Along with a menu that already includes mini-cheeseburgers on french bread (inspired by Rotier's) and mini-hot dogs with sauerkraut (ala Lums), another food item available at our 40th Class Reunion Party on Friday, October 4 will be some vegetarian tacos with refried beans, lettuce and cheese.
Tico Taco is the inspiration for this dish. While Mexican food is more more popular today than in our time in college (think Taco Bell) I did not find a phone listing for Taco Tico in Nashville anymore and a Wikipedia biography of the company indicates that today the restaurant chain, founded in Wichita, Kansas in 1967, now has stores only in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana and Oklahoma.
The next menu item courtesy of Vanderbilt Catering for our Class Party (to be held the newly remodeled Rand Hall where we ate lots of meals in our day) is a mini-caesar salad inspired by the old House of Pizza on White Bridge Road. The House of Pizza is long gone now and it was best known (at least among my Vanderbilt friends) for its huge Gondola sandwich. Frankly while I ate several in my day, it was really too big to eat even in college. So I'm not sure I'd even want to try to do it these days, even just a mini-version.
The next nostaligic menu item being served for our enjoyment at the Class Party is Baked Brie En Croute with Fresh Fruit. Its inspiration comes from Julian's, an up-scale restaurant near campus that we could probably only afford when Mom and Dad came to visit. Julian's too has passed from Nashville' dining scene.
Our next nostaligic menu item for the ClassParty is inspired by Ireland's which operated for many years on 21st Avenue South just across the street from the VU Law School. No, it's not Steak & Biscuits (we're already having cheeseburgers). But you're close. It is another meat option: mini-Country Ham & Biscuits. Yeah, I know Country Ham was better known at Loveless, but enjoy what you can. If you're like me, you're not supposed to eat this kind of food anyway anymore!
Our dessert item is potentially even more sinful (it's the luck of the Irish, I guess). Or maybe I should say it's straight from the Big Boy, with our finishing course inspired by the old Shoney's Restaurants which still operate in Nashville and all over the country, but none are all that close to campus now.
It's a min-Hot Fudge Cake with Stawberry Shortcake also available.
Wow! What a menu. I'm full already. But I'm sure I will be hungry again by party-time.
But looking at everything we'll have to pile on our plates at the Class Party, even in mini-fashion, it's no wonder given the nostalgic foods we ate back in our day the Big Boy had such a rounded outlook.....
You've been warned! Come hungry!
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