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The original was posted on /r/newzealand by /u/AdvancedLocation9694 on 2024-10-08 05:04:52+00:00.
Throwaway account for obvious reasons but I'm currently a student at one of the halls of residence at Victoria University and I'd like to show you what the food is really like and what to expect. I will have photos to accompany this text.
First the lack of nutrition. Despite paying 18k a year to stay here (with next years residence at my hall paying 2k more than I have) the food we are served is seriously lacking. It lacks a lot of nutrition required for daily living with protein being the worst offender. Never in my life have I had a full dinner and felt hungry three hours later because rice with every meal and variations on a slim stew don't cut it (Slight hyperbole). (As a side note I have been very fortunate throughout my life to have always left a meal being full) I'd also like to add that this isn't a critique of the taste, I knew it wasn't going to be great but I at the very least expected the food to keep me going and to be nourishing, and to anyone who would like to characterize me as a rich kid with expensive taste, that's not what I'm arguing about and I simply ask that you save your blood to nourish the grass of someone else's hill.
The side effects of terrible food have been that most students here including myself have to go out and buy our own food from the supermarket to supplement our diets, or in my case just to stave off the feeling of hunger in the evening. Such foods include 2 minute noodle's (classic), corn thins, microwave popcorn and biscuits. For some of us this isn't sustainable as a lot of students still fail to meet Student allowance requirements which is another can of worms.
Another thing is the brain fog and general lowering of energy levels due to my body having less to utilize and budget over the course of a day. That's quite tough to manage when you have a lot of brain work to do and which is quite energy sapping. This also leads students to depend on things like energy drinks and caffeine to get them through lectures and such. Which leads to worse overall health in the first year student body. Although I acknowledge that not all students do this due to diet most due to poor regulation of sleep. However my point still stands.
Lastly the quality of kitchen staff assumedly due to budget cuts and staffing issues mean that we the students are impacted in the quality of service too. Dirty unwashed cutlery and cracked glassware are two examples of constant issues with my hall in particular, also the classic hair in the food. This is entirely different hall to hall but the general themes still prevail amongst the different residences varying accordingly.
I'm not looking for sympathy or pats on the back but rather just warning parents and their children who are off to Uni next year of some of the realities of living in halls during a time when everyone has less money going around and wallets being pinched and squeezed even further still.