UC Davis has multiple libraries ranked among the top 100 academic research libraries in North America. For this year’s Best of Davis, however, Shields Library won the top spot for best place to study on campus.

There are over 10 million items in its collection available for UC Davis students, staff and faculty. Even with the vast number of resources, if there are still materials students or faculty need, Shields offers an interlibrary loan system with other UC campus libraries as well as remote resources through a VPN using their UCD LoginID.

“I think Shields is the best study spot because it’s a very convenient location on campus. It’s right next to a lot of classrooms, as well as places like the CoHo and MU,” said Serena Uppal, a third-year economics and math double major.

Shields Library offers a 24-hour room with wireless access, private study rooms and a printing room. The main reading room on the second floor includes a high ceiling with many paintings, ample lighting and an abundance of outlets. If graduate and Ph.D. students would like, they may wait-list for the carrels — cages with desks, chairs, light and ethernet cables — which line the second floor for a more personal study space.

“I personally like the main reading room because of the amount of space and sunlight that it has,” Uppal said.

Shields offers various tools and study aids for check-out, including individual charging lockers and battery packs, whiteboards and markers, headphones, power squids and subject-specific equipment such as atomic structure kits. It also has a computer room that provides computers for printing, scanning and reference.

Shields Library is open Monday to Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 12 a.m., Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday from noon to 6 p.m. and Sunday from noon to midnight.
Written by: Yvonne Leong and Lara Loptman — features@theaggie.org

Crepeville, located near the UC Davis campus on 3rd Street, now holds the honor of UC Davis’ favorite breakfast place. Crepeville’s success at its first location in San Francisco in 1990 “ignited a trend that spread quickly throughout the Bay Area,” as described on it website. In 2002, the family owners of Crepeville moved to Sacramento, founding the place we now know and love conveniently located downtown and very close to campus. They have been serving students and community members ever since.

Junhyuk Kwon, a first-year managerial economics major, was satisfied with the establishment’s customer service and enjoyed his order of the eggs benedict with potatoes.

“I was recommended [to go there] by [my] RA,” Kwon said. “It was pretty good actually.”

Their menu has a wide assortment of crepes, from savory crepes with a side of house style potatoes to dessert crepes served with whipped cream. For their non-crepe-loving customers, the restaurant offers options such as eggs, omelettes, sandwiches, bagels, soups, salads and pastas, even providing coffee with free refills.

“It’s kind of vintage because the menu is written on the chalkboard,” Kwon said.  “It looked very friendly, just like one of those restaurants in Davis.”

Written by: Sahiti Vemula — features@theaggie.org

There’s never a bad time for a burrito. Whether it’s 8 a.m. or 9 p.m., Taqueria Guadalajara — commonly referred to as “Guads” — is the place to go for burritos in Davis. For the third year in a row, Guads has won best burrito. Not only that, but the restaurant also has a 4.2 out of five star rating on Google reviews and four stars on Yelp with over 500 reviews.

It may be easy to overlook Guadalajara since it’s not downtown like most popular Davis restaurants, but the trip out to North Davis will not disappoint. Since Taqueria Guadalajara is in Anderson Plaza, it is conveniently next to stops on the G, J and Q bus lines.

“There’s a few other great burrito places in Davis, but Guads stands out because it is just a solid, tight and clean burrito,” said Ryan Tomasi, a fifth-year mechanical engineering major and Guads regular. “Way too many burritos are loose and sloppy but Guads gives burritos the structure they deserve.”

Other options on the menu include nachos, tortas, tacos, tostadas and quesadillas.  With regular and veggie burritos starting at under $7, affordable prices are one of the many reasons why Taqueria Guadalajara reigns as a “Best” of Davis.

Written by: Brian Landry — features@theaggie.org

Since the 1960s, Davis has been known as the bike capital of America, a nickname embraced by both students and locals. The town is home to 10 bike shops in its 9.9 square mile area, but the on-campus Bike Barn has been voted the best bike shop in Davis yet again.

Though it started as just a repair shop in 1971, over the years the Bike Barn has added a store for gear and accessories, as well as a rental hub, and it’s convenient Silo location keeps it busy with customers.

“We’re geared towards serving students primarily, so we work on all types of bikes to maintain them,” said Christa Hoffman, a Bike Barn mechanic and second-year environmental science and economics double major.

The Bike Barn is unique compared to the other bike shops in town because it is completely student-run and focused on serving the campus community. Hoffman, who has worked at the Bike Barn since fall 2016, also noted that the Bike Barn is distinctive due to its involvement with programs like Aggie Bike Buy and the Helmet Hair Don’t Care campaign. Aggie Bike Buy helps incoming students buy and customize a bike for the start of the school year so they don’t have to transport one when moving onto campus, while Helmet Hair Don’t Care is a campaign that encourages Davis bikers to wear helmets.

Hoffman said that the work environment is beneficial for student employees and patrons alike.

“We employ almost entirely students, which allows for people to gain experience while working,” Hoffman said. “It’s a great, student-centered atmosphere.”

Written by: Noah Pflueger-Peters & Lindsay Floyd —  features@theaggie.org

In a classic underdog upset, bikes have been voted Davis’ best mode of transportation.

It may come as no surprise that the first city to have bike paths, as well as a Bicycling Hall of Fame, chose biking as its preferred mode of transportation. The quick nature of bikes make them far more preferable than walking, waiting for Unitrans or buying an expensive pass for on-campus parking.

“I’d say for our geography here — it’s faster, it’s cheaper, it’s more fun,” said Johnny Campbell, a second-year graduate student and associate instructor in the Horticulture and Agronomy Program. “What other reasons could there be? It’s exercise.”

