As an increasing number of college students demand more vegetarian and vegan options on campus, dining halls across the nation are stepping up their selections of meatless foods.
D.C. is no exception as peta2, the college-focused arm of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, ranked Georgetown University as the ninth-most vegetarian friendly campus in 2007 and is considering AU for its 2008 awards.
Ryan Huling, college campaign coordinator at peta2, said the Georgetown selection was based on student feedback, as well as the consistency and quality of the vegetarian and vegan options available on campus.
Peta2 praised Georgetown for making "significant strides ... to expand its vegetarian and vegan options."
Peta2 received positive feedback about AU's vegetarian alternatives and is researching the campus for the 2008 rankings, Huling said.
"The list of this year's winners will be released Oct. 14," he said. "With demand for vegetarian and vegan dishes higher than ever, particularly among students, the competition [gets] tougher each year."
Alexa Marymor, a junior the Kogod School of Business and the School of International Service, said she believed AU's efforts to provide vegetarian options should be recognized.
"I think we should definitely be ranked on the top 10 list," she said. "Now we have a veggie option at every single place on campus that offers food."
Student favorites at Georgetown's dining hall include vegan wild mushroom and barley ragout, tofu stir-fry with orange-ginger sauce and vegan rosemary polenta with broccoli rabe, according to the survey.
Jill Slutzker, a Georgetown senior, said she's noticed the university had more vegetarian choices this academic year.
"A lot of vegetarians prefer to eat off-campus, but if you have a meal plan, then you're definitely going to find something good to eat on campus," she said.
Nikki Hauspurg, a Georgetown senior, said she was not previously aware of the university's placement on peta2's list.
"There's definitely been a huge, noticeable improvement in the vegetarian food over the last four years," she said.
Hauspurg said communication with Georgetown's dining officials improved the selections in the cafeteria.
"The vegetarian food used to always be the same every day," she said. "But a few of us started going to meetings with the cafeteria and putting suggestions in the suggestion box, and they were actually really responsive."
Jessica Rimington, a Georgetown senior, said vegetarian options at the university have improved drastically since her freshman year.
"The vegetarian choices didn't use to be very tasty, but I went to the cafeteria for the first time today after studying abroad last year, and it's ... good. I was impressed," Rimington said.
Some AU students said vegetarian options at AU have also improved from the past. Non-vegetarians said they have found the meatless options at AU to be more interesting and appetizing than some of the meat dishes offered.
"I'm not even a vegetarian, but I prefer veggie burgers over hamburgers here, and I've noticed that all of the vegetarian options here, like the tofu and tempeh, are really delicious," said Julia Lewis, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences.
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