College cafeterias get rid of trays

Nicest of the Damned · Post by **Nicest of the Damned** » Fri Feb 18, 2011 5:45 pm

Washington Post article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 03343.html

New York Times article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/29/nyregion/29tray.html

I wish they'd done this back in my college days. I could get a lot of food on one of those trays, much more than I actually should have been eating.

kccc · Post by **kccc** » Fri Feb 18, 2011 7:23 pm

My institution is new, and just opened it's dining hall. No trays from day one.

I like it on a lot of levels.

Nichole · Post by **Nichole** » Fri Feb 18, 2011 7:50 pm

Those darned trays.... They definitely helped with my Freshman 15 - errr, make that 20!

harpista · Post by **harpista** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 2:35 am

They were great as improvised sleds for the winter, though. My university residence had a great hill out back. There were tons that reappeared in the spring melt

That's Canada for you... ahahah!

kerrycrow · Post by **kerrycrow** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 2:05 pm

we did the same thing in Pennsylvania...called it "traying" (very original)

leafy_greens · Post by **leafy_greens** » Mon Feb 21, 2011 11:08 pm

"Going trayless" seems like it will make everyone's lives more inconvenient. It is purely a cost-saving measure for the school, and they try to sell it to everyone by making you think you'll lose weight by going along with it.

I "virtual plate" my meals, where if you get a salad it's obviously not going to fit on the plate with your steak and potatoes, so you get a bowl for the salad (or soup). Now students are going to have to make how many trips, carrying bookbags, purses and books, along with their plate, salad bowl, soup bowl, drink, knife, fork, spoon and napkins.

Some of you undoubtedly think this is a great idea because it will force people to make several trips, which will prevent obesity (HA!) by burning off about 3 calories per trip. Let's not get carried away and insinuate that people are lazy if they want a tray.

Nicest of the Damned · Post by **Nicest of the Damned** » Mon Feb 21, 2011 11:27 pm

leafy_greens wrote:Some of you undoubtedly think this is a great idea because it will force people to make several trips, which will prevent obesity (HA!) by burning off about 3 calories per trip. Let's not get carried away and insinuate that people are lazy if they want a tray.

Actually, making it just that little bit more inconvenient to get more food does make it less likely that people will get more food. Brian Wansink recommends serving your food buffet-style (with the food in the kitchen) rather than family-style (with platters on the table), because people are less likely to get more food if they have to get up to get it. It's the kind of little thing that you'd think wouldn't make a difference, but does in practice.

leafy_greens · Post by **leafy_greens** » Mon Feb 21, 2011 11:31 pm

Of course it makes it less likely that people will go for seconds, but what about food they're already planning on eating? A plate, bowl, glass and cutlery, along with belongings that you brought into the cafeteria with you, makes a tray necessary. I sense there will be a lot of broken dishes and spills to clean up in these newfangled cafeterias, thereby canceling any cost saving measures.

kccc · Post by **kccc** » Tue Feb 22, 2011 1:40 am

leafy_greens wrote:Of course it makes it less likely that people will go for seconds, but what about food they're already planning on eating? A plate, bowl, glass and cutlery, along with belongings that you brought into the cafeteria with you, makes a tray necessary. I sense there will be a lot of broken dishes and spills to clean up in these newfangled cafeterias, thereby canceling any cost saving measures.

Well, so far the lack of trays seems to be a non-issue at our school. I haven't seen a spill yet, though I admit not eating there daily.

When I go, I carry my plate in one hand and a glass and cutlery in the other, and make one trip. I've seen folks make two trips if they want things on different plates, but it doesn't seem particularly onerous to them. It really does seem just inconvenient enough that people do a better job gauging how much they genuinely want to eat.

And in these economic times, if it saves money for the school, that's a good thing in my book.

Nicest of the Damned · Post by **Nicest of the Damned** » Wed Feb 23, 2011 7:12 pm

It wasn't salad that I was loading my trays up with in my college dining hall, back in the day. The stuff I'd get besides my main plate of food and my drink was mostly stuff like baked goods that I'd have been better off without. I'd have done better to eat only a single plate of food at each meal (sound familiar?). Not having a tray might have encouraged me to do that, instead of what I did do.

The silverware problem is easily solved. You just move the racks of silverware to near the tables, instead of having them near where people get their food.

~reneew · Post by **~reneew** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 4:22 pm

harpista wrote:They were great as improvised sleds for the winter, though. My university residence had a great hill out back. There were tons that reappeared in the spring melt

That's Canada for you... ahahah!

That's funny! Obviously if a bottom fits on it (at least at the beginning of the year) it's too big!

Those trays helped me gain 50 pounds my freshman year!!! Honestly! Then my sophomore year I ate 800 calories a day and exercised hard for 30 minutes a day until I lost it. I've had trouble ever since... but I didn't back in highschool. Imagine.