Students are disheartened to learn that as of this semester, the beloved on-campus deli District Pickle is now closed.
The Terrace Dining Room kosher nook is the only on-campus kosher dining available through the American University meal plan, according to AU Kitchen, which students say leaves fewer kosher options.
“It felt a bit like a betrayal, almost,” said Brayden Serphos, a junior in the School of Public Affairs and an active member of AU Chabad, Hillel and Students Supporting Israel.
Serphos said he received a message from another student in August on the rumored closure, but an email to students at American University on Aug. 20 confirmed it. According to the email from AU Kitchen, District Pickle would be available through the new TDR on-the-go option in the GrubHub app.
“Our new offerings combine the District Pickle menu, available via TDR to-go, with more kosher options throughout the day in TDR to provide more choices and better value to our community members,” the email said.
As the only on-campus kosher dining options are in the TDR kosher nook, Geoff Kelly, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences and a member of Chabad and Hillel, said it may present a challenge for some kosher students.
”For students who keep 100 percent kosher, it's very difficult for them to eat on campus,” Kelly said. “There are some days where, if you get to TDR late, there might not be any food in the kosher section because we've already eaten it.”
Kelly also said the inconsistency of the TDR kosher nook needs to be more reliable for Jewish students on campus.
“Since our school has such a large Jewish population, it's really a disservice to that population of students that it's sort of a dice roll on whether or not we'll actually be able to find kosher food in TDR,” Kelly said.
Mylo Sherma, a junior in CAS, said the new kosher nook is not as expansive as what some kosher students were led to believe. As someone who eats almost entirely kosher, Sherma said they relied heavily on District Pickle for kosher food.
“I haven't used it [TDR to-go], but I have looked at the options and you have the option to get either one of two sandwiches,” Sherma said.
Sherma said when they heard the rumor that District Pickle was closing, they contacted the One Card & Dining Services Office to learn more. They said they were told by a representative of the office via email that the decision to close District Pickle and expand the TDR kosher nook was made based on student input, but Sherma said they don’t think that is an accurate representation of what Jewish students feel.
“Students don't want this, and then the administration did it,” Sherma said. “They write in these emails that they did ask for student input, but they didn’t, or at least they don’t listen.”
Kelly said he thinks the University assumed that District Pickle closing “only mattered to a small subset of sort of people.” Serphos agreed that District Pickle was loved by many students, kosher or not.
“It's not only for Jewish students,” Serphos said. “There are plenty of non-Jews I know on campus who also really liked District Pickle because it was a good spot to go to and the food was good.”
Elizabeth Deal, assistant vice president and deputy chief communications officer, said the University would supplement the loss of the deli through the expansion of the TDR kosher nook.
“The AU Kitchen has sunset the District Pickle venue due to significant improvements for Kosher service made possible by the newly renovated TDR, expanded offerings in our campus markets and University Club, and the new TDR to go service,” Deal said in a statement to The Eagle.
Julian Weiss, a junior in CAS, said he enjoyed District Pickle and often goes to the kosher nook in TDR, but he is not as reliant on AU dining as other students might be.
“When you live on campus you rely a lot on the kosher options on campus,” Weiss said. “For people who live on campus, [District Pickle closing] can be a bit of a blow.”
Weiss also said while he thinks the TDR kosher nook is nice, purchasing a meal plan just for the kosher nook is not a good option.
“It would be nice if you could get a separate meal plan just for the kosher food,” Weiss said. “It could be a bit cheaper because that is the only [kosher] option on campus.”
Correction: The original version of this article incorrectly stated that a Hillel employee said the decision to close District Pickle and expand the kosher nook was made based on student feedback. This information was received through an email exchange with the One Card & Dining Services Office, not a Hillel employee.
This article was edited by Samantha Skolnick, Tyler Davis and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks, Ariana Kavoossi and Ella Rousseau.
