Second-year College students Juliet Paterek and Talia Greenberg hosted a tailgate on the Lawn last Saturday to celebrate the launch of the University chapter of Spoon University, an online food publication run by students across the country.
“Students have to realize that food is very important,” Paterek said. “[Eating] is time for them to take a break from their work, sit down with friends and talk about [their] day. I think that it is important to take time to eat balanced meals, sit down and relax.”
Spoon University has chapters at 45 colleges ranging from Stanford University to University of Florida, helping students “eat intelligently.”
“Our main outlet is our website [where] we have reviews on local Charlottesville restaurants and different recipes available,” Paterek said. “Spoon’s main purpose is to bring back conversation that has been lost around the dinner table.”
Greenberg encouraged Paterek to join her in starting a chapter of Spoon on Grounds after hearing about it from her friends at the University of Michigan, where Spoon has a large presence.
“We are both from New York, we both live to eat, we are both constantly worrying about our next meal — so we went for it,” Paterek said. “Talia was by my side as I went through the application process [of creating a University chapter].”
Some of Spoon University’s major goals for college students are promoting healthy eating and discouraging microwavable dinners by providing quick meal alternatives.
“We want to show students that what they think is not possible, is possible,” Paterek said. “You can cook quickly and get back to the library to study efficiently.”
Paterek and Greenberg said Charlottesville — with a wide variety of restaurants and easy access to sustainable food — is a great location for a Spoon chapter, allowing students to create an open dialogue about local food.
“We are opening a medium for people to comment, Instagram and give us ideas for articles,” fourth-year College student Paola Croce said. “This is what Spoon is — opening a channel for communication.”
Paterek and Greenberg want to create a sense of community and serve as an outlet for students to heal.
“This semester has been really hard on everyone, and I think Spoon can be a healing tool,” Croce said. “I think U.Va., right now, needs to go back to being healthy in general, in so many ways. A way of healing is through food. Food opens a wide channel of dialogue and love.”
With finals quickly approaching, Paterek predicts studying will take priority and eating will come second. Spoon plans to sponsor events during finals week to provide students with healthy food and energy as they take their exams.
“As we enter extremely stressful times, Spoon would love to be there to hand out good food,” Croce said. “On top of what has happened recently and upcoming finals, I feel like little contributions [we can give to] students, such as free coffee, will help them and Spoon wants to be the organization to do it.”
Moving forward, Paterek and Greenberg want to involve as many community members as possible in Spoon University and to establish a strong Spoon family.
“We are trying to create a little family of our own, a Spoon family,” Paterek said. “I want us to develop our own little culture. I want the Spoon U.Va. community to be more intimate and build deep relationships with each member of the team and I think we will be able to do that.”
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