During my time at Swarthmore, I have become somewhat of a food lover. As such, I love to diversify my palette as much as I can, and I greatly appreciate the numerous food options near Swarthmore College that allow me to do so. Of course, my weekly meals are not set in stone and will typically fluctuate by week. However, with consideration to the most rudimentary habitual elements of my schedule, this is what a week of eating, as a sophomore at Swarthmore College, looks like for me 🙂
Monday:
I have my introductory Japanese class first thing in the morning, and I typically fall asleep late on Sunday evenings watching movies or playing board games with friends. So, I will grab a drink on my way to class and, if I have a bit more time, occasionally get a chocolate croissant from Kohlberg Cafe. After my US Fiction: 1900-1950s class, I like to sit outside and do my readings for my afternoon course, Transnational Japanese Literature, and will usually grab an iced matcha with oat milk and lavender-lemon syrup from Kohlberg Cafe. After I am done with my readings, I will go to the dining hall and eat with my friends: typically, grabbing a tray with pasta, vegetables, a banana, and water.
*The dining hall menu is not predictable enough to estimate exactly what I would eat for lunch or dinner on a particular day, though. There are nine different stations of food to choose from, and they all rotate between a variety of really delicious options.
After class, I usually find a nice place to study (or take a nap), then grab a small dinner from the Dining Hall. I look for something with good protein—steak, chicken, or pork—before fencing practice, which I head to right afterwards. Afterwards, I go to Crumb Cafe and get a BLT or Caprese, along with a strawberry milkshake.
Tuesday:
I usually work on Tuesday mornings before class as a tour guide, so I grab some water before my tour begins. Afterwards, I attend my Japanese lecture course before heading to the dining hall for something light. I am a big breakfast-for-lunch fan, so Captain Crunch, sunny-side up eggs, and pancakes have been one of my go-tos. Then, I go to my history course, Modern Europe 1789-1918, before stopping at the Science Center cafe for some strawberries or blueberries to snack on while I work. At around 6 PM, I usually go with my friends to get dinner off-campus in Media, PA, which is accessible via our on-campus SEPTA station (though my friends and I typically just drive). After getting dinner, which usually ends up being dim-sum (lots of dumplings, alongside, occasionally, duck, cucumber salad, rolls, or something of the adjacent), we will stop at Kung Fu Tea for boba before heading back to campus. If I have time, I will try to go to Archery practice afterwards, where there is occasionally food to snack on as well.
Wednesday:
Early morning once again, so I get lunch in the dining hall after my US Fiction Course. The Japanese department has a Language Table (an hour-and-fifteen-minute session of exclusive Japanese speaking), so I meet up with my friends and professors to get some language practice in. I usually do a lighter lunch of tomatoes, cucumbers, beets, and something bread-y. After this, I hang out with friends before my tour guide shift, then work at Kohlberg Cafe after work, usually getting my signature iced matcha or an iced chai latte. Closer to fencing practice, I stop by the dining hall for dinner, getting something on the heavier end, including a mix of various dessert items from the dessert station. Then, after practice, I go to the Science Center Cafe with my teammates for second-dinner, grabbing a cherry Pepsi and shrimp-tempura sushi. I also typically purchase a bag of Life Savers gummies for the road.
Thursday:
I occasionally have a sleepover at my friends’ dorm after Wednesday practices, so I usually wake up on the earlier end and get some homework done. Afterwards, I go back to my room and make a bowl of caprese with tomatoes, basil, mozzarella, vinaigrette, and olive oil purchased from the Swarthmore Co-Op—the community food market in town. After Japanese, I get a mixed-berry yogurt parfait from Kohlberg Cafe and find a comfortable spot to do some readings (and doom-scroll) before Modern Europe. After class, I work until the weekly First-Page Creative Writing Club meeting, then get dinner in the town of Swarthmore, PA, or in Media, PA, with my friends. The Co-Op has an incredible bagel that I typically gravitate towards, and on occasion, we will get hotpot at Seoul. Both are within an accessible walking/bus distance from the library, so I will meet up with some other friends afterwards to get homework done or play games. Later in the evening, I usually make popcorn or eat some ramen.
Friday:
I finish my Friday classes relatively early, so I pack my afternoon with fun personal adventures and plans with friends. I usually go to the dining hall to get something like fair food (fried mac-and-cheese, cheese curds, etc.) or Korean food. Then, after attending whatever events happen to be occurring and occasionally filming an Instagram live tour for the admissions department, I get some work done or hang out with friends until dinner, whereupon I usually return to the dining hall. After, I go to fencing practice, then arrive at Crumb Cafe for a nacho & quesadilla combo and a blue-raspberry slushie. I play games with my friends until it gets late, then go back to the dorm to make Shirley Temples (Sprite and grenadine) and grab chips and candy from the vending machine to celebrate the end of the school week.
Saturday:
I usually like to spend my Saturdays in Philadelphia with friends, so I sleep in long enough to hop onto the 11:10AM train to Center City or Chinatown, then grab lunch upon my arrival. On days when I take a later train or skip out on traveling, I get Saturday brunch from the dining hall: bacon, eggs with cheese, and banana bread. In Philly, I typically gravitate towards cafés adjacent to Rittenhouse Square, since they have lots of sweeter, fruitier brunch options. Then, I spend the day going to different festivals and events around the city. For dinner, Chinatown is almost always my go-to, so my friends and I get noodles, dim-sum, sushi, etc. Then, we stop at You & Me for some snacks for the rest of the evening.
Sunday:
Typically, Sundays are when we travel for fencing tournaments. Meals for extracurricular activities are reimbursed to the spender ($15 for breakfast, $18 for lunch, and $20 for dinner, as of April, 2026). We leave early in the morning, then stop at Wawa for breakfast. Then, we get to the tournament in question, which usually starts around 8 AM. We fence the morning event, then one of our teammates with a van-certification picks up our catered Chipotle order from the store. We eat until the end of lunch, usually around 1 PM, then finish the rest of the tournament. Of course, I drink copious amounts of water throughout the entire thing. After that, we stop for dinner on the way home, typically at Shake Shack or Five Guys, though we poll the van to ask them where they want to stop. After we get back to campus, I usually take a nap, then conclude my evening with a nice Cherry Pepsi as I get ready for another week of good work, company, and eating.