Biking to campus doesn’t always have to be about being cheaper or faster. Some students just enjoy the ride. Though pesky pedestrians, chaotic bike circles and fights for the nearest bike rack can be a pain, biking has blossomed into an Aggie tradition. With their low environmental impact and speedy capabilities, it is a no-brainer that biking won best mode of transportation for 2017.

Written by: Myah Daniels and Liz Jacobson — features@theaggie.org

Late into a night of grueling studying, working or partying, sometimes, students just need a snack. In-n-Out is always there in those late hours, its golden arrow glowing in the darkness, a bastion of good eats.

In-n-Out’s simple menu only offers burgers, fries, drinks and shakes available for purchase. If a particular patron does not find something for themselves on the menu, there are also plenty of options on the “secret menu” such as fries or burgers “animal style” with cheese, grilled onions and In-n-Out’s special spread, “protein style,” with lettuce instead of burger buns, and grilled cheese for vegetarian customers. This way, people with all kinds of diets can enjoy In-n-Out’s great food.

Cesar Corrales, a second-year environmental toxicology major and In-n-Out fanatic, has a particular favorite meal at In-n-Out.

“The double-double with animal style fries and a Neapolitan shake, with extra spread on the side,” Corrales said.

In-n-Out of course leaves plenty of room for personalization and even allows patrons to customize the number of patties and slices of cheese to put on a burger — all the way up to 100×100. Indeed, In-n-Out serves to please.

In-n-Out stays open until 1 a.m. on weeknights and 1:30 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays for all who wish to satisfy a late-night craving.

Written by: Aaron Levins and Gillian Allen — features@theaggie.org

Dumpling House is locally renowned for its savory dumplings, served pan-fried, in soup broth or steamed with a special house recipe sauce.

The dumplings themselves are handmade in the restaurant near the register, where customers can take a sneak peek at their food. Each dumpling is filled and folded individually before being sent to the kitchen for cooking.

“I enjoy watching the workers,” said Andrew Jackson, a third-year mathematics major. “It is interesting to watch [them] make the food right there in front of you.”

Though the freshly-made dumplings are the restaurant’s most popular dish, Dumpling House also serves potstickers, rice bowls, wontons and, for a change of pace, fish and chips. For sides, customers can order steamed veggies or appetizers such as egg rolls or a mouth-watering plate of fried green onion bread. Dumpling House is also vegetarian-friendly — non-meat eaters can order vegetable dumplings as well as tofu or veggie bowls.

Regardless of the dish, all of the food is well-priced, well-proportioned and prepared quickly — great for busy college students. At peak hours, Dumpling House is often packed with students and Davis citizens alike, but its bustling nature is appealing to customers.

“The atmosphere was busy, but not unfriendly,” Jackson said.

Inexpensive and delicious, Dumpling House is a classic choice for Chinese food. So swing by its location on E Street in Downtown Davis, pick up your chopsticks and dig in!

Written by: Allyson Tsuji & Marisol Beas — features@theaggie.org

This year’s favorite egghead sculpture, the “Bookhead,” welcomes visitors to UC Davis’ Peter J. Shields Library with its head literally buried in a book.

Renowned UC Davis Art Department professor and artist Robert Arneson, a lauded sculptor whose work can be found in many museum collections, created “Bookhead” as well as the other four sculptures of The Egghead Series. The painted bronze “Bookhead” piece was installed in October 1991 as the first of the series, and it is differentiated from the other eggheads by its light blue coating.

Arneson, who passed away in 1992, established the ceramic sculpture program for the UC Davis Art Department in 1962, which was controversial at the time because ceramics was considered to be outside of the fine arts sphere. Today, Arneson’s work allows students to reflect on their own time at UC Davis.

“It reminds me of how I feel about studying,” said Jasnoor Kaur, a third-year neurobiology, physiology and behavior major and library assistant.

For Kaur, the sculpture symbolizes the academic process of immersing oneself in literature and absorbing the text. In the midst of midterms and finals weeks, students have been known to kiss or rub “Bookhead’s” bald skull. Even during less stressful times, the disembodied head nestled face-first in an open book still captures the attention of students and other passersby.

Written by: Aaron Liss — features@theaggie.org  

Customizable toppings, artisanal ingredients, fast service and reasonable prices come together at Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza, a franchise pizza joint serving up personal-sized thin-crust pizzas cooked in a unique, open-stove fast-firing technique. At around $8 per pizza, Blaze offers a large selection of high-quality, creative toppings and sauces all for fairly affordable prices, and allows customers to choose from a menu of signature pizzas or to fully customize their own.

Blaze’s build-your-own pizza model and counter-served setup makes it stand out from other pizzerias and earns it the title of “Best Pizza in Davis,” usurping four-year previous winner Woodstock’s Pizza.

“I love how you can build your own,” said Madelin Cartoscelli, a Blaze regular. “I’ve had it so many times and it tastes delicious […] especially when they put parmesan cheese on it, oh yeah!”  

Customers follow their pizzas down an assembly line of workers who deftly add toppings per customers’ requests, see their pizza fast-fired right before them and enjoy it either to-go or sitting down at trendy aluminum tables and patio seating.

Though the shop specializes in delivering a straightforward menu that allows for limitless combinations of toppings, it has a selection of crowd-pleasing drinks and desserts: s’more pies, sea salt chocolate chip cookies, olive oil brownies, beer, wine, agua fresca, lemonade and free refill fountain drinks. The shop also features gluten-free dough and vegan selections, such as tofu popcorn chick’n, vegan cheese and salads. Reviewers rave about Blaze’s blood orange lemonade, which is included as one of their free-refill items and draws some savvy students to dine in just for the limitless supply.

Written by: Kristen Leung — features@theaggie.org