throughout the campuses.

On Monday morning, I decided to venture out on a journey to Harvest located on Cook Campus in the Food Science and Nutritional Sciences Building West.

With just a short bus ride on the EE, getting off at the Food Science building, I knew my dining experience at Rutgers would be changed forever. After the many steps leading me inside, I was a bit out of breath and thought "maybe I should hit the gym more" but no worries, that was just another new year’s resolution needed to be achieved.

As I entered, a whiff of freshly squeezed juice allowed me to understand that I am living a broke college kid’s dream: using meal swipes instead of your debit card for healthy food! Harvest’s seating area is quite relaxed as the sun rays glisten inside from the enormous windows emitting natural light.

The iconic plant wall is not only aesthetically pleasing, but a reminder of how healthy and plant based Harvest is! Located on the opposite side is where the magic happens: food preparations. Harvest’s menu focuses on whole, minimally processed foods that surely will feed your healthy appetite! The products are all raised and produced locally and responsibly which is an entirely new direction for dining services at Rutgers. Some of the meals include building your own salad, quesadillas, Mongolian grill, vegan options, as well as being able to swipe for smoothies and juices!

Image may contain: Outdoors, Gardening, Garden

Discovering Harvest allowed me to possess an entirely new perspective on my eating habits as well as my options for meal swipes. Living on College Avenue campus, my options for food vendors accepting swipes is evidently scarce so planning a little adventure to other campuses is always a great way to explore the university and what it has to offer!

Here are some places that take meal swipes other than the dining halls:

Kilmer’s Market- Livingston Campus

Henry’s Diner- Livingston Campus

The Rock Cafe- Livingston Campus

Sbarro- Livingston Campus

Cook/Douglass Café- Cook/Douglass Campus

Red Pine Pizza- Cook/Douglass Campus

Woody’s- Busch Campus

Starbucks Truck

Knight Wagon

More
Rutgers University