Frequently Asked Questions

You can use your WatCard at all UW Food Services locations. If you are on a meal plan, all applicable savings will be applied at all of our locations, including franchises (such as Starbucks, Tim Hortons, Subway etc). 

Any money remaining on your WatCard will automatically carry forward each term for as long as you are a student at UWaterloo.

Your meal plan discount only applies during the term in which you have purchased your meal plan. However, when you purchase a meal plan during a subsequent term, any meal plan money that has carried forward from a previous term will receive your current applicable discount. 

Residence meal plan money transfers to your Transfer Meal Plan (MP) account to be spent at a UW Food Services eatery only and does not become Flexible Dollars. Any purchases you make at a UW Food Services location using Flexible Dollars or Transfer MP Dollars is not HST exempt.

The balance remaining in your meal plan account at the end of a term does carry forward each term for as long as you are a student at UW. However, it transfers to the Transfer MP account to be spent at a UW Food Services eatery only and does not become Flexible Dollars.

Residence Meal Plan money transfers to your Transfer MP account to be spent at a UW Food Services location only and does not become Flexible Dollars. Any purchases you make at a UW Food Services location using Flexible Dollars or Transfer MP Dollars is not HST exempt.

You may add flexible dollars to your WatCard at any UW Food Services location, the Turnkey Desk, and at the WatCard Office. UW Food Services locations accept a minimum deposit of $10.00 by cash, VISA card, MasterCard or debit (depending on location), and the Turnkey Desk accepts this minimum deposit with cash only. For added convenience, the WatCard Office also accept Visa, MasterCard, and Debit Card for deposits of $5.00 or greater. Any additional money added to your account will be Flexible Dollars and will not be Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) exempt. If you would like your flexible dollars to be converted to meal plan dollars, please email Watcard. 

Flex dollars are for non-Food Services purchases on campus, such as laundry, photocopying, the Bookstore and International News. Flex dollars can also be used at a variety of off-campus restaurants that we have partnered with.  You can find the full list of those here.  Flex dollars provide flexibility and freedom to use the money in various ways. If you have a meal plan and run out of meal plan dollars, flex dollars will be automatically used at Food Services locations (and all applicable savings will be applied).  You can add more flex dollars on the Watcard website, with any Food Services cashier or at the Waterloo store in the Student Life Centre.  For more information about your Watcard and Flex dollars - visit the Watcard website. 

For all full list of off-campus locations, please visit the Watcard page. 

No, due to the regulations around the tax exemptions, meal plan dollars can only be used by the meal plan holder. If used to make purchases for anyone else, the WatCard may be taken away from the user. 

The overhead deduction is withheld at the beginning of the term to cover costs of labour, repairs, programming extended hours and other fixed costs.  It also contributes  to capital improvement and resident program enhancement.

When using your meal plan dollars, you'll recieve 50% off most food purchases in our UW Food Serivces locations. So if a sandwich costs $7.00, you only pay $3.50 at the register. Because of this reduction, you still get value of your meal plan dollars. The 50% food price reduction is only applicable during the term you purchased your meal plan.

No, the purchasing of these products is strictly prohibited at any location, both on and off campus.

You bet there is! We have gluten free, vegetarian/vegan, dairy free and halal options all across campus, with a huge variety of different types of meals. Options vary by location but look out for our nutrition symbols like 'made without gluten', 'halal' and 'vegetarian'. At Mudie's, REV and the Market at CMH we have daily vegetarian, vegan, and halal options at the hot tables, plus a huge selection of build your own meals.  Don't see something you like? Ask the staff, they are super helpful! Learn more. 

If you are thinking of living in traditional residence, and have a dietary restriction, please feel free to contact us at foodserv@uwaterloo.ca to learn what options we have available.

Our key message to students coming to Waterloo with food allergies or serious restrictions is to self-identify! If you have a food allergy please contact Food Services before you move in. We will set up a meeting with your residence Chef and our registered dietitian to review available options and make sure you feel comfortable dining at Waterloo.

If you have a serious food allergy or dietary restriction (e.g. celiac disease) , please register through the Accessible Housing process and complete the Housing Disability Verification Form. First-year students must register by June 1 to be a part of the Residence Guarantee application. Waterloo Residences or the University College residences will use this information to find a room assignment that meets your needs.

Please be sure to check off that you are registered with AccessAbility Services when you fill out your Residence Community Ranking Form.

If you lose your WatCard, deactivate it immediately online or report it missing at any UW Food Services location, Graphics Copy Centre, or at the WatCard Office (ext. 42751). The Turnkey Desk (ext. 84434) can also deactivate your WatCard 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Due to special pricing and tax status applied to your meal plan, your WatCard must be presented for every purchase. We recommend always carrying your WatCard. You cannot use someone else's WatCard or ask the cashier to enter your Watcard number to make a purchase.

WatCards can only be used by the person that they are issued to. If used by anyone else, for any reason, the WatCard may be taken away from the user. This policy is to ensure the personal security of each card holder.

The only portion of your WatCard dollars that are refundable are your Flexible Dollars. Meal Plan dollars are neither refundable, nor can they be transferred to another account (e.g., Flexible Dollars), or to another WatCard, while you are enrolled at UW.  

Upon graduation, withdrawal or termination of affiliation with UW, you may request a refund through the WatCard office's online form. There is an administrative fee. Refund payments are processed by UW Financial Services once per term.

1. Add the correct amount of money corresponding to the meal plan to your Watcard through the Watcard Office.

2. Email the Watcard office with your full name and Watcard number and indicate which type of meal plan you would like to purchase.  If you do not contact them, your funds will be allocated to flex dollars and will not recieve the corresponding savings.

Food Services has their own Mobile Ordering App!  Available in the Student Life Centre, order on the app, pay by WatCard or Credit Card and skip the lines! 

Download the App today by searching "UW Food Services" in the App Store or Google Play Store.  

For more information, please visit our mobile app page.

If you would like to know more about UW Food Services meal plans, you can call (519) 888-4567, extension 35270 or email foodservices@uwaterloo.ca.

If you would like to know more about Flexible Dollars and the WatCard, call (519) 888-4567, extension 42751, email watcard@uwaterloo.ca, or visit the WatCard website.