The NY State Bar Exam's Food Prices Will Shock You

We get that some may enjoy poking fun when an almost absurdly good-looking person like, say, Kim Kardashian or the late John F. Kennedy, Jr., has some difficulty passing the bar exam – and just in case it requires clarification, looks don't count here; just hardcore knowledge of multistate common law and the ability to express it in multiple choice and essay formats over no less than 12 hours over two days). Nevertheless, there is nothing fun, and certainly nothing funny, about failing the bar. 

For starters, failing the bar is known to induce at least 14 different forms of bumming out, according to JD Advising. Then there's the fact that if you're in the midst of a job search, it's going to complicate matters, if only in your own head. And that touches on what just may be the ultimate version of insult to injury, which is that if you fail the bar, you're probably going to take it again. And if that prospect doesn't seem downright terrifying, please consider the fact that the pass rate for repeat examinees is 35%, according to another piece by JD Advising. Moreover, each time, your odds of passing diminish (via Above the Law). And it's only offered twice a year, at least in New York State. But the worst part is how much it costs, at least in New York City, where the exam fees can set you back between $450 and $990. And that's not even counting the food. 

There's a Shake Shack within walking distance of the Javits Center, not to mention many delis. But had we been among the law school graduates taking the New York State Bar Exam at Javits on July 26 and 27, we'd probably have been too nervous to get up and leave during the break between the morning and afternoon testing sessions. Moreover, the New York State Bar Exam's Security Policy is so strict about what you can and can't take into and out of the exam room that the whole thing seems like it just might be too fraught to even bother. There's just one problem, however, and that is that one of the things said policy prohibited examinees from bringing into the exam room was food – with the limited exception of unwrapped "quiet snacks" and a single beverage in a clear, unlabeled plastic bottle. 

In other words, the only choice for eating at your desk is ordering a meal through the Javits Center's onsite caterer, Cultivated, whose name sounds like an apt description when it comes to the jaw-dropping food prices, per the NY Post. Most boxed meals (consisting of a sandwich, a salad, chips, a cookie, and bottled water) would set you back around $33, before taxes. If you were looking for a kosher meal, the price went up to $53. The only thing eerier is the lack of social media commentary. Perhaps sticker shock is real.