<p>The impression I've been getting regarding the food at Columbia hasn't been too good, but I specifically wanted to know how the Halal menu food is there? I've read pretty negative blurbs about this, but nothing detailed. Can anyone advise me? Is it worth getting a Halal dining plan? Or should I just get more Dining Dollars? I mean I don't want to get the Halal plan and then not even be able to eat the decent vegetarian stuff because I'll be restricted to the Halal food. Are there any Muslims/people who have eaten the Halal food at Columbia that can help me out? Which one would be the better option for me?</p>
<p>i want to get a halal dining meal plan, i checked the menu and it seems that selection is very limited. but for me it is way better than my usual options of only shrimp/tuna which im really tired of. can anyone comment on the taste? also, ive never been at a campus dining hall - is it buffet style all you can eat or no?</p>
<p>It’s a buffet, all you can eat style, but there often is no halal food and even if there is, it’s not that great. You really don’t have to have a Halal meal plan, especially since you can just grab the Halal food if you feel like it and no one will ask you for your I.D. or anything.</p>
<p>In John Jay dining hall there is always an Halal option. It is usually some carb like rice with spices + some meat (varies between chicken, beef, lamb, fish, more chicken than others) and some vegetable. The rest of the vegetarian and seafood that non-Islamic kids eat is available to Muslims. So the Halal section partly makes up for Halal restrictions. But we have an omelet section, for which non-Islamic kids can use meat as an ingredient but religious Muslims cannot. There are many things to eat for Muslims in the dining hall, but the options are less varied than they are for the general populace. I think I’d survive on a Halal meal plan.</p>