As you don your formal uniform and scramble to the Price Dining Hall, you might think that community dinner, a longstanding tradition at Webb, is an obstacle in the busy life of a Webb student. However, day-student and dedicated-community-dinner-attendee Hanbo Xu (‘25) sees it as an opportunity to meet new people.   

“I met a lot of new people that I otherwise wouldn’t have had the chance to talk to through community dinner,” Hanbo said. “I understand that it is an extra commitment, but it is only 45 minutes, and you have to get food anyways.”

Hanbo states that he has regularly overheard students, especially boarders, expressing frustration for the extra commitment. However, he believes community dinner is an opportunity to step outside of one’s usual friendship bubble, as he has been able to meet new teachers and students in other grade levels. 

“At Webb, it’s easy to get stuck in the same group of friends,” Hanbo said. “We forget about how many people are out there in the Webb community that have diverse experiences and backgrounds. Community dinner is a low– stakes way to step out of that.”  

Ultimately, Hanbo believes community dinner is an integral part of creating community outside usual circles and that students should embrace the opportunity to socialize rather than complain about it. 

Many may agree that sushi day at Webb is an exciting break from the usual dining hall food. However, for Jason Chang (‘27), this event tends to be more of a hassle than a treat.   

“I think sushi day is overrated,” said Jason. “The lines are absurdly long, the sushi is not much better than the usual dining hall food, in my opinion, and by the time you finally get your plate, there are hardly any seats left.”   

While many students rush to the dining hall for a taste of this highly anticipated day, Jason thinks that the appeal of sushi day is more about novelty and rarity than the actual experience.

“I think people are more drawn to the idea of sushi day than to the reality of it,” Jason said. “Since we only have sushi day a couple of times a year, it creates a sense of excitement and anticipation. But considering the long wait, sushi day is not worth the hype.”  

For Jason, a simpler, less crowded meal is far preferable to the chaos of sushi day.

“I would much rather just grab something quick and enjoy my lunch with my friends without all the hassle,” Jason said.