by David Provost
Staff Writer
The University of the South, to some known as the “Holy Mountain,” is a place where one can immediately feel at home; holding a goldmine of classic Southern literature and culture. Sewanee is also a great American hotspot in the area of all things edible. We’re talking food, folks. Sewanee food, or to give credit where credit is due, Chef Rick W. Wright’s food. Sewanee is home to many fine dining places, some student-run such as Stirling’s Cafe and other’s in the local are independently owned such as Ivywild. As terrifically tasty as all of restaurants local to Sewanee are, they cannot compete with the cuisine McClurg Dining Hall! Insert angelic music here. Chef Rick and all of McClurg’s staff serve students hankerings, one wok line at wok. You want a nostalgic popsicle instead of savory, rich ice-cream for a change? You got it. You in the mood for some more of that alternative salad dressing that inspired you to complete that study abroad application? You got it. Are you an experimental eater who wants to live on the edge with a chili-cheese-pizza chili? Yes, you indeed got this like a George Lopez catchphrase.
College students outside of Sewanee are not nearly as fortunate in regard to eating arrangements. Here we have the amazing perk of walking to our dining hall and having a 5-star meal. Instead of having to go to that Sonic’s with the inconsistent tater tots or drive to Pizza Hut (because that thing happened back when that prevents them from delivering, shhh!). As a matter of fact, students from Tennessee Tech, Harvard University, and even as distant as UCLA are rumored to have a history of sending scouts during Clurg’s busiest hours in attempts to obtain our deliciousness (if you see someone just lurking around the lentil beans and whole grain rice pot that has no purple on, contact us). Full Sail University is looking to provide good eats to students who register for their online school. Half a dozen Sewanee Technology employees have claimed that Full Sail’s administration promptly flew into our servers to peek at Chef Rick’s wonderful e-mails. Chef Rick has not let this jealousy stemming from colleges across America put him in any disadvantage whatsoever. To add to the already outstanding bravery the McClurg staff possesses, they remain so very modest through it all.
The culinary media bias has been accosting Chef Rick for a reality-competition hybrid show (pitched to executives as Master Chef meets The Real World), but the dining services have declined the offer in an effort to protect the school’s proudly served Southern-Fried dignity. Michelin Star bearing chef Gordon Ramsay of television series: Hell’s Kitchen, Hotel Hell, Hell on Wheels, and the shortly-aired Hellena of Troy, is a self-proclaimed superfan of Chef Rick Wright’s menu choices. On October 13, 2013 Chef Ramsay was quoting on the British streets with, “Chef Rick cooks better than I cook.” The gist of it? We’re very blessed here on the Mountain, and the food Chef Wright feeds to us is that very blessing. Did you know Chef Rick is the greatest? I hope you do now. #eatbewell