Every day, around 400 students head to the line for cafeteria food. There, they are presented with food that can be delectable, disgusting, and disconcerting. School lunches have been around for longer than I care to research. They are served on an unfixed cycle, and the entrees range from spaghetti, to burgers, and everything in between. Since last year, the COVID-19 pandemic has been making it more difficult for some families to put food on the plate, causing the school to serve meals for free.

However, many still chose to pack their own lunches, and it’s no puzzle why. While there are those who are adamant about the quality, or, at least, the edibility, of the district’s food; There are countless horror stories of lunches gone bad that scare some away from the prospect of even giving the school meals a try. It’s for that reason that I, a lunch-packing regular, decided to give my take on one of the regulars handed out by the ladies behind the plastic screen: Mac n’ Cheese with Ham.

Mac N’ Cheese with Ham: 6/10

As the flagship of this entree, this really just feels like wasted potential. Though the texture is impeccable, and both the cheese and ham have good base flavor, they don’t have much of it. If more flavor was somehow added, this could be up there with the greats of school lunches, but until then, it is a measly 6/10. 

French Fries: 8/10

Simply wonderful. They are one of the trademarks of school lunches, being served with nearly every meal, and they never disappoint. The salt, moisture, and all around flavor of the fries are always on point. In a way, I find existential comfort in knowing that something that can be as inconsistent as these lunches can nearly always have a staple of uniform flavor.

Roll: 2/10

Absolutely awful. The rolls had no flavor and were extremely dry. It’s almost impressive that whoever makes these lunches was able to find the precise point where the bread was both too crunchy and not crunchy enough.

Applesauce: 7/10

The school took a much needed deviation from the standard brand in America, Mott’s, as the brand they use, Peach Farms, is much less watery. Mott’s is getting old.

Final verdict? Of course, it wasn’t anywhere near as bad as some make it out to be, and I’d say I enjoyed it. To any lunch-packers reading, I recommend you give school lunches a try.