All students that have a meal plan at The University of Iowa have access to meals at the main dining halls, and they also have Flex Meals.  Students eat the majority of their meals in the dining halls, where there is a decent array of choices.  However, not everyone knows about Flex Meals or how to use them.  I have even talked to sophomores that said they didn’t use a single Flex Meal their freshman year because they didn’t know about them.  While eating in the dining halls can be fulfilling and enjoyable, sometimes students don’t have time to sit down and eat a meal, or they are in between classes and don’t want to make the trek to a dining hall.  These situations are the perfect time to grab a Flex Meal.

Flex Meals consist of one entrée, two sides, and one drink.  Flex Meals are offered Monday-Friday at the following eight on-campus retail locations:

• River Room Café
• Pat’s Diner
• Food for Thought Café
• Clinton Street Market
• Mayflower Market
• Union Station
• Grand Avenue Market
• Street Hawk Food Truck

As I mentioned before, Flex Meals come in handy the most when students are in between classes.  I get a Flex Meal almost every day for lunch to avoid waiting in line at Burge, and Hillcrest is not worth the walk if you have to get back over to the East side for classes.  After getting Flex Meals almost every day this semester with my friends, I have learned some things about where to go, when to go, and what to get for a lunch Flex Meal, and wanted to let other students know how to get the most out of their Flex Meals.

Street Hawk Food Truck

Open Monday-Friday 11 AM – 3 PM

If you ask me, or any of my friends, the best place to get a Flex Meal is undoubtedly the Street Hawk Food Truck.  They serve typical food truck entrees such as: chicken, beef, or pork sandwiches, tacos, and wraps; and burgers.  For sides they offer fresh fried potato chips, cookies, and apples.  They have plenty of options for beverages as well.

There is one thing that puts this food truck far above and beyond any other Flex Meal location, and that would be the pretzel buns.  You could pick up some leaves off the ground and put them in the food truck’s pretzel buns and it would still be delicious.  While my personal favorite entrée from the food truck is the barbecue bacon burger, the other sandwiches also come accompanied by the pretzel buns so I would recommend them as well.

While the entrees are good by themselves, the food truck also has some appetizing sides.  You get to choose two of the three aforementioned sides, and can’t really go wrong with your choice.  Nearly every person that gets a meal at the food truck gets the fresh fried potato chips, and I would highly recommend them.  Since I (like many of us) don’t get the exercise I did in high school, I usually choose the apple over the cookie, but both options are tasty.

If you enjoy people watching, the location of the food truck will be great for you.  The Street Hawk Food Truck is located at one of the busiest places on campus during the school day, the T. Anne Cleary Walkway on the west-side of the John Pappajohn Business Building.  I have seen a person wearing a t-rex costume chase a person wearing a gorilla costume, two people wearing huge sumo suits repeatedly ram their bodies into each other, countless people fall off of their skateboards, and plenty of other things you would only see on a college campus.

The only time the food truck is really busy is the down time in between classes when students are walking to their next class.  If you want to avoid waiting in line for 10 minutes, I recommend going while classes are in session.

River Room Café

Open Monday-Friday 7 AM – 3 PM

The River Room Café offers restaurant quality food at a relatively central location on campus, the Iowa Memorial Union (IMU).  For lunch the River Room’s most popular options are the stir-fry bar and pasta bar.  They have all kinds of pasta and many different stir-fry ingredients to choose from.  For sides the River Room has the normal Flex Meal sides like yogurt, chips, and granola bars.  They also have the typical beverage choices such as pop, juice, and milk.

The stir-fry and pasta bars are very popular amongst students, so expect a line if you are going in between classes.  Same as the food truck, I recommend to eat here while classes are going on to avoid the wait.

Although the wait can be long, the food is usually worth it.  They cook the food right in front of you as you pick your ingredients, and the quality of the food can be compared to a home-cooked meal, contrary to the sometimes processed and neglected food of the dining halls that college students can become accustomed to.

The River Room also has quality options for breakfast.  They offer breakfast burritos and breakfast sandwiches which are premade and are perfect if you want to grab a breakfast meal to go.

If you grew up near a river like I did, you might find it comforting to go out the back doors to the patio are and eat along the river.  The back area doesn’t get much traffic during the day, so it can be a nice place to get a tasty meal and unwind after a stressful day of classes.

The Union Station

Open Monday-Friday 7 AM – 7 PM

Another Flex Meal option lies in the basement of the Iowa Memorial Union.  The Union Station has the same typical Flex Meal sides and beverages as the River Room Café, but has some unique entrée options.  They have fried chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders, numerous salads, and mashed potato chicken bowls.

My personal favorite is the fried chicken sandwich.  I love Chik-fil-a and this sandwich is like a knockoff version of the famed chicken sandwich restaurant.  The salads are also very good, and they are big enough to fill me up.

There is rarely a wait at the Union Station, which I really appreciate as I am often in a hurry to get to my next class or do homework.  Right next to the Union Station is the Hawkeye Room. The Hawkeye Room has plenty of tables to sit at, and even a billiards and shuffleboard table.

There are plenty of quality options to get a Flex Meal at the University of Iowa, and these are just a few of my favorites.  Make sure you take advantage of your Flex Meals and not just rely on the dining halls to satisfy your hunger! Feel free to comment below and give me recommendations on what and where to get Flex Meals on campus!