Free food gives USC students a taste of Los Angeles


Fifteen vendors from all over Downtown Los Angeles gathered on USC’s McCarthy Quad Thursday afternoon for Taste of Downtown L.A.

To dine for · Ignoring the rain, students lined up at The Melt, one of the 15 Downtown Los Angeles vendors set up in McCarthy Quad Thursday afternoon during the Taste of Downtown L.A. event. - Uracha Chaiyapinunt | Daily Trojan

To dine for · Ignoring the rain, students lined up at The Melt, one of the 15 Downtown Los Angeles vendors set up in McCarthy Quad Thursday afternoon during the Taste of Downtown L.A. event. – Uracha Chaiyapinunt | Daily Trojan

 

Put on by Program Board, the once-a-semester event allowed students to sample fare from popular restaurants in Los Angeles.

This semester, Program Board Public Relations Chair Taylor Wong and Program Board Special Events Assistant Director Denise Rockstroh worked hard to bring in vendors. As a result, the number of tents out on the quad doubled from last semester.

“Its a good way for restaurants to promote themselves, so they were all really willing to come,” Rockstroh said.

Several students are used to seeing vendors in McCarthy Quad each week, selling fresh fruit and other goods as part of Undergraduate Student Government and USC Hospitality’s Trojan Farmer’s Market. This week, however, students were excited for a new event on the quad.

Students braved the rain to get samples from the surrounding eateries.

There were many different foods to choose from, including a sandwich shop and Greek restaurant, as well as boba and tea businesses. Jack McGuinn, a freshman majoring in fine arts, said the variety of food was the event’s main attraction.

“There are so many options to choose from,” Mcguinn said. “It’s great to be able to sample all of these places without having to buy a full meal.”

His attitude toward the free samples seemed to resonate with everyone at the event, as the line for food tickets stretched from Bovard Auditorium to Leavey Library within the first 30 minutes.

“The food is all great, and being a college student, the term free is always attractive,” said Abby Widtfeldt, a freshman majoring in engineering, while sampling a grilled cheese from food truck The Melt.

The stream of students stayed relatively constant throughout the entirety of the event, only slowing down in the last half hour when the rain began.

Program Board normally anticipates around 2,500 students for the three-hour event Rockstroh said.

Program Board implemented a new campaign at this semester’s Taste of Downtown LA. Students who brought Tupperware with them had the opportunity to skip up to three lines and get their food faster, which cut down the number of plates and utensils used during the event.

“After we saw how many plates were wasted last semester, we came up with this idea and got it officially approved by the Environmental Student Assembly,” Wong said.

The ESA is the newest assembly of Program Board and is committed to eco-friendly practices on campus. Wong estimated that Program Board spent about $1,000 on plates and utensils last semester. Because of the success of this year’s Tupperware incentive, Program Board was looking forward to continuing the campaign in future years.

“The Tupperware works out really well for everyone,” said Matt Kaufman, a sophomore majoring in policy, planning and development. “I get to skip lines and USC conserves waste, so it’s really a win-win.”

In the future, Rockstroh and Wong are excited to continue offering students this opportunity and they plan on expanding the event to fill the quad with vendors. Both are optimistic about the future and pleased with this semester’s turnout.

“We’re really proud,” Wong said. “And we are already starting to plan for fall.”