Meal times at Jesus College are sociable occasions, and our students enjoy a wide range of tasty and reasonably priced food in the College’s historic dining hall.
Dinner in Hall
Self-service breakfast is available every day except Sunday, with a cooked breakfast on offer, as well as toast and cereal. Lunch and the first sitting of dinner also operate on an informal, self-service canteen-style system, with a selection of hot meals and a fresh salad bar to choose from. The second sitting of dinner is a more formal three-course meal served at the table.
Top table prepared for our St David’s Day celebrations, March 2020
There are several student guest-night dinners each term, and students often enjoy inviting their friends to these. Throughout the year the College also hosts special occasion dinners, to which students are invited.
Vegetarians and vegans are well provided for, and we regularly cater for a range of dietary requirements. Any student with particular dietary requirements should make them known to College so we can accommodate them.
Students can choose whether or not to eat in College: there is no obligation to do so. All students are issued with a College swipe card, and the cost of meals is charged to a student’s personal termly account on a ‘pay as you go’ basis. Those living in the Ship Street Houses and in College flats on our annexe sites can self-cater.
For 2023-24, the average food costs are as follows:
- Typical continental breakfast: £2.80 – £3.50 depending on selection
- Typical cooked breakfast: £3.70 – £4.30 depending on selection
- Two-course meal at lunch or the first sitting of dinner, which are both on a self-service basis: approximately £6 depending on selection
- A set three-course meal at the second sitting of dinner (‘formal hall’): approximately £8.20 (members) and £13.65 (guests)
- A set four-course meal at the second sitting of dinner (‘formal hall’) on a Thursday: approximately £20.80 (members) and £26.75 (guests)
A College Services Charge is made to contribute to overheads for meal service in Hall. The cost for 2023-24 is £48 per term for those living on the main College site or adjacent to the College in Ship Street, and £24 per term for those living in College flats at one of the annexe sites or in private accommodation.