By Sidney Dills, Diversions Editor
There’s been a lot of fuss recently about the Paladen and Einstein’s changing their hours to redirect traffic towards the Paddock, so I decided to check out the new restaurant to see how it stacks up against other on campus fare.
The Paddock serves sports bar-type food — burgers, sandwiches, and a few salads — but I was shocked by the expensive prices the first time I read over the menu. The first item I tried was the B.L.T, the cheapest item at $7.
The bacon was crispy and the tomato was fresh, but overall this sandwich tasted like, well, a sandwich. The B.L.T. wasn’t large, and I was disappointed that it was made with regular bread rather than something like Texas toast. I could have made a sandwich just as good in my apartment in about five minutes, and it certainly would have cost less money.
I was also not a fan of the sweet potato fries that came with my B.L.T. They were too sweet and tasted almost like cinnamon toast. On top of that, they were served with syrup, which didn’t make for a good combination.
The second item I ordered off the menu was the black bean cheeseburger, which I was much more impressed with. The black bean patty was fresh and soft, basically falling apart, and the french fries that came with it were by far the best item that I’ve had at the Paddock, salty and well-seasoned.
Since everyone keeps talking about the milkshakes, I decided to try one of those as well. They come in handful of off-the-wall flavors like glazed donut and chocolate and bacon, but I ordered the banana and Nutella milkshake, the safest sounding one on the menu. Though the milkshake had a good consistency, I was disappointed that I couldn’t taste the Nutella at all, just the bananas.
The Paddock has been crowded every time I’ve been there, which makes sense considering it’s the only food option available on campus after the PDen and DH close. They served the food relatively fast, but it would be difficult to order and eat in an hour lunch break.
The Paddock has some good options, but they’re overpriced. Right now, the restaurant just seems like a disappointing replacement for Einstein’s and the PDen.
