The Union Programming Council (UPC) hosted a “food truck roundup” featuring food, crafts and opportunities for students to get involved in the community.
There was only one food truck at the event, calling into question the council’s understanding of the word “roundup,” but hundreds of participants still gathered at the Union plaza from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
Dave Jackson, an undeclared freshman, stopped by after studying for a final.
“Free candy and a free water bottle. I’m a student — I’m all about free stuff,” Jackson said.
Rubadue’s Saucey Skillet food truck had a steady flow of customers buying “high quality comfort food” like crab cakes, mac and cheese, sandwiches and salads. Light rain forced plans for live music indoors, but several students went inside to hear acoustic guitar and vocal music in the Union food courts.
Kristen Wirth, a freshman in civil engineering, toured various booths, stopping at one to get a henna tattoo.
“I got a little flower and geometry design. It’s pretty cool,” Wirth said.
Wirth said she isn’t feeling stress for finals quite yet but still enjoys all the student events on campus. Wirth also participated in another booth where students painted and decorated wooden ‘U’ blocks. Another nearby booth had students spinning a wheel to win prizes.
One table advertised mental health week at the U and listed resources for students dealing with finals stress. Utah Pink was collecting for an ongoing clothing drive for the Utah Road Home and had already gathered over 800 donations.
Jessie Pechmann, a graduate student in geography, science and technology, set up a table for a survey she is running on climate change. Pechmann and a friend handed out flyers and gave away candy as they talked to students about environmental issues.
Food trucks commonly on campus were nearby at the Marriott Library plaza, luring some students away from the event. Taco Cartel, Tandoori Indian and Thai Food and Bento Japanese Cuisine are popular stops for students during the lunch rush.
The UPC is sponsoring a game day next Thursday, April 21, where students can play board games, table tennis, bowling or Xbox all for free from 1 to 3 p.m. More information on UPC events is online at union.utah.edu.
@mbatman72