Tulley's

I went down to Tulleys today to get something to eat. I was in Jumbo China last night, and figured I would analyze the places I go to eat (Jumbo was excellent, by the way). Tulleys is the campus cafeteria for the Penn State Berks Campus. I have worked there as an employee, and eaten there as a customer. This review is from a customer's standpoint, from an employee standpoint, I have had excellent people to work with and a productive time at Tulleys (not bored with the work, food is always interesting!). With my history of page points, if you were searching for Tulleys in Google, you probably found this post.


Food Quality: * * * *
You either like the food at Tulleys, or you hate it. Most people will tell you that Tulleys serves above average quality food for a campus setting. I agree with this statement. The food isn't dynamite, but for the price that it is (if you are on a student meal plan), you might as well invest money to eat here if you are living on campus. For commuters- I would choose a different place to eat main entrees.

The best food for your money comes from dinner and breakfast. Since commuters are off the campus by night, your best chance at the best food comes from breakfast. The cook assigned to breakfast goes by the name Deb. For what she is given, she makes excellent omelets and other food items. The sandwiches prepared by the students, if they know what they are doing, are usually pretty good as well. Deb adds ingredients to her potatoes, making them a hit on campus. Her bacon is also of exceptional quality, as well as her pancakes. These pancakes are comparable to my mothers at home, and IHOP.

I have also had dinner on campus- if students are cutting some of the meat correctly, you can have an awesome BBQ beef brisquette (spelling?). The cooks working here take pride in their work. Although taken away, I thought the lunch chef made excellent pasta and chicken for the whirl-a-gate. He still makes good stir fry and especially good lo mein, primavera, and bean rice. He has passed knowledge on to a few of his assistants, and I am able to replicate (and sometimes surpass) the average quality we put out on our stir frys.


Price: * * *
The price depends on who you talk to. For students living on campus, or are at campus frequently, the meal plan is the way to go, with in house items at 65% off. I can get 20oz of fountain pepsi for 50 CENTS. For commuters, you may want to stay away from the more expensive entrees. The grill has some good combo values, though. This year especially (with Heather behind the grill), the burgers have increased in their quality.


Cleanliness: * * * *
I usually see someone, somewhere cleaning. I take pride in cleaning the chef's area near the end of my shift if I have time, and I always swing in to try and help. Today I saw employees stocking, arranging products, and cleaning the tables. Tulleys is usually very clean- rarely do I see some kind of mess, and if I do, employees take care of it.


Selection: * * * + .5
This is another touchy subject. During main business hours, where people are flooding the cafeteria, you will have a lot to choose from. For third party products (Frito Lay, Pepsi, etc) there is always a good selection. I always see fruit, and the deli station is almost always open. When I went in today, I saw nothing on the grill, very little pizza, and the main hot line was open for business. This is all cool, but it limits my choices. Never-the-less, I enjoyed the brunch I had today. Sometimes, late night classes hinder your food choice when you are hungry after class- either I eat before class, or I may not have "as wide" of a selection because business is slowing down.


Overall: 3.9/5 (Great)
Tulleys isn't a bad place to eat. They offer quality food for a cafeteria at a reasonable price. Be warned: some of the food choices are not health savvy, and alternative options do exist (the deli bar, fresh fruit (yum), salad bar). If I was on campus next year (which I will be, as a commuter), and I needed a quick lunch, I would probably head to Tulleys and pick something up. Power to Friday's chicken tenders! They are the BEST!


Recommended Food Items:

Breakfast
+Potatoes/Home Fries/Hashbrowns
+Breakfast Sandwich (Health conscious? don't order ham, sodium trap)
+ Egg omelette
+ Eggs (inspect to make sure student is keeping them fresh, I stir every 5-10 minutes)
+ Sausage links
+ Bacon (omg, the bacon is excellent. YES, I used "omg".)
+ Country Style Eggs
+ Turkey Bacon

Lunch
+Quesadillas (Chicken Especially)
+Vegetable Primavera
+Chicken Cordon Bleu (excellent, beware: sodium trap)
+Lo Mein
+Orange Chicken
+Chicken Stir Fry (Chicken, Mushrooms, Squash, Broccoli, etc)
+ Sloppy Joe (FRESH made, I have had to make these before, tasty!)
+ Flank Steak
+ Penne
+ Grilled Italian Chicken Breast


Dinner
+ Rotissery Chicken (beware sodium trap)
+ Salmon
+ Perch (delicious)
+ Beef Tacos (bring back the soft shell, teach employees to portion!)


Other meals
+ Deli
+ French bread pizza
+ Matt Huff or Sam's Pizza
+ Heather or Missy's burgers
+ Steak fries
+ French Toast
+ Bagels (excellent)
+ Coffee
+ Rice