AUC: Food fight at the new campus

On my first day at the AUC new campus I waited in line over half an hour to buy a cardboardy bagel from one of the three chain food outlets that were up and running.

This was because the university had sold a concession to Delicious Inc, a company that operates chain franchises like Cinnabon, McDonalds, Cilantro, etc, to be the sole foodservice provider on campus.  A cup of coffee at one of these places runs 12-15 pounds, and a sandwich or salad would set you back at least 20.

For Ramadan this was not a huge deal because most people weren’t eating on campus anyway, but after Eid all hell broke loose.   With fasting over, no one was prepared to wait forever in a line to overpay for meh food.

After a few days, something fantastic happened.  Instead of complaining (my default response), a group of students set up small stands around campus and began selling snacks, apples and little packages of homemade pasta with roasted veggies.  These were cheaper and more delicious than Delicious Inc’s products, so naturally, the company tried to shut them down.

I am told that, after being closed initially, the students appealed the decision to the AUC president and were given permission to continue operating.  But then yesterday I noticed that Delicious had set up their own kiosk and had dispatched two Cilantro employees to hand out cookies to the passersby.

Getting warmer….but I’m not sold yet.  When they start delivering free double macchiatos to my office, then we’ll talk.  That may even earn them a coveted Friday in Cairo endorsement.

But in the end, even the student food is priced head and shoulders above the cheap filling lunch you can get for a few pounds at the downtown places.  The real scandal is that, with November almost here, there is no sign of fuul, tamiyya or koshary on the new campus as promised.

Meanwhile, I continue to spend a great deal of time at the old campus.  The wireless internet is still up and running, the cheaper, better coffee shop is still open, the bank is open with no lines.  There are trees, birds chirping, no desert rats, you get the picture.

PS: I just discovered that the AUC’s student newspaper The Caravan (aka the Economist of AUC) is now posting many of their articles on a wordpress blog. The paper is re-designed from last year and seems to have made a big jump up in quality.  A great source of information about the new campus.