“Good Job, DFAC!”

As I supped on the Cambridge DFAC’s nicely spicy but typically starchy “Chilli Mac” (sic), decent fries and fresh tomatoes, I glanced over at my co-worker’s face as he sampled the fried sliced potatoes he had opted for. His grimace was telling but not quite so telling as his “holy fuck these are dry” comment. I realized that, although I had lucked out on my food choice tonight, I have often found myself envying the choices of my table mates.

I know…after 2 1/2 years in KAF I should know the DFAC menus inside out. I should be able to pick the winners and avoid the losers. But I live in hope and find myself ordering the grilled chicken breast thinking “oh, this time it won’t be like rubber” only to be disappointed yet again.

I realized that I needed to keep a written record of what’s good (eg. tacos at the Niagara) and what’s bad (eg. eggplant casserole anywhere) to remind myself of lessons learned. If I’m going to write it down, I thought I may as well share it with the other denizens of KAF so they too can learn from my mistakes. Hence this blog.

I’ll be concentrating primarily on the DFACS. I’ll make sure I eat at and comment on all of them but you’ll soon see a bias towards the best ones. I’m not going to sacrifice myself on the altar of balance; I’ve probably got 2 more years here.

Of course, no KAF food blog would be complete without at least a nod toward the commercial establishments on the boardwalk and around the base. Every once in a while I’ll feature one of these places as well.  These should be fun. Who can forget the time Burger King had no burgers, Green Beans had no coffee and the ice cream place had no ice cream? Ahh…good times.

We’re in a war zone so I have to keep things in perspective. If I enter a DFAC hungry and exit it not hungry, I think “Good job, DFAC”. It’s pretty amazing the number of people they feed everyday and under KAF conditions they actually do a really good job. But there’s always room for improvement and some of the food is great fodder for smart ass commentary. I hope I can provide some laughs and good dining advice to my fellow KAF gourmands and, perhaps, some insight into the adventure that is KAF dining for those fortunate enough to have never been here.

KAFoodie