The Beginning
With the start of a new semester, a fresh new face popped up alongside the incoming classes of students. Featuring photos reminiscent of Instagram circa 2015 and outrageous captions, @kmanfoodie first appeared on the morning of August 23, 2021.
Claiming to be “unaffiliated with NCC,” the Instagram account has become known around campus as a go-to for food reviews.
The account’s introductory post included a picture of a Kaufman Dining Hall napkin dispenser with the caption “Where’s the salt shaker?” Shortly afterward, it rapidly sent out a stream of posts highlighting various Kaufman breakfast foods, along with ratings.
Since its first round of reviews, @kmanfoodie has consistently posted daily ratings of food from Kaufman Dining Hall, affectionately referred to as “Kman.” Rare images of Au Bon Pain salads and burrito bowls from The Cage also make appearances.
Although the identity of the person, or people, running @kmanfoodie so far remains anonymous, the account, in the few weeks since its birth, has already amassed an impressive 310 followers (not bad for a school with a student body of roughly 2,600).
A Voice for Students
While the majority of the dishes and ratings posted daily appear to come from the owner(s) of the account, followers of @kmanfoodie are encouraged to send in photos of their own meals along with ratings. This has given unhappy students a platform to voice their opinions about their campus’s dining options.
While the quality of the @kmanfoodie’s pictures seems to have improved, the ratings, overall, remain unimpressed. Posts from recent weeks feature a “3/10 melon,” “2/10 carrots,” a satisfactory “7/10 rice,” as well as a warning to “beware grey chicken in salad line.”
The account has also been a vocal critic of North Central’s new “One-Swipe Policy” making waves around campus. After word of the new meal plan restrictions spread, the account posted a poll to its story. Encouraging follower participation, it asked viewers whether they were in favor of the new policy.
The results were 97% to 3% in disfavor of the updated swipe policy.
@Kmanfoodie’s Future
Fall semester is only a few weeks in, and it appears as if @kmanfoodie has no plans of leaving. Like clockwork, the account continues to post three Kaufman meals a day as well as tips for eating at Kman.
In fact, the addition of a new and improved logo, as well as flyers around campus, suggests that @kmanfoodie intends to hang around for much longer than just one semester.
And what does this mean for North Central students?
The arrival of @kmanfoodie has been a beacon of hope for many North Central students. It has been a great tool and source of entertainment for many, and since it seems to have no plans to leave, this means a variety of things for the NCC student body.
Mainly, they get to keep using @kmanfoodie as a resource for meals and an outlet for their frustrations. These include the new campus dining policies and the lackluster options in Kaufman. The witty captions don’t hurt for a good laugh either.
