Pines

Definitely one of the better dining halls on campus. A wide arrange of choices to choose from including asian cuisine to italian styles. Would reccomend to anyone looking to grab a bite on campus. Has outdoor seating as well a spacious indoor section. Located in the center of muir.

The food is pretty good. Many options. Only thing is it gets really crowded and at most only 2 registers are open. I really like the tacquitos and burritos. Still haven’t tried the sushi and noodle station. Their cheesecakes are good!

I’m a senior and I spend cash on this place like no tomorrow.
Here’s what I had recently one day:
breakfast: 3 freshly fried eggs sunny side up with bacon, toast, juice, coffee, steel-​cut oatmeal with fixings
lunch: CHILI, TORTAS (so f*cking good), stewed beans with generous chunks of melt-​in-​your-​mouth pork
anyways, I love this place, food and staff included.

I’m a transfer student at UCSD and unlike most people I’ve met, I commute to/​from the school M-​F. I don’t have dining dollars nor do I have access to more affordable home food. Therefore, I am so excited that I discovered Pines! A lot of the options here are self-​serve and you can choose the amount of servings you’d like to have. I’m a pretty lean girl who usually pays $ 8 – 10 for a meal elsewhere, resulting in me throwing ¾ of it away since it’s pointless carrying it around for the rest of the school day. That being said, I absolutely appreciate that I can make salads here according to how much I need to sustain myself for the rest of the day without overpaying for food that I’ll end up throwing out! I spend as less as $ 2 – 3 some days when I’m not too hungry but don’t wanna buy a snack! Thank you pines!!!

With the weird menu switcharoos going on in the other dhalls, I would have to say that Pines is the most consistent one. I’m pretty stingy with my dining dollars, so when it comes to maximizing, Pines does a great job!
I always love their made-​to-​order station, and they always give great portions of fries and yummy fried stuff. I always come here for their beef chili though… it’s like my go-​to when I have a bad day with the other dining halls. For only $ 3.50 a bowl (or around that price), I can get full quickly and simply!
Pines is definitely always bustling… so if you would like, choose outdoor patio seating! If not, make a new friend and share a gigantic table meant for 8 that only seats 1 at peak hours. (SOCIALIZE MORE, UCSD!)

Had a slice of cheese pizza, a slice of pepperoni pizza, fresh salad and Naked o-​j. All good.
Staff was friendly and helpful.
The place was clean and full of students.
What more could you ask for? :)

It’s dining hall food. I’m a freshman in Muir and I’m already getting a bit sick of it, but what do you expect? I crave off campus food more than dining hall.
But, with that said, there’s definitely nothing wrong with the food here. It’s your standard cafeteria food, but more vegetarian and gluten-​free friendly. Prices are steep for some foods when you put add-​ons, so that needs to be watched. Atmosphere is good for socializing and hanging out, but I guess you could study here too if you really wanted to. AC is definitely a plus here sometimes.
Pines is A-​OK. Perfectly said.

I’m disappointed at how bad Pines got compared to how great it was last year. I used to trek across campus to get a good meal here last year! Last year their meats actually tasted seasoned unlike everywhere else but this year it’s just like the rest of the dining halls. Now I only come here if I’m in the area, starving, and on a time crunch.
Womp womp

Compare to other dining places at ucsd Pines is a
Good place to stop and eat. They have alot of options to pick

Pasta bowl + garlic bread combo= very healthy for the college student budget. Line is way shorter than sushi, so I was able to get it fairly quickly. GOOD. Sat outside on the patio, which is nice, but icky-​! Bird poo! If you don’t mind it though and/​or could look past that, it’s a really good place with a breeze most of the time and you could spy on the unawares below you.

I like to come here because they always have a large variety of foods. There are so many options! They even have curly fries and sweet potato fries. There is always a lunch rush around 12 – 1:30 so it might be a better idea to go at an odd meal time

I came here for brunch because I was visiting a friend who has a meal plan. I got the bagel with smoked salmon topped with avocados, sprouts, and red onions. SO GOOD.
Inside is very easy on the eyes. Lots of seating. Comfortable atmosphere. Will definitely force my friend to treat me out again next I’m in town!

Yeah I’m an old timer. Graduated a while back so you can ignore this review now. Time goes by and the dining halls of UCSD change.
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SENSATIONAL BREAKFAST BURRITO.
Here’s the secret:
Order the sausage breakfast burrito and write on the side ‘extra crispy potatoes’
Sometimes, they will re-​fry your tater tots and make something beyond your wildest imaginations.
Bonus: Whip up 1 part sriracha rooster sauce and 2 – 3 parts mayonnaise and use as sauce for the burrito. MIND BLOWN.
Minus 1 star because of Meatless Mondays.

Best food I have ever had at any campus! Luuuuucky students at UCSD!

Pines, unquestionably, undoubtedly, and obviously is the most overrated dining hall on campus. The best part are the now rarely seen stir-​fry and the eating booths. Every other made fresh food not named stir fry (pasta, curry, more curry) is overpriced garbage. I went there today and they had curry as an entrée and curry at the made to order. No disrespect to curry whatsoever, but no one wants that da bien in the first place. Not only does it blow, there’s no variety. Seriously this place is stir fry or bust. Go to CV instead. It’s the best. Two stars for sympathy and relativity to other dining halls.

