#1: Dining Halls
The University of New Hampshire has three main dining halls, each of which is three-star green certified: Philbrook, which is located near Christensen and Williamson Halls, Holloway Commons, which is part of the Memorial Union Building or MUB, and Stillings, located near Stoke Hall.
Philbrook – or “Philly” – is a favorite for first-year students! I spent most of my time there my freshman year, hanging out with my friends and going to late-night dinner, which makes Philly popular. Late-night hours at Philly are great because you can make it there even if you have a late lab or practice. Philly also has the best sandwich station so it’s a popular lunch spot between classes. However, its number one feature in my opinion is all day breakfast. My go-to choice at the breakfast station is the chocolate chip pancakes.
Holloway Commons, nicknamed HoCo, is the largest dining hall. It’s great because it’s centrally located and has tons of seating, especially upstairs in what I call the “green room.” It’s a few floors up in the MUB so you get great views of campus from above, specifically of the lower quad, which is beautiful in the fall with all the changing leaves. HoCo has a stir fry station, a pizza station, and a Wildcat favorite, monkey bread. I had never heard of monkey bread before coming to UNH but it’s essentially fried dough bites mixed with cinnamon rolls and icing. They alternate it on the menu between Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
It’s important to note that Stillings is currently on a delayed opening but as soon as it’s back you’ll find daily specials and a Sunday night spaghetti bar. I personally think that Stillings has the best desserts.
You can easily find the daily dining hall menus (and their locally-sourced ingredients) right on the UNH app.
#2: Philbrook Cafe and Wildcatessen
Two other popular dining options on campus are Philbrook Cafe located inside Philbrook dining hall, and the Wildcatessen or what we call Wild Kitty, located inside Stillings. You can check out the menus online for both Philly Cafe and Wild Kitty. Both have late-night options as well as convenient items like snacks, ice cream, and even health and beauty products. My favorites from Wild Kitty are patty melts and the chicken caesar wrap. Philly Cafe and Wild Kitty accept Dining Dollars which come with most first-year meal plans, as well as Cat’s Cache which can be reloaded like a debit card on your student ID.
#3: On The Way
UNH also provides many on-the-go options inside of some academic halls for lunch, study dates and coffee stops throughout your busy day. You can find the full list of dining options here. I frequented CornerStone 1926 in Paul College my first year, mostly to get Starbucks before going to study in Paul’s courtyard. Another convenient option is Zeke’s Cafe located in Dimond Library, also great for coffee and grab-and-go options. Another student favorite is Union Court, located in the MUB. Its food-court style lunch options are some of the best around, and you can even use a dining hall swipe to pay as a part of the Meal Exchange program for your salad or bowl there.
Be sure to check out all the great dining options on campus for a healthy and delicious semester!
