If you’re a student at OU, chances are you’ve been to the Couch Restaurants – commonly known as “The Caf.” Unlimited Chick-fil-A, Freshens froyo, a tantalizing Greek buffet, a dessert bar … Does that ring a bell? Especially for freshmen, The Caf plays a huge part in students’ culinary life.
No matter how familiar you are with The Caf, though, there are probably some things you never knew you could do to revitalize your eating experience there.
Behold: the five Caf “hacks” that will change your life!
1. The Authentic Pesto Pasta
If you’re a pesto lover like me, you may often have inexplicable cravings for this fatty, green sauce. But have no fear, The Caf has an answer.
1. Go to the Athens Cafe (commonly known as “the Greek place”), and ask only for their pesto sauce. Request two to three spoons of it, if possible.
2. Go to the La Roma Pizza & Pasta station (commonly called “the Italian place”) and add some spaghetti to your plate.
3. Mix the pesto and spaghetti together to create your pesto pasta.
4. (Optional) If you want your pasta to be hot, take your plate to the dessert bar (where they have a microwave) and ask if they can heat it up for 30-60 seconds, as per your taste.
5. (Also optional) If you’re a basil-lover, you can ask for basil from the La Roma Pizza & Pasta station, too. They don’t put it out with their other condiments, but if you specifically ask for it, they will give it to you.
5. Top it off with some Parmesan cheese from the salad bar and enjoy!
2. The Root Beer Float Originale
Face it: The Caf has an excellent dessert bar. Pretty much anything that your sweet tooth craves can be found there, except a root beer float. Don’t worry, though – the root beer float can still be made!
1. Go to the dessert bar and grab a large glass (like the one seen above). These are usually found to the right of all the dessert food, near the coffee.
2. Ask for a scoop of ice cream in the cup from the dessert bar. You can choose any flavor, but I personally prefer vanilla for this concoction.
3. Go to one of the drink dispensers that has root beer. There’s one right next to the Chick-fil-A.
4. Fill your ice cream-containing glass with root beer, and enjoy!
3. Breakfast for Lunch: Guac, Eggs & Salsa
I love breakfast. And when I say “love,” I mean the I-can-eat-breakfast-for-any-meal kind of love. Unfortunately, The Caf only serves breakfast food until 10 a.m., past which you can find only lunch and dinner options. However, this Caf hack will help you satisfy your inner breakfast cravings at any time of day.
1. Go to the Sooner Smokehouse food station and grab one of the burger order slips. It doesn’t matter which one you grab.
2. Check the box that says “fried egg,” and ask the employees if you can have the eggs scrambled, rather than fried. Most of the time, the answer will be “yes.”
3. Make sure to indicate that you want your eggs scrambled on the order sheet, as well, and write the number of eggs you would like.
4. Check the box that says “guacamole” on it, or indicate elsewhere on the sheet that you would like guacamole.
5. Cross out all the other parts of the order sheet. Look at the order sheet below for an example on how to fill one out.
6. Once your order is ready, take your plate of scrambled eggs and guacamole to the Casa Del Sol station and ask for salsa.
7. Enjoy!
4. The All-Day Breakfast Burrito
Sometimes, your breakfast craving has no end. Don’t worry – I sympathize. I’m someone who’s eaten breakfast burritos for literally every meal of the day before. If you’re like me, this Caf hack is practically a godsend.
1. Go to the Sooner Smokehouse food station and request only fried eggs. I usually use one fried egg per burrito.
2. Go to the Casa Del Sol food station, and ask for flour tortillas. (I personally prefer the small tortillas).
3. Once your fried eggs are ready, put a fried egg on top of each tortilla.
4. Add cheese from the salad bar. In the picture below, I’ve added cheddar cheese to one burrito and mozzarella to the other.
5. Add in any other food from the salad bar that you may want (spinach, meat, etc.).
6. Fold up your burritos and pay a visit to the dessert station. Ask the employees at the dessert station if they can heat your burritos for 30-45 seconds in the microwave.
7. Ask for guac and salsa from the Casa Del Sol food station if you desire, and enjoy!
5. The Caf “Choco Taco”
If you’ve ever eaten a Klondike Choco Taco®, you know what all the fuss is about. Rich vanilla ice cream inside a crunchy, chocolate-covered shell is irresistible. Here’s how to make your own “Choco Taco” at The Caf.
1. Go to the Casa Del Sol food section and ask for an empty, hard taco shell (like the one pictured above).
2. Go to the dessert station and ask for a scoop of vanilla ice cream (or whichever flavor you desire). If you’re looking for a slightly less calorific option, you can go to the Freshens Frozen Yogurt bar and ask for some froyo. Or, another option is to get a cake from the dessert bar and use just the icing.
3. Go to the Freshens Frozen Yogurt bar and ask them to put a topping of your choice in a cup, instead of frozen yogurt. I usually ask for chocolate chips – but you can pick anything that suits your taste.
4. Using a spoon, fill your taco shell with the ice cream/frozen yogurt and your topping(s).
5. If you want some chocolate syrup and/or caramel to go along with your taco, ask for some at the Freshens Frozen Yogurt bar, and enjoy your unique creation!
Hopefully, these five Caf “hacks” can revamp your Couch Restaurants eating experience. Man, all this talk of food really has my mouth watering!
I know where I’ll be going to eat later.