7-course Supper Club experience gives students high-end food without the high-end dollar sign

Gyoza dumplings served at the Supper Club

Photo credit: Ben Werner

By Sophia Squire

A 7-course Japanese meal was served to students Dunklau who signed up for The Supper Club and gave them a fine-dining experience without the fine-dining dollar sign.

Chartwells’ Catering Captain Matthew Roush said the experience was valuable for students because it provided high-quality foods that are usually expensive and found in big cities and made it accessible to Concordia students.

“In bigger cities, these things are typically…super exclusive and much more expensive than what we’re doing it for,” Roush said. “Being able to bring that experience to the students here, where they just have to walk across campus and come and enjoy six or seven courses…is a great thing and I would encourage everyone to pay attention and sign up.”

The 7-course meal cost 40 bulldog bucks and consisted of traditional Japanese foods such as fried gyoza dumplings, yakitori stands, and sushi platters. The fried tonkatsu sliders were freshman Ben Werner’s favorite course, at least until the matcha cheesecake was brought out. Junior Lauren Gilmore also really enjoyed the cheesecake.

“I like Japanese food, and just food in general, and the courses on the menu looked really interesting, especially the cheesecake. I love cheesecake,” Werner said. “I thought the sliders were just amazing. I’ve never had it before, so it was really just kind of eye-opening to have something else.”

“This is one of the best things I’ve tasted,” Gilmore said. “All of these [dishes] were absolutely incredible.”

Gilmore said she signed up for the meal because it seemed like an a great way to expand her taste buds and connect with people.

“It seems like an opportunity to try foods from different cultures as well as build a community,” she said.

Senior Timothy Baker was glad he saw the sign in Janzow, he was satisfied with his choice to sign up.

“I saw the sign in Janzow, it looked interesting, and I thought it would be fun. And so far my expectations have been met and exceeded,” said Baker.

(Left to right) Junior Lauren Gilmore, senior Timothy Baker, freshman