Campus Cafeteria
Lansdowne campus
Poutine
$6.15
Presentation and service
Jason: The poutine at the cafeteria is simply massive. It’s a veritable mountain of artery-clogging, gravy-infused, cheese-covered, deep-fried potato goodness. It’s almost too much for one person to handle and, for $6.15, it’s an amazing deal for the amount of food you get.
Tyler: There’s nothing quite like a crap-load of fries with brown sauce and white chunks served fresh in a hard paper container! Man, the guys who work the grill really are nice dudes, though.
Taste
J: There seems to be a growing theme with the caf not having any flavour in their food, and this didn’t disappoint. The gravy was just runny, nondescript brown liquid. The cheese curds were cold, and the fries were boring deep-fried spud sticks. I will say that it was really filling, though.
T: You know I can’t hate on the fries, as discussed in earlier editions of Worth the Trip. McCain’s, baby! As for the overall taste, there’s not a whole lot going on. But for impoverished college students, there’s nothing like a near-pound of starch to fill the need.
New York Fries
Hillside Mall
Poutine
$6.65
Presentation and service
Jason: You get a lot less poutine in comparison to the caf, and for more money, so this better taste a lot better to make it worth it. This is New York Fries though; fries are what they do, so in theory the poutine here will be better.
Tyler: The girl at the counter was actually pretty put out that we would interrupt her frowning by placing an order, but that’s par for the course for mall food-court customer service. It’s not that I expected the good china or anything, but that young woman certainly could have minded her manners.
Taste
J: I’ve always liked their fries, and covered in gravy and cheese just seems like a winning combination. The gravy was decent, and the cheese curds were actually melted. Overall though, it was a little underwhelming. I expected more from a place that has the word “fries” in their title.
T: I don’t think I’ve had New York Fries since I was a teen, and frankly, I expected more. Honestly, between the sushi, gyro, and A&W options available at the Hillside Mall food court, I don’t know why anyone would go for the New York Fries poutine.
And the winner is… The cafeteria.
Verdict: It’s a classic case of quantity versus quality, and the quality of New York Fries isn’t enough to outweigh the sheer quantity of the caf. Neither is great, so go for the one that’s the best bang for your buck. Furthermore, if you ever really want poutine, go to la belle province. What passes for poutine out here, simply isn’t.