The Muslim Students Association at UTSC has ignited a fierce debate on the particulars of halal food on campus, refusing to support a long-awaited halal option at a Bluff’s, a UTSC campus restaurant.
The result of numerous faculty, staff and student requests, the new menu was introduced to the campus on May 29, making all chicken and beef options certified halal. Despite this, many MSA members say that any establishment that also serves alcohol and plays dance music is an unsuitable environment for their dietary needs.
This disagreement between the MSA and the university is not the first. Halal food has long been a hot topic at UTSC. With its large population of Muslim students and the politically active MSA counting hundreds of members, the issue of proper accommodations for halal food has repeatedly come up as a major point in student elections and public task forces.
Some students said the restaurant, in failing to accommodate those who prefer not to eat at an alcoholic establishment, made more of a negative gesture than a positive one with the menu option.
“This initiative was brought forth solely by Bluff’s without ever consulting the MSA or Muslim students. If this was a deliberate accommodation, it’s kind of offensive in giving us the food in a manner unsuitable to us,” said Ahmad Jaballah, a former MSA executive and current Scarborough Campus Students Union VP students and equity.
Jaballah also argued that patronizing such an establishment is wrong because Muslim students would provide revenue for Bluff’s to purchase alcohol—an action forbidden by hadith, a Prophetic saying.
But Food and Beverages Manager Zalia Conde disagrees, noting that the Bluff’s restaurant serves alcohol under the university’s liquor license, rather than a license of its own. In fact, it is through the university that U of T dining establishments purchases alcohol.
When asked about the controversy, a few students argued that simply paying tuition supports the purchase of alcohol by contributing to the salary of the VP business affairs, who oversees the University Alcohol Policy.
While many Muslim students say they will continue to eat only tuna sandwiches from Subway, halal hot dogs, or vegetarian meals and halal-topped pizza from UTSC’s H-wing cafeteria, and while the MSA has officially stated its lack of support, the new venture at the campus restaurant has seen positive results from the new menu.
“A lot of students choose to eat halal at Bluff’s, and there are definitely enough sales to know it’s viable,” says SCSU president Rob Wulkan. “People seem to like these options.”
Reports from Conde agree with this analysis. While refusing to reveal exact sales numbers, Conde does remark upon the “significant number of orders” she observed during the summer testing period that called for a complete switch in the menu. Conde also noted the multiple inquiries by faculty and staff for including halal food in catering orders, in an effort to be inclusive to all students.
Muzna Siddiqui is one student who disagrees with MSA’s stance and now sees Bluff’s as another inclusive option for her.
“Personally, as a Muslim student, I’m happy the SCSU and UTSC are accommodating us,” she said. “For me, I don’t see how alcohol can contaminate the food like pork does. Unless someone is cooking with it, I don’t see the problem of being in an environment that serves alcohol, because it’s not something directly touching my food.”
