Interesting Thread - I haven't eaten in a mess hall since leaving the submarine force too many years ago to count. But a few weeks ago, we were in the Navy base in West Virginia, way back in the mountains, very small base - about 400 in-service. It has a small, very nice campground, and a gym / showers etc, Auto shop, wood shop, and s small restaurant and bar. Anyway, someone mentioned "retired can eat in the galley" ...
SO, I asked "So, where's the mess hall." Asked three people. No one knew what a "mess hall" was ... and one person said - 'You mean the galley" ... it's in the barracks - apparently each barracks (about four) has it's own small 'eating area' ... and apparently the service personnel need a 'eat card' of some kind, or we, as retired, can pay a fee. We passed, and simply ate at the restaurant ... and apparently, the service personnel can also use this 'meal card' at the base restaurant too ...
BTW: We COOKED in the galley, and ATE in the mess/chow hall ...
SO, I'm getting a little curious, so ask another guy in the restaurant, a navy guy' "Don't you eat at a mess hall?" He says, "What's a mess hall." Then I asked, "Well, a chow hall" ... and he didn't know what that was either - and so, then I asked how long he'd been in - "My second tour, first was at Whitbey Island, in Washington... "Did you eat in a mess hall there?" --- "Nope"
So, it makes me wonder how the military eat today, or for the last number of years? I always remember going to the mess hall, chow hall, every one did, and we just simply walked in, grabbed a tray, and ate the meal - several choices ... No meal card, no meal ticket - no charge ... OF course, that was on the sub bases, when we were in port, at sea, we had a mess hall and cooks - Submarine, pretty small, but still a galley (cooking) and mess hall (eating).
So someone enlighten me about the "eat" situation in the modern military - is it now all like a restaurant and cost a meal ticket, or what? Must be showing my age here - but I'm baffled??
