Good eats: Johns Hopkins ranks second on list of nation's top colleges for food

For the third year in a row, Johns Hopkins has been recognized as one of the nation's best college campuses for dining.

Hopkins ranks second on the list of the "Best Colleges for Food in America" compiled by the website The Daily Meal, up from a No. 42 ranking a year ago. The site praised JHU's commitment to sustainability, the diversity of food offerings, and its special programming, including on-campus cooking classes and food and wine pairings for seniors.

Read: Full story and list of the "75 Best Colleges for Food in America"

The Daily Meal had this to say about dining at Hopkins:

Johns Hopkins' dining services boast a hotel-quality brunch, food and wine pairings for seniors, themed monotony breakers each month, and cooking classes in on-campus residences that focus on healthy eating. There are also monthly faculty and staff dinners with students to promote community building as well as weekly chef demonstrations, tastings and samplings in retail locations. Options served at the dining hall include manicotti puttanesca, house-smoked beef brisket sandwiches, Texas-style French toast, and oven-roasted meatloaf with honey carrots and steamed peas, so you will always be eating well at Johns Hopkins. Everything in the dining halls is made in small batches, from scratch, which not only gives students the freshest options available, but also reduces waste. Sustainability is very important on campus, which is why the dining services only uses compostable paper products and to-go packaging, and it composts all its food wastes and organic materials. JHU also only purchases cage-free eggs, hormone-free milk, and locally-grown produce. And if you are a student on campus craving a late night bite, C-stores on campus are open as late as 2 a.m.

To compile its rankings, The Daily Meal evaluated about 2,000 colleges and judged them on five criteria:

• Nutrition and Sustainability: High marks given for healthy, well-balanced meals and environmentally friendly practices

• Accessibility and Service: Factors include proximity of dining venues to dorms, flexibility of dining plans, and how well a school accommodates various dietary preferences and restrictions

• Education and Events: Bonus points for colleges that offer nutrition and culinary education to students or hold food-centered gatherings that help break up the monotony of the dining experience

• Surrounding Area: Do students have easy access to interesting and diverse dining options near campus? Yelp reviews of restaurants within a five mile radius of campus were considered

• The "X" Factor: Described as "the little extras that made our jaws drop and set colleges ahead of the pack."

Although the actual quality of campus food was important to the rankings, site editor's note, the rankings ultimately reflect the colleges that offer the best overall dining experience.

Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, snagged the top spot for the second year in a row.