<p>If I am an independent student living off campus (not in a dorm or residential hall), can I still eat at the dining facilities such as crossroads? Do I need to purchase a meal plan, or can I just use the the money on my Cal 1 card whenever?</p>
<p>You can buy a meal plan if you want, or you can use money from your debit account on your Cal1Card.</p>
<p>ok i dont mean to hijack this thread, it looks like sflye13's question is answered .. but just to divert a bit</p>
<p>where all can you use the points from your mealplan?</p>
<p>meal plans for off-campus students are a little different. they have three different plans for you to choose from, but they work just like the mealplans of the students in the residence halls. check the caldining website (below) for the details. but as said before, you can always use the debit account on your Cal1Card as well.</p>
<p>as for using points, you can use them at the four DC's (dining commons): Crossroads, Clark Kerr, Foothill, and in the spring, Cafe 3 and Unit 3. you can also use them at the four on-campus restaurants: Golden Bear Cafe, Ramona's, Pat Brown's, and Terrace Cafe. check the CalDining website, <a href="http://caldining.berkeley.edu/%5B/url%5D">http://caldining.berkeley.edu/</a> for more info. i believe they've got a map there as well.</p>
<p>You can just use the debit on your Cal1Card or even pay cash, but it's more expensive. I don't remember exactly, but it's at least a dollar more (than if you just bought mealpoints). So even if you didn't want a plan, you could at least buy points (which are 55/$50)</p>