By Phillip Davis
Staff Writer
The University of the South prides itself on its dining hall’s fresh, high-quality food. Equally important, though, is McClurg’s dedicated culinary staff, whose hard work in preparing that food allows students to enjoy such high-quality fare. In fact, anyone who has enjoyed McClurg pasta in the last seven years or so has at least one such worker, Gerald Anderson, Anderson’s family is from Monteagle, where he has lived since he was born 23 years ago. He says the most striking thing about his hometown is the sense of community. “Just walking down the street, you could see twelve people you know at once,” he remarks. “It’s not very anonymous…everyone on the mountain knows each other.”
He attended Grundy County school from kindergarten to high school, and says that what stands out to him most from that time is how much his experiences in high school taught him about himself. Anderson has a 38yearold sister, with whom he has a “very close” relationship and who works as a caterer at the Sewanee Inn, which he says is “nice” because it allows them to see each other a lot. He notes that in addition to cafeteria work, he also “really enjoys During Anderson’s seven years working with the University, he has almost exclusively worked with pasta. “Though I worked pizza for a very short time,” he qualifies. Asked about his favorite part of working with the University, Anderson notes its friendly, tight knit environment. And while he thinks most students are very polite, he wishes they would be more patient when waiting for their meal. He cautions students, “[preparing food] takes time.”
Although he enjoys cooking, Anderson says he would not have guessed early on that he’d end up in the food business. “One day I just sent in an application here, and I got the job.” he recalls. “It turned out well.” For four years he has also owned an auto-detailing business that restores cars to their peak condition, both aesthetically and mechanically. “I just kind of brainstormed,” he recalls, “and started doing it. I enjoy working with cars.”
Between these two jobs, he adds, he gets “very little spare time.” In that sparse leisure time, though, he likes watching movies. His favorite is Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook because “it’s an all-around great movie,” especially the part where “[the two main characters] see each other again after being apart for so long.” Anderson would like to invite anyone to stop by or even work for McClurg Dining Hall. “It’s a great place…whether you’re a student or not.”