Buy our guides
Read our blog
Login Register

University of California - Irvine
- Campus Dining

RT
Currently attending or alumni?
Review this school!
Are you interested
in this school?
Yes, let this school know
Maybe, bookmark for later
No, get better matches
Saving your decision
Yes
Maybe
No

Your information has been sent to this school through our partnership with .

This school has been saved to your schools list.

This school has been removed from your recommended schools list.

For your next recommendation, check out .

Jump to a section:

Grade
Quick Stats
Student Author Overview
Student Reviews
Student Polls
Facts
Listings
Take A SurveyWrite A ReviewUpload A PhotoLink Up A VideoWrite The Guide
University of California - Irvine - Campus Dining - College ProwlerCollege Prowler3.85

Campus Dining

B+
Where does this grade come from?View all Campus Dining rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

Comparable Schools' Campus Dining Grades:

Quick Stats

Freshman Meal Plan Required? Yes
Student Favorites Brandywine

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

On-campus dining at UCI is not exactly the Four Seasons, but then again, what college food really is? Yes, after months of the same food from the same menu, dining options can get really old really fast. However, many transfer students at UCI agree that the food on other campuses is not quite as good as the food here. One obvious benefit of on-campus dining at UCI is that there are not only dorm cafeterias (Pippin, Mesa Commons), but also the commuter and faculty cafeterias that serve some decent fast food, like Brandywine. Unfortunately, however, those places aren’t covered by your dining card and can be a bit pricey for many college students. Eventually, though, students might get sick of eating on campus and will have to dig into their pockets. Before this happens, though, try eating at Brandywine, which most students agree is about the best the meal plan has to offer.

If after trying all of the on-campus options—which you will probably accomplish in less than a year—you’re still famished for more, then you can always take on a low meal plan and walk to the University Town Center (UTC) and get some decent food. In-N-Out, Del Taco, and Taco Bell are all student favorites. Although many students gripe and complain about the repetitiveness of the dining hall menus, most will admit that UCI students have it better than students from other colleges.

See how you stack up against students who were accepted to this school . . .And calculate your chances!Register to get started

UC Irvine Student ReviewsWhat's This?

Sort by:

Loading...

Campus Dining at University of California - Irvine

jojosmiles

'15

Registered Nursing (RN)

4.2
A-

Food

Dining food is great, and there are different options to choose from. There are also well known places to eat on campus such as Wendy's, Subway, Panda Express. Not to mention, there is an University Town Center right next to campus with other restaurants. Close by is the Spectrum and Diamond Jamboree.

Jan 29, 2012

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate

Campus Dining at University of California - Irvine

kerokitsune

'15

Biological Sciences

3.1
B-

Not Too Bad

The dining commons have relatively good food. However, besides the delicious grill area where they serve hamburgers and fries, the others are a rather hit-or-miss. Occasionally, you'll get great food such as grilled chicken breast that is absolutely delectable. However, sometimes they serve really odd tasting and disgusting food that seems like they threw all the leftovers in a pot and picked a spice off the spice rack randomly. There are always the stores in the student center to fall back on such as Wendy's and Panda Express which are absolutely delicious.

Jan 05, 2012

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate

Campus Dining at University of California - Irvine

lserpas

'15

Psychology

4.2
A-

Great

There are several options available on campus. You can choose to eat in the dining halls or in the student center. There are also a lot of options off campus and if you don't want to stay near campus you can choose to go for a short drive or bus ride to get food somewhere else.

Jan 05, 2012

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate
Page 1 of 11

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate campus dining on the following topics

Facts

24-Hour Dining None, but Cornerstone Café is open 24 hours during finals week.
Off-Campus Places to Use Flex Money None

Dining Halls & Campus RestaurantsWhat's This?

Anthill Pub & Grille
Location: Student Center
Food: Pub food
Hours: Monday 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Tuesday-Wednesday 11 a.m.-12 a.m., Thursday-Friday 11 a.m.-1 a.m.

BC’s Cavern on the Green
Location: Between Steinhaus Hall and Schneiderman Lecture Hall
Food: Deli, Italian, Mexican, salad bar, snacks
Hours: Monday–Thursday 7:30 a.m.–3 p.m., Friday 7:30 a.m.–2 p.m.

Bene’s Pizza Pasta
Location: East Food Court in Student Center
Food: Pasta, pizza
Hours: Monday–Thursday 10:30 a.m.–7 p.m., Friday 10:30 a.m.–5 p.m.

Bistro By The Bridge
Location: Humanities Instructional Building
Food: Hamburgers, hot dogs, snacks
Hours: Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–2 p.m.

Brandywine
Location: Next to the Middle Earth basketball courts
Food: American, sandwiches
Hours: Monday–Wednesday 11 a.m.–11 p.m., Thursday–Friday 11 a.m.–7 p.m.

C3 (Convenience Store)
Location: Social Science Plaza A
Food: Coffee, grab-and-go items
Hours: Monday–Friday 7:30 a.m.–7:30 p.m.

