If you missed ‘Taste of UMass’ you’ll want to be there next year
It’s the Black Friday of Food
As most of you know yesterday was Taste of UMass which is basically the only way to get UMass students into the Mullins Center.
Taste of UMass brings out a whole other side of the student body. It was basically Black Friday for food. Mainly because it was overcrowded, overwhelming, and you were this close to getting elbowed in the face.
The first thing I saw when I walked in was a giant chocolate fountain on top of a giant tarp in order to keep the floor clean. Way to know your audience UMass.
The actual inside of the Mullins Center was lined with booths from all kinds of vendors handing out free food. Students could pick from crepes at the Frank booth, mac and cheese at the Berk booth, and free Pita Pit. The possibilities were truly endless.
One either side of the Mullins center were two large screens showing close ups of students walking through the booths. Because there is nothing more flattering than a thirty foot high screen with a close up of someone biting into a taco.
Some people used this as an opportunity to try new foods or stick with old favorites for a great dinner from the incredible UMass dining services. Others saw it as way to go grocery shopping and stock up on bottled water and free milk.
Students were also able to enjoy entertainment while they ate, including the Voice UMass competition, the marching band, and Patriots cheerleaders. Yes, really.
Athletic Director, Ryan Bamford, ‘tried’ to get the crowd riled up for upcoming games but everyone knows the stiffest rivalry at UMass is between Hamp and Berk. I think it was meant to be something like a pep rally for our athletics. All anyone really cared about was the free soup.
Overall the food was obviously delicious and the selective was fantastic. But the event as a whole was really quite absurd. Here some actual quotes overheard:
“I’m in a feral state.”
“Like, they move while they instruments, I’m serious.”
“Look there’s another guy with bread.”
“I didn’t know you had a thing about mascots.”
And last but not least, “SIGN THE BUTT!”, said on stage, into a microphone, more than once, by a UMass chef.