<p>I don't remember such an event at all, last time I went there was in June before I left for the summer. </p>
<p>On Wikipedia they mention a Souplantation in Orange County being shut down, but I don't remember the one up by Lake being shut down, and I haven't had any problems with the food.</p>
<p>I was told by numerous people that the one on Lake was shut down for a time. If it's not true, it's a very convincing and pervasive rumor.</p>
<p>EDIT: I heard this in late july or early august</p>
<p>
I heard it was E. Coli actually. In any case, the one on Lake was certainly closed for 'health reasons' involving people getting sick - I read the note on their closed doors last week. They recently re-opened this week.</p>
<p>edit: I was wrong about the disease: </p>
<p>"The Pasadena Health Department says it wasn't E. coli, but shigellosis -- a bacteria that causes severe diarrhea. The infected customers ate at the restaurant between July 22 and 24 and developed symptoms within in the next few days." </p>
<p>As Ben pointed out, there's nothing stopping you from eating the specifically vegan/vegetarian entrees. There is, however, a general belief among the student body that it's not allowed or somehow a bad-citizen thing to do unless you're actually vegetarian, on the grounds that the real vegetarians can't eat the other food. (That is, people who usually eat meat think <em>they're</em> not allowed to go for the vegan option when the meat is particularly unappetizing one night. No one would think twice about someone like you typically choosing the vegan option.)</p>
<p>This makes absolutely no sense unless you are taking the very last bit from a starving vegan. It is good to have a stable number of people eating each dish, yes, but this isn't food that's been prayed over--it simply <em>doesn't include certain ingredients</em>.</p>
<p>Next year I'm supposedly going to be the vegetarian food rep, and am hoping to point out that this is a dumb rule (or pseudorule) and that everyone should be welcome to eat the vegan food. Yum.</p>
<p>I like that idea. And I'll confess I thought that was a dumb rule (or at least norm) too..</p>
<p>Okay now just some general question...what should a freshman expect on the first day? What information should we have handy? Who should I go to, and what should I do first thing after I arrive on campus? I know there's a general check-in for everybody, but do I need to know anything beyond that? (like my room assignment, although not permanent) Or can I just bring nothing but myself (and my luggage, of course) and follow the instructions and go with the flow? Thanks, and sorry for the abrupt change in topic..just didn't feel like starting a new thread.</p>
<p>Platero - it will be very easy the first day to know where to go. Lots of signs and balloons and friendly Caltech students to point the way. Just bring you and your luggage. You'll get a packet with all you need and then you'll follow the signs that will take you to get a picture taken for your id,get your mailbox key, you'll find your temporary room and sign any papers that need be signed for finaid. They were very well organized last year and my S found it very easy to get everything done he needed to on that first day. There will even be people to help you carry your luggage.</p>
<p>Another thing to keep in mind when discussing Caltech food is that we've recently gotten a new director of dining services, Peter Daily.</p>
<p>To say that Peter is fantastic would be an understatement. Peter is responsible for the biggest improvement in the overall quality of the board program at Caltech that I've ever heard of. In fact, this past summer, the north house kitchens were remodeled to provide better service and options to the undergrads (the south house kitchens being new). Peter is also responsible for the newly instituted 'breakfast at midnight' events, where top school administrators serve pancakes, waffles, omelets, and more at midnight during finals week (the new president, Jean-Lou Chameau made me an omelet last term), and goes well out of his way to accommodate the requests of individual students, tracking down old dessert recipes, or, in my case, finding a specialty mustard, imported only from eastern Europe.</p>
<p>To top it all off, we've got a student food committee, with representatives from each house, that meets with Peter Daily on a regular basis, to discuss opinions and thoughts of the undergraduates.</p>
<p>Yes, the food at Caltech could be a lot better. That said, it was definitely a lot worse just a few years ago, it's been getting better, and there's only better yet in store.</p>
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Yes, the food at Caltech could be a lot better. That said, it was definitely a lot worse just a few years ago, it's been getting better, and there's only better yet in store.
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</p>
<p>That's funny; I never had a problem with the food the past couple of years (it was okay, nothing spectacular), and didn't notice any changes of any kind during this past year. </p>
<p>And are we talking about Board dinners here, or Chandler in general? I didn't attend many of the former, but the latter seemed completely unchanged. (not necessarily a bad thing, either)</p>
<p>Yeah, Mike is talking only about board dinners.</p>