Virginia Tech dining hall guide: Worst to best

Here’s the deal: we all know VT has the best food. Anyone who goes here or has visited will tell you that the food is the best. If not chosen for it’s great academics, beautiful campus, or exciting party scene, VT is chosen for it’s reputation for the best college campus food. And it’s true. We have a ton of options for every kind of dietary need or intense craving. So I have organized our dining halls into a list, and we’ll start with the worst and make our way to the best.

7. D2

I’m sorry if this offends you, but D2 is for sure, the worst. If it were at a different campus, perhaps UVA, maybe it would be the best, but here at VT it is comparably the worst. Not because it’s bad, just because we have so many better options. D2 is a buffet style dining hall, and they have a lot of cool options. Everything from Mexican food to a salad bar, to Asian cooking, and even a healthy/vegan option. They have a dessert bar as well which is always a plus. Like I said, not bad at all, just all our other options are so much more delicious and sadly, I had to start somewhere with this list!

One thing you can’t miss is D2 brunch. Perfect for a hungover Sunday morning, brunch has everything from chocolate milk to eggs benedict, and the desserts are perfect for curing those headaches and tummy woes.

6. Hokie Grill

I’m sorry to all my friends who work here, but Hokie Grill is just not my favorite. Here you can find Chick-fil-a, Pizza Hut, Barbeque, Dunkin Donuts and a salad bar. The reason it’s not my favorite is because most of those places are chains that you can eat anywhere, save for the barbeque place, which is definitely their highlight. The salad bar is cool too, with options like bacon and sunflower seeds to adorn your salad with. My favorite thing to do freshman year was grab some nuggets from Chick-fil-a, make a salad, and toss em all up together for a chicken nugget salad. If you go to Hokie Grill, you have to try the brisket from the Blue Ridge BBQ place, it is tender and delicious and simply irreplaceable. Though the food may not be my number one, Hokie Grill does in fact throw the best parties, so kudos to them for that!

5. Squires Downstairs Dining

Here they have ABP and Burger 37. If it weren’t for the limited options, I would love this place. However, ABP is bomb and I eat lunch there almost every time I’m on campus. They always have super long lines but it’s worth it for that Newport Turkey (avocado and turkey man, so worth it). Burger 37 is cool too, you can get a burger with an egg, always a hit. And their milkshakes are awesome, what you have to do is get a milkshake and a container of fries and dip your fries. If that’s not your thing, they have a ton of sauces you can serve yourself, so try every single one until you find your favorite. I like the Burger 37 sauce, it’s spicy and great.

4. West End

This one might be biased because I’ve only ever eaten here a handful of times. Freshman year my dorm was across campus and I couldn’t be bothered to make the walk, so my opinion may be skewed (I know West End is a lot of people’s favorite). Their best meal is the burgers from the burger place near the entrance. They are humongous and they have good options, my favorite is one that comes loaded with ham. In West End, they also have this wrap place that mixes American, Mexican, and Asian cuisine. They start with a wrap and fill it with different things, and my favorite is this chicken teriyaki option, which is the one inspired by Asian cuisine. They’ve also got a pasta place, which I’ve never actually tried but heard good things about. Also the infamous Lobster Bisque is served here in West End. If you have a lot of leftover money on your meal plan, come here and find an expensive option to splurge on.

3. DX

DX is the bomb because it’s the only dining hall open when you get home from partying and need to fill your belly with something other than jungle juice. They are open until 3 am most nights and have every late night craving you could want. Sushi, made-to-order sandwiches and wraps, chicken tenders, fries, corn-dog nugs, burgers, french toast sticks, pudding, parfaits, salads, pizzas, cookies, granola bars, fruit, they’ve got anything drunk you could think of. That’s how they get you with the freshman fifteen though, once you’re drunk you won’t hold back from those chicken tenders and fries, even if it is your third dinner.

2. Owens Dining Hall

Owens rocks. It was the first place I ever ate at in my first couple of days here. They also have a salad bar, but a more extensive version than the one at HoGrill, in fact I think the largest salad bar at any VT dining hall. They also have a dessert place (with the most kickass cheesecake options you could dream of), a Mexican place known for it’s loaded quesadillas, a philly cheesesteak place, a pasta joint, a Chinese place, a grill-type place, an organic option, The Carvery which has the best rotisserie chicken and other meats, a smoothie place and finally a sandwich shop. I love this place for it’s overwhelming options and classic VT meals, such as the Chicken Parm. On days it is served you will find the line wrapping all the way around the salad bar, indicating it’s popularity and it’s value.

1. Turner

My absolute favorite dining hall at VT!!! Here you can find Bruegger’s Bagels, Grab-n-Go, Dulce Cafe (desserts and coffee), Origami (a hibachi grill and sushi place), Qdoba, Firegrill and Southern Comforts, Atomic Pizza, and Jamba Juice. I have tried everything in here and I have never been disappointed. Qdoba is a chain so that doesn’t need explanation, though they have the best queso, and a trick to know is when getting nachos ask for your chips on the side and you get so much more. Bruegger’s is pretty good, my favorite is a Texas bagel option with peppers and egg and some other stuff, perfect for a quick breakfast on the way to early classes. Origami is wonderful, probably my second favorite place in Tuner, followed by Southern Comfort and Firegrill. Origami does hibachi cooking and they make the best fried rice, I like the option with chicken but you can get vegetarian or beef as well, and they have noodles too if rice isn’t your thing. Plus the lines here usually aren’t bad, and if they are, they move super fast. Atomic Pizza is good too, many options for pizza and pasta as well, and they have some huge subs, everything from eggplant to Pesto chicken, definitely a good choice. My favorite is the Southern Comfort and Firegrill place without a question. They do the best meats, but my favorite meal here is the chicken and dumplings. It’s just the kind of home-cooking you miss. Their succotash is also delicious and they serve it every day so check that out if you get a change. They have cool breakfast options as well such as a traditional chicken and waffles that is to die for. The Dulce cafe is great too, I love their crepes. They have savory and sweet options, but I always go for a nutella, strawberry and raspberry option.

Turner definitely gets super busy, so if you want to go here be smart about the time you choose to go. I like to look at the class table and go right in the middle of class blocks, because the lines get super long right when classes let out but by the middle of the block, everything has died down and the lunch rush has passed, until the next class ends that is!