One of my first quintessentially “Davis” experiences occurred early my freshman year as I overheard one homeless man say to another, “I only eat local, vegan and organic.” Honestly, this struck me as incredibly bourgeois at the time. I remember thinking, “I’ll eat whatever I can afford” as I contemplated just how many CalPIRG meetings I could attend for their free pizza before they could reasonably expect me to start participating.
In the years to come, I would learn that Davis actually has a plethora of local, organic, vegan eats that can be purchased with investments of time rather than money. Here are a few:
A little tree climbing around town can easily get you loads of fresh, seasonal fruit.
2) Volunteering at the Davis Food Co-op
Though not actually free, the DFC offers its customers the opportunity to volunteer on a sliding hourly scale — depending on the size of the household you’re feeding — with discounts ranging from 5 percent for member-workers to 16.5 percent for super-workers.
One of Davis’ best kept secrets, the Salad Bowl Garden, located in front of the Environmental Sciences building, is advertised as the freshest salad bar you could ever hope to encounter.
4) Working at the Experimental College Garden
They pay you in vegetables!
5) Participating in a seed swap
If you’ve got a little space for your own garden, participating in a seed swap is a great way to add some variety to the fruits, veggies, herbs, etc. you’re pulling in.
6) Eating dinner at the Tri-Cooperatives
Consider this my invitation to you to drop by my house for dinner at 7 p.m., Sunday through Thursday. We’ll send you home happy, with a belly full of delicious hippie slop.
HILLARY KNOUSE drinks locally sourced, raw milk with her S’mores Pop-Tarts, every morning. Email your questions, concerns and dinner date offers to hkknouse@ucdavis.edu.
