Dinner is served every day at 6:30 pm. However, on special days like today—when we’re preparing Chipotle-inspired burrito bowls at Scully Co-Op—we post a quick update on Discord: “sorry, food at 7 pm”. People often monitor the daily cook shift channels to catch a sneak peek of what’s for dinner before it’s officially posted. Meanwhile, we rush to finish labeling the food as a line of hungry members forms in the dining room.
After studying abroad last spring, I discovered just how much I love cooking with friends and sharing a meal together. I cherished the familiarity and collaborative spirit of cooking with people in a kitchen. One of my close friends had been part of Scully Co-Op since junior year, and she kept encouraging me to join. I finally signed up this year and it has quickly become one of the best experiences of my time at Princeton. Every Monday, I cook with an amazing group of people and we all get to decide what to make. We’ve prepared a wide range of dishes—from Cajun pasta and chicken pesto to chicken parmesan and more!
As a co-op member, my weekly responsibilities include one cooking shift (about three hours) and one cleaning shift (one hour). Dinners are provided every day and we even have brunch on weekends. For other meals, we have complete access to a fully stocked pantry and fridge, plus the option to place orders for ingredients or foods we’d like to cook during our shifts or for our own meals. With around forty members, Scully Co-Op is the perfect place to meet new people.
Beyond the scheduled shifts, it’s also fun to simply have a place to bake or cook with friends. My friends and I constantly use the kitchen to whip up cookies or any kind of sweet treat. Sometimes we even meal prep together so we feel prepared for the week ahead. I love running into people at the co-op—whether it’s a quick late-night strawberry snack or catching someone digging into our bulk vanilla bean ice cream container. Often, I’ll even start chopping fruit like pineapple and these spontaneous moments just add to sharing a space together.
I also get to try a variety of different foods. Some of my favorite dishes that members have cooked include chicken teriyaki, shrimp tempura, lemon blueberry loaf, and cheesecake cookies! I love seeing everyone’s creative ideas and the joy of making food for others. While cooking for a large group can seem daunting, it’s incredibly rewarding. On my cook shift day, I’m extremely busy, but on other days I get to relax, eat, and chat with fellow members. I’m truly grateful to be part of such an amazing community during my time at Princeton, and I can’t wait to see what we’ll create next.