Café Espresso
Location: In front of Reines Hall
Food: Coffee, pastries, sandwiches
Hours: Monday–Thursday 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Friday 8 a.m.–2 p.m.

Café Med
Location: School of Medicine at West Peltason and Academy Way
Food: Salads, sandwiches
Hours: Monday–Thursday 7:30 a.m.–3 p.m., Friday 7:30 a.m.–2 p.m.

Cornerstone Café
Location: UCI Student Center
Food: Baked goods, sandwiches
Hours: Monday–Thursday 7 a.m.–11 p.m., Friday 7 a.m.–7 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.–7 p.m., Sunday 12 p.m.–9 p.m.

Cyber A Café
Location: Arts Plaza
Food: Coffee, pastries, salads, sandwiches
Hours: Monday–Thursday 7:30 a.m.–7 p.m., Friday 7:30 a.m.–3 p.m.

Los Nietos
Location: Outside administration building on Ring Mall
Food: Asian, Mexican
Hours: Monday–Friday 11 a.m.–2 p.m.

Mesa Commons
Location: Mesa Court housing complex
Food: Buffet-style
Hours: Monday–Wednesday 7:15 a.m.–9 a.m., 10 a.m.–11 p.m., Thursday 7:15 a.m.–9 a.m., 10 a.m.–8 p.m., Friday 7:15 a.m.–9 a.m., 10 a.m.–7:30 p.m., Saturday–Sunday 9:30 a.m.–2 p.m., 5 p.m.–7:30 p.m.

Organic Greens-to-Go
Location: East Food Court in Student Center
Food: Salad
Hours: Monday-Thursday 10:30 a.m.–7 p.m., Friday 10:30 a.m.–5 p.m.

Phoenix Grille
Location: Between Social Science Hall and Engineering Tower
Food: Bagels, burritos, grill, snacks, sushi
Hours: Monday–Thursday 7:30 a.m.–3 p.m., Friday 7:30 a.m.–2 p.m.

Pippin Commons
Location: Middle Earth housing complex
Food: Buffet-style
Hours: Monday–Thursday 7:15 a.m.–2 p.m., 4:30 p.m.–8 p.m., Friday 7:15 a.m.–2 p.m., 4:30 p.m.–4:30 p.m.

Quiznos
Location: West Food Court in Student Center
Food: Sandwiches
Hours: Monday-Thursday 7:30 a.m.–9 p.m., Friday 7:30 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m.–4 p.m.

Rice Garden
Location: West Food Court in Student Center
Food: Asian
Hours: Monday-Thursday 10:30 a.m.–7 p.m., Friday 10:30 a.m.–5 p.m.

Starbucks
Location: Next to the bookstore
Food: Coffee, pastries
Hours: Monday-Thursday 7 a.m.–12 a.m., Friday 7 a.m.–8 p.m., Saturday-Sunday 9 a.m.–5 p.m.

Tortilla Express
Location: West Food Court in Student Center
Food: Mexican
Hours: Monday-Thursday 10:30 a.m.–7 p.m., Friday 10:30 a.m.–5 p.m.

The UCI Bookstore Convenience Store
Location: UCI Student Center
Food: Snacks
Hours: Monday–Thursday 8 a.m.–7 p.m., Friday 8 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.–4 p.m.

University Club
Location: Between Physical Sciences Plaza and Engineering ICS plaza on Ring Mall
Food: Friday barbecues, full service dining room
Hours: Monday–Thursday 11 a.m.–1:30 p.m., Friday 11 a.m.–1:30 p.m., 4:30 p.m.–7 p.m.

Wendy’s
Location: West Food Court in Student Center
Food: Fast food
Hours: Monday-Thursday 7 a.m.–10 p.m., Friday 7 a.m.–7 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m.–7 p.m., Sunday 12 p.m.–10 p.m.

Zot-n-Go Market
Location: Student Center
Food: Convenience store
Hours: Monday-Thursday 7:30 a.m.–8 p.m., Friday 7:30 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday 7:30 a.m.–4 p.m.

Buy The Guidebook

Buy a hard copy of "UC Irvine 2012: Off The Record"

Read more about the book . . .Add to Cart

Buy the eBook:

AmazonBarnes & NobleGoogleSmashwordsDownload the FREE Printable Summary (PDF)

Most Recent Student Author

College Prowler guides are in the hands of students throughout the entire process. Because you can't make student-written guides without the students, we have students at each campus who write, edit, and survey their peers for every guide that we publish. Thanks to our most recent student author at UCI

Name: Tracey Xuan Nguyen

Hometown: Hawthorne, CA

Major: Business Economics

see all student author bios > Become a student author to help update the guide for this school

Find a college

Find a major

Scholarships

Reviews

Company

Buy College Prowler school guides in our bookstore Get the real scoop on what it's like on campus and see what school is the place for you!

How do we get our information? Find out here or report an error here. Please note that the information presented on this site is updated periodically, but may not be the
most recent information available for a particular school. For additional information we encourage you to visit school websites or contact the schools directly.