FoxTrot by Bill Amend for September 25, 2022

When I was in the U.S. Navy, we had mystery meat. We didn’t know then, and I still don’t know now what it was that we chowed down on.

I ate at school from 1st grade through 3 years of university. Whenever I had even a moderately reasonable option, I always brought from home. Mom was almost always willing, so the first 12 years were pretty good. But Uni food was… well, there was a sign over the toilet that said “It’s a long way to the kitchen, flush it twice.” … it wasn’t THAT bad, but compared to food made at a non-industrial scale, it was far from good. The last 2 years (of 5) at uni, I lived off campus and made my own. I ate a lot of broiled chicken, wedge salad and lunch-meat sandwiches (hardly any beef: spendy, and cheese is pretty spendy too). And that was better than the food in the cafeteria.

actually I’m convinced. Let’s just see what Paige has to say about the taste (if she gets to survive that)

The food at college ( private, expensive) was roast beast every night. Swimming in tomato sauce. With tapioca and colored mini marshmallows for dessert. If they served hot dogs for lunch we got toasted hotdogs buns with dinner. In one semester I lost 12 pounds.

Would Garfield even eat that kind of lasagna?

Why does the server have broccoli for hair?

She can hardly wait to taste it.

It can’t be any worse than what her mother cooks.

https://youtu.be/FklUAoZ6KxY

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/23600/worlds-best-lasagna/

Soylent Gray.

The server’s green hair is a subliminal appetite surpressor.

This is why I prefer bringing lunches from home.

Today’s classic FoxTrot Sunday strip:

https://www.gocomics.com/foxtrot/2001/09/23

she’s either lying or really good at what she does…

we always had great lunch food…I mean like kids would go back for 2nd and 3rds

Brilliant!

Two words: steamed okra.

Now we found out why the food is fgross

You forgot the Ramen…

We used to get a gray meat patty with gravy and mashed potatoes. It was edible. They did have some good stuff though on occasion.

One nice thing about my uni – if you were struggling with costs, they had bread, peanut butter and jelly, for free in the cafeteria.

All the more reason to learn to cook.

Creative way to cover for your bad cooking, I’ll admit.

The Gloppling Gourmet? 益

Lunches in elementary were pretty good. In H.S. I just skipped lunch altogether. in college I used my “food allowance” to buy records. (Mom wondered how I lost so much weight)

My (future at the time) wife and I actually had some perfectly good food in college. Of course, it was one of those marvelous Midwest Lutheran colleges, so that was no surprise. And about once a year, they even served lutefisk! (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/scandinavians-strange-holiday-lutefisk-tradition-2218218/) Now, nt everyone enjoys lutefisk, even some Scandinavians, and there are lots of lutefisk jokes. But my parents and I love the stuff. My three sibs, OTOH, can’t stand to be in the same house with us while it’s cooking.

The best dirty rice and cornbread I ever had was in the junior hi cafeteria in Lake Charles. It was well worth the 25 cents I paid for it.

When I was a kid sometimes I would make cakes only to have them devoured by my siblings. I found that making the butter cream frosting a disgusting green color with food coloring made them last longer.

Try the gray stuff, it’s delicious.Don’t believe me? Ask the dishes!

I once taught at a high school where the tax base allowed for a really good cafeteria. They offered a wide selection of good food, and I was especially fond of their taco salad.

I feel bad for everyone commenting about the awful school cafeteria food they had to suffer through. Some of the best meals I had growing up were from my school cafeteria. Elementary school, but especially high school. Their hamburgers and subs were memorable, and they always put out a superb holiday meal at Thanksgiving and Christmas. In college, my dorm cafeteria also had outstanding meals at Miami University.

Funnily enough, “You’re welcome” from Moana is playing in the background as I read this.

My stepbrother-in-law remarked that he never realized what a lousy cook his mother was until he went to college and couldn’t understand why everyone else was complaining about the food.

I always brought a bag lunch from home ever since I got food poisoning in the 2nd grade

Mystery meat

I ate hospital cafeteria food for three decades, (a different hospital for each decade) and for the most part, it’s pretty decent, nutritious, and inexpensive. It’s not what patients receive, because the vast majority of patients are on restricted diets. Breakfasts and soups are the best bargains.

Considering the kind of “food” Andy makes for her family, how does Paige even know what real lasanga looks and smells like?

In my day, the school cafeteria could handle lasagna and spaghetti just fine. It’s when they tried to get fancy with their steak or shrimp day specials that you knew you were in trouble.

Für euer sischerhei­t.

Don’t ask about the ovens.

In college, the one that sticks in my mind is the substitution of catsup for spaghetti sauce. “They’ll never notice.” said the the ‘cook’.

Sure THAT’s why you don’t make appetizing food. :eye roll:

How does it compare to your mother’s cooking?

Cafeteria food is so questionable.

Probably doesn’t taste like lasagna either.

“It doesn’t taste like it either.”

“You’re welcome.”

and it certainly doesn’t taste like lasagna, i bet

Stampedes do happen! Eons ago, there were 2 important lunch menu dates, per year, on the calendar: build your own sandwich, choice of various chips, etc., and also included a build your own sundae! Such a frenzy! People running to get to the cafeteria at the bell of the period beforehand. They actually used decent tasting rolls, all the tasty fixings and different cheeses. And all sorts of wonderful sundae toppings. The whipped cream was always wiped out (I helped with that!).

Needless to say they stopped doing it. It was too popular.

But does it TASTE like lasagna?

Holy crap!

I second that

Luckily my college had a culinary program so the cafeteria food was actually pretty good.

I have no memory of ever eating lunch at lunchtime in school

Just became a freshmen last month. The meals their were 3.50, versus free (“free” as in paid by citizen’s taxes). I was brave enough to buy one and the food was exactly the same! Better then gray glop, I guess.

I don’t get the last panel.

fax