While Long Beach City College’s LAC Viking West Coast Grill has been a breath of fresh air in terms of affordable vegetarian food options, the cafeteria should further expand their menu to provide more healthy, dynamic, and varied choices for vegetarians and vegans alike.
As a fairly new vegetarian, over the past year I have found myself always looking for new vegetarian and vegan friendly places to eat at school, especially after coming from a high school who’s cafeteria food was the equivalent of microwavable dinners.
A simple and hearty meal option that students could choose is the veggie burger which costs $4.70, with the typical hamburger fix-ins like lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and an optional extra cost for cheese.
Personally, I prefer the veggie burger combo which consists of a burger that comes with french fries and a 16.Oz drink.
The combo totals at just under $10 and is enough food to satisfy me for the majority of my day throughout my classes.
With a protein choice between a standard, but good quality veggie patty, the cafeteria now offers “beyond meat” for those looking for an non-meat patty that is closer to the original for just $5.99.
The veggie burger at The Habit Bar & Grill located at LBX Hangar totals $7.56, and that doesn’t include fries and a drink.
In comparison, the Viking Grill offers a great affordable option for students.
Another great choice is the burrito with vegan chik’n which is simply just beans and rice with your choice of protein being vegan chik’n.
A grilled and spiced tofu patty, vegan chick’n is a great filling substitute costing only $5.99.
Pair any of these two meals with some of the cafeterias several other healthier sides like fruit and vegetable cups, garden salads or veggie wraps, and you can have yourself a great sized meal that will hit the key nutritional bases.
I would also love to see the cafeteria continue to expand their veggie-friendly options with items such as the “impossible burger” or offer more meat alternatives to other meat centric items like using ground up beyond beef for tacos or nacho topping, vegan chik’n on salads, or even taking up new items like beyond sausage.
Not to mention also adding non-dairy cheese options for our vegan students as well.
Dedicated vegetarian food can sometimes be difficult to find in Long Beach, especially when you’re just starting out like I was not too long ago.
Meat alternatives making an appearance in the food main stream has been sort of a double-edged blade.
On one hand, many fast food places and restaurants alike now offer plenty of vegetarian and vegan friendly options.
This new convenience comes at the price of — well, the price being severely increased almost everywhere you go.
While in the grand scheme of non-meat alternative competition, it may not be the most gourmet option, but when you don’t have the time or money to get some overpriced cuisine, the LAC West Coast Grill offers some really solid options for any vegetarians, or anyone looking to try something new.