What happened to you, Veranda?

Long ago, so long ago, I remember a time. By long ago, I mean my freshman year, but that can still be considered long based on the measurement of time. Veranda Cafe used to be jumping, the cutting edge, the epitome of campus food. Students and professors alike were seen enjoying each other’s company, a situation that does not always occur in class. But what happened to you, Veranda?

Now, granted, things have changed since the time I remembered. Change happens; that comes with life. Veranda underwent some of those changes. Two or three years ago, Veranda used to offer free cornbread with any meal, and chips to boot. Friday came along with Free Dessert Friday, and the burritos were fully loaded with a scrumptious red sauce on top. Oh, the red sauce!

It was my favorite, and I loved nothing more than scooping it up with warm tortilla chips. Then, when I became a sophomore, my Plu$ Dollars were gone. If I wanted to indulge in the deliciousness I once knew, it would have to come from my own pocket. A small price to pay for that Morro burrito.

But then the changes began. The cornbread was no long complimentary, Free Dessert Fridays seemed more and more sparse, and the chips next to my burrito started to decline in number.

Those problems were easily fixed. I could pay a little extra for cornbread, I was usually full before I could finish my chips, and the dessert was just going straight to my ass.

I came to accept these terms (after much crying and contemplation of why this might be happening) with flying colors.

Then the changes came more suddenly. Free Dessert Fridays disappeared, I was down to about four chips with my burrito (which seemed to be decreasing in size as well), and the cornbread was gone. The salsa bar and soda fountain moved to the other side of the wall, creating problems to refill both. The day of doom to the Veranda I once knew was approaching.

That fateful day came last week. I read the warnings from the Mustang Daily alerting of changes, the advertisement proclaiming a new menu at Veranda Café: “New menu, new staff, come see what we have to offer now!”

So I took the challenge. I went to the new Veranda Cafe. The atmosphere that used to be jumping during the crunch of lunch hour was still and quiet. The cornbread was still MIA, and as I grabbed my ticket to fill out my order, I saw it.

The Morro was gone.

So I was forced to get the “new” Morro, or in this case, the Baja. I sat down and waited, unsure about the new changes. When the Baja was placed in front of me, my heart sank.

No more red sauce.

What happened to you, Veranda? What happened to the cornbread? What happened to the dessert? What happened to the atmosphere, Chef Ed and my Morro burrito?

And what about the red sauce? A chili con carne like that comes only once in a while.

My smaller burrito left me hungry, and with only four chips at my disposal, I didn’t even receive the satisfaction of scooping up any leftovers with a crisp crunch.

I suppose all good things must come to an end.

Christopher Fredericks is a mathematics junior, a Mexican food lover and a guest columnist for the Mustang Daily.