There's a fly in your soup? Tell the napkin

"No gefilte fish? It's a crime," the napkin read. "No, not in this state," Napkin Man responded. "Look for it during Passover, along with our matzah and all of our other fun holiday foods." Dining Service's napkin suggestion boards make it possible for discontented gourmets at the University to get their dining qualms out in the open, and, possibly, to make changes for the better. "We've changed some things because of the suggestion boards," said Stouffer Dining Assistant Manager Eric Lammers. Since the late 1970s, the boards have been a constant feature in University dining halls, and they have always seen "a lot of activity," according to Lammers. Because so many students have tacked up their napkins on the boards, Dining Service must rotate the responses, pulling down napkins after a few weeks to make room for more suggestions. The convenience of the napkin suggestion board is a large factor in its general effectiveness as a means of student-Dining Service dialogue. Dining Service Director Bill Canney said the suggestion boards provide quicker feedback than biannual surveys. "That napkin is there for you, for you to write on," Canney said. "The napkin boards are a student's quickest possible means of feedback." While taking a pen to a napkin, writing a quick scrawl and thumbtacking it to a bulletin board may not seem like activism, it does wield a potential force for change. Almost every suggestion receives a response, whether in the dining commons or simply in writing. Napkins allow new and different opinions to reach the Dining Service staff. "We have made several menu changes based on the suggestions we've received," Lammers said. Napkin suggestions vary widely, ranging from the serious to the bizarre. Conventional requests abound, such as petitions for new vegetarian dishes, new soda selections and more ice cream toppings. Napkins also address more technical issues of eating at Dining Services, as diners request items ranging from new milk machines to paper coffee cups. There are, however, more aggressive diners, who release pent-up frustrations in the context of their requests. "Here's my pound of flesh: your pound of flesh (the steak) was raw, cold and nasty. Kindly desist," read one particularly poetic expression of misery on the suggestion board in Van Pelt Dining Hall. But if there is an attempt at wit on the part of the napkin supplicants, it is echoed in the written replies of the dining hall managers and staff. This invisible hand is affectionately known at Stouffer only as "Napkin Man," to whom requests are addressed directly. "Some of our responses are witty, and some are serious," said Lammers. Whether funny or serious, students say that napkin suggestions can do some actual good in the long run. "Yeah, I was surprised that they responded so quickly to my suggestion," said College freshman Tom Eng, who made a polite request for less vinegar in the salad dressing. "As long as you're nice about it, something will probably get done." Dining Service Director Canney agreed. "I think that [a response] depends on the tone in which the student made his comment, as well as the personality of the manager responding," Canney said. The give and take on the napkin boards has been a positive force in student-Dining Service interaction, and will remain so in the future, officials said. "I've never used it personally, but I know that people do, and it's nice to know that it's there if I want to make a suggestion," said Engineering freshman Avish Parashar. There are even students who use the napkin board to express their heartfelt gratitude and appreciation to Dining Services. One napkin at Class of '20 Commons expressed a diner's contented bliss: "You guys do great things with zucchini. Thanks."

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