We all have our feelings about the Commons. It’s huge, it’s covered in glass, and it stops serving food at 8pm. When the Commons first opened, I gave it a seven out of ten, and here’s why I was right.
With any dining hall, first and foremost we must review the food. Honestly, I have many complaints about the Commons, but the food will never be one of them. I’m no food critic, but I can confidently say that I’ve never been let down. There are a variety of options that include a salad bar, a soup station, and a made-to-order grill. While lunch and dinner are both good, nothing will beat breakfast at the Commons. On the rare occasion that I’m awake before 10:30, I’m greeted with a spread to rival something from a bed and breakfast. However, as much as I’d love to wax poetic about the breakfast spread, we have other things to discuss.
Next up, I want to talk about the building itself. As much as I enjoy modern architecture, I find the Commons to be…less than enjoyable. From an architectural standpoint, it feels as though someone read a textbook on “architecture of the future” from 1997 and designed from that. While it matches the landscape of Tulane’s most recent additions to the campus, there are a few issues that I can’t quite get past. There are two main functionality issues that are overall unimportant, but really tend to irk me. First, the fact that food is on two separate levels. Honestly, in a general sense it doesn’t really matter, but sometimes you just want to get a good survey of the food without having to use your legs.
Next up is going to be how the Commons is in the middle of campus, without a pathway through. New Mac Mart, or “Provisions on the Thirtieth Parallel”, is in the back of the Commons, on the first floor. While a true review of the Commons would include a review of Provisions, I honestly can’t talk about it because I just can’t call it Provisions on the Thirtieth Parallel. So, moving on, the convenience of the to-remain-nameless on campus store has been hindered by the way we have to walk around the entire Commons to get there. Honestly! How hard would it have been to make a pathway?
However, I do want to end this review on a positive note. Though I disagree with much about the dining room itself, this review wouldn’t be complete without discussing the third floor of the Commons: the Newcomb College Institute. For those of you who don’t know, NCI is a part of Tulane dedicated to achieving gender equity across all fields. Last year, it was housed near Howie T on Freret Street, and honestly a lot of people didn’t know it existed. This year, finally, the Newcomb College Institute has a home it deserves. If you get a chance, go up and visit the third floor. It’s a great place to study, chill, and there’s even a roof garden!
Overall, I stand by my initial rating of a seven out of ten, but that doesn’t mean you won’t catch me there using up all of my ten swipes every week.