Campus dining event lets students sample a taste of soul

RFoC hosts event honoring Black History Month

by Nicole Goddeyne
Vanguard Staff Writer

February 20, 2006 —

Those students who had a meal in the RFoC Wednesday may have noticed a change in the menu. That is because Student Life, in part with Dining Services and the Magic Kitchen, held the Soul Food Festival, another event in honor of Black History Month.

Jennifer Jackson, assistant director of Student Life, compared the Soul Food Festival to the annual International Food Festival. For an admission of $6.50, students were able to ask questions and try new foods that are generally not common in their culture while listening to jazz and blues music in the background. She mentioned that food is a main component to every African-American celebration, so it was important that students got a taste of everything.

Some of the students and faculty brought in some of their own family recipes to share with the rest of campus. Mamie Thorns, the special assistant to the president for Diversity Programs, brought in her mother's recipe for pecan tarts. Some other foods included smothered pork chops, corn pudding, sweet potato pie, and jambalaya.

Local celebrity chef Betty Williams was also on campus to join in on the festivities. She provided her expertise in making southern peach cobbler and catfish.

She identified soul food with many spices and seasonings and "made with love." She wanted to encourage other students to dare to try things they never had before.

"You should not cheat yourself by not tasting the food," Williams said. "Too many people look at the food and automatically think they won't like it just because of the way it looks."

Other volunteers were at the Festival throughout the day to help make the festivities run as smoothly as possible, such as senior David Benson, Jr.

"I'm glad to see my culture and heritage being recognized," he said. "Food helps bring diversity."

Benson, Jr. also encouraged students and faculty who are unfamiliar with the culture to research some of the names of the foods. Many have to do with traditions, he said, and people may be quite interested to find out how some of these food names came to be.

Most students praised the food and said they desired that they be offered. Favorites included ham, turkey, and spicy red rice and beans. The vegetarians, however, stuck to Fruit Loops and milk, since virtually all the food contained meat.

Much preparation was put into the Soul Food Festival, as about 600 to 800 people were expected to show. Executive Chef Nick Kole was in the kitchen Tuesday night for three and a half hours, and was back in Wednesday morning at 5 a.m. to finish preparing. The kitchen worked off of just recipes, meaning that the cooks do not normally make that food for the cafeteria.

"It was definitely a learning experience, even down to finding the right peaches for the cobbler," Kole said.

He added it was also a lot of work, but also an interesting and fun experience.

"I liked the change," Kole said. "We weren't just making the same old food."

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