<p>I’m a newbie entering this fall. Questions about meal plan selections. I’m not a ravenous eater, but I do like to eat, though it’s not uncommon for me to skip breakfast or lunch occasionally.</p>
<p>Which plan do you recommend? Is 21 meals too many? How about 14?</p>
<p>I’m also perplexed about the kosher option. I’m somewhat indifferent about whether I eat kosher or not (long story), but I understand that you have to decide if you want the kosher option, unlike at other schools where you simply eat where you want whenever. I also understand that if you choose kosher, when you go to Sherman you have to choose from the kosher line i.e. that you can’t eat in the non-kosher section at Sherman. Is there any disadvantage to this? In other words, which side of Sherman has the better food, kosher or non-kosher?</p>
<p>drinking, Kosher Food is food produced according to Jewish dietary laws. In short, you cannot eat meat and dairy together, no shrimp or shellfish and no pork.</p>
<p>Sherman is the ONLY integrated Kosher Kitchen the country. What that means is students who are Kosher can eat with kids that are not Kosher. There are two sides in Sherman- Kosher and non-Kosher. As long as you keep your utensils and food separate, you can sit with whomever you want. And, if you don't keep Kosher, but the food is better one day on the Kosher side, feel free to come on over to the Kosher side. (Just don't bring non-Kosher utensils to the Kosher side)</p>
<p>drinkingmilk... where are you from... and how did you hear about brandeis. just wondering cause i've never heard of anyone who didnt know what kosher was. </p>
<p>I'm from Connecticut...but I've only been in the US for couple of years. What kosher salt then? salt that is specifically used by jewish standards?</p>
<p>kosher salt is a course salt used when preparing raw meat to make it kosher -- in addition to being from a kosher animal, the blood has to be removed by a combination of soaking the meat and letting it sit with kosher salt on it (it is less common for people to do this in their homes these days because many kosher butchers provide this service). the salt helps to draw the blood out of the meat.</p>
<p>many chefs use kosher salt because they feel the course texture provide more flavor.</p>
<p>for the purposes you need to know - kosher is the set of Jewish dietary laws - there is a sizeable number of observant Jewish students at Brandeis who follow those laws and there is a separate line in one of the dining halls where those students can get food adhering to those standards. If you were to be served a kosher meal, you might not even realize there was anything "different" about it -- many of the products you buy in the grocery store are probably kosher.</p>
<p>Kosher Salt has no additives and the crystals have big surface areas, which allows it to absorb moisture. It's referred to as Kosher Salt because it used to make some meats Kosher by absorbing blood very well. The Torah, which is the bible Observant Jews follow, prohibits the consumption of blood, so "Kosher Salt" is used because it absorbs the blood so well. </p>
<p>Drikinking, don't worry if you don't know all these things about Judaism because a) you don't need to. Nothing Jewish is ever forced upon you. b) you will quickly learn from your peers about Jewish traditions. I think that is one of the many respects that make Brandeis special. It was fulfilling for me and for my next-door neighbor from India for me to explain to her and her friends the story of Hanukah.</p>
<p>You decide whether or not you choose the kosher option when you get to school. It doesn't prevent you from eating in the other dining hall by any means. It just means that when you do eat in Sherman (the all you can eat dining hall) you are going to eat from the kosher side. Technically, you're not supposed to eat from the non-kosher side, but sometimes, on Saturday night for instance, there's less food to eat on the kosher side and people will eat on the non-kosher. It's really not such a huge deal.</p>
<p>Also, I definitely wouldn't do 21 meals. I have the 10 meals + 400 points one and it's great.</p>
<p>Now I'm getting confused. I'm talking Brandeis rules (not Torah). If you choose non-kosher, you're allowed to eat kosher whenever you feel like it, as long as you use the right utensils, right? While if you choose kosher, you're not suposed to eat on the non-kosher side, but you can anyway? So why specify the choice in advance--why not just say everybody at Sherman can eat on whichever side they like? Or is that just to make purchasing and planning easier for the food sevice provider?</p>
<p>Should someone who wants to regularly eat breakfast choose 21 meals?</p>
<p>If you choose kosher, you're supposed to eat from the kosher side. If you choose non-kosher, you're supposed to eat from the non-kosher side. But really, no one really cares, unless you mix utensils/plates/whatever. Then people get ****y. Also, technically a kosher meal costs more, but that only matters if you're paying in cash or in points. If you're just using a meal, it's just a meal.</p>
<p>Pye, I would go with 21. It's probably the least popular, but if you truly eat Breakfast at least 4 or 5 times a week, it's the most economical. I'm on 21 and am happy. You don't even have to use all 21 to "make it worth it." If you see the difference in prices between the 14 and the 21, it is much less than a year's worth of breakfast.</p>