I write this review on behalf of the staff at UCSD. Why is this important? Because my opinion is much different from a student since the money I spend here is REAL and does not come from meal points. First off, I hate how they don’t open for breakfast until 10:00am. That’s way too late for me to satisfy my craving for bacon and eggs or a breakfast croissant sandwich. Also, the prices they charge for food are way too high for regular customers not using meal points. They even charge you extra money if you aren’t a student (sales tax)! I always lie and say I’m a student and luckily they don’t question it. Sometimes their lunch specials are worth it. For example, the bowl of chili that you can top with cheese, onions and other goodies. The burgers are also a good, less expensive choice. I would choose a burger at Pines over one at Burger King any day. They even have curly fries that you can add. Chicken tenders are tasty but be prepared to spend $ 5 for them, not including fries. One more word of advice: do NOT build your own salad at the salad bar here. You will end up spending way more than you would at Croutons or any other campus eatery because they charge by weight.

This is one of the better places to spend your dining dollars at. I’ll just break it down into gets and don’t gets.
Get:
–Pizza (Thick Crust ones!)
–Minestrone Soup
–Salad Bar
–Stir Fry
–Vegetarian Pasta (get alfredo sauce only if they use white wine, if they use water– get marinara.)
–Sushi
–Fried fish melt
–Carved meat sandwiches. The turkey is nice and moist :)
Don’t Get:
–Any Chicken or fish entrée dish. Always overcooked and dry.
–Any mixed vegetable side dish. Always severely undercooked and not seasoned.
–Rice is a bit of a gamble… usually on the undercooked side.
–Thin crust pizza, the crust just doesn’t have the right texture.
–Any cream soup i.e., clam chowder, potato and bacon. It is soooooo salty!
–Philly Cheesesteak, the meat looks like vomit, and tastes nasty.

Okay, first of all, who are these unknowns giving Pines a 2 star review? You guys clearly haven’t been to Café Ventanas @ ERC then (*barf*) which is deserving of a 2 star rating. Pines (located in Muir), on the other hand, is my favorite for on campus dining by far!
First of all, it’s very nice and new — the interior is big and spacious, and decorated with wood finishings everywhere. They have cool semi-​private booth seating, tables on each side of the balcony, or outdoor seating as well. Definitely restaurant-​esque as opposed to cafeteria-​like.
Second, as far as food, they have a grill station, pizza/​calzone/​daily specials (including vegetarian options), fresh salad bar, sushi station, sautee station that varies between pasta or stir-​fry, and a dessert bar! Definitely the most choices out of the dining halls I’ve been to.
On my first visit, I had a veggie calzone fresh from the oven that was big enough to share with my roommate and was only $ 6! It was surprisingly good too, not dry at all.
I’ve also tried their sushi rolls (I prefer the unagi) which you could order half orders of, and not to mention, unlimited amount of eel sauce or spicy mayo to your liking! The rolls are heavy on the rice but not bad for campus food.
As far as the sautee station, you get to custom order your dish that the cooks whip up fresh in front of your eyes. That’s probably why this line is always the longest.
For stir-​fry, you get a choice of meat and veggies which you choose with noodles or rice and a selection of sauces (i.e. peanut, teriyaki, saigon, imperial)
Their pasta nights are also delicious! Usually they are limited to one type of pasta, but you get to choose your veggies, cheese, herbs and SAUCE! They have all kinds: marinara, alfredo, pink sauce, pesto, creamy pesto, or olive oil. Not to mention the sautee dishes are HUGE, I always end up saving leftovers for another meal.
Finally, I always appreciate the dining halls at UCSD for their eco-​friendly operations and services. One of the greenest places I’ve been in SoCal! Mother nature would be proud.
BTW… one last caution. beware of sitting outside under the trees. Pine needles will shake down into your food/​onto your seat at any given time. The restaurant is named PINES for a reason! It was not a pleasant surprise for my bum. :P

Newly renovated and renamed, the Pines takes the place of Sierra Summit, which was arguably one of the best dining experiences on campus. Memorable stations included the stir fry, the smoothie and coffee bar, and the freshly carved meat for the sandwiches. I’ve been to the Pines twice, and was disappointed both times. The first time I went, I was stoked to get my fix of the formerly awesome stir fry station. Said stir fry station no longer exists. I cannot understand how they could remodel, and then remove one of the most popular dining hall items in all of UCSD. The second time I needed a quick bite so I grabbed a slice of pizza. As an I-​House student, there is no real reason to eat at the Pines ever again, so I’ll stick to OVT and Café V.

Revision after 2 years of Pines food:
Pines is alright, they’re working harder to offer a wider selection. Occasionally food is burnt, overly greasy or just… not appetizing but I survived for two years eating almost exclusively at Pines (mainly because I didn’t want to walk). I must hand it to them, their treatment of Vegetarians is 5 star though. If I tell them i’m vegetarian, they are willing to switch pans, spatulas, even gloves. For someone who is very sensitive to meat, this definitely improved my impression. (I remember back in Freshmen year when meat would accidentally fall into my food… oh god). Anyway, in terms of school selection, Pines isn’t bad. Isn’t fantastic. It is a great place to study on the weekends though, it is spacious, pretty clean, and has outlets hiding around so i’ve finished more essays than I can count there.
Reliable things to eat:
Pizza, Stir Fry, Vegetarian Pasta, Sandwiches
Since Pines is brand new, I thought it would have pretty good food. Well. thought wrong. Most of the things are greasy/​expensive and because I’m vegetarian I’m stuck eating salads or sandwiches most of the time. Occasionally I can get a quesadilla or a mac-​cheese sandwich but they both don’t help my resolve to avoid freshmen 15.
I eat at non-​dining hall restaurants and cook my own food occasionally, but I am already «over-​budget». Honestly, the food isn’t nasty. It’s just not worth the money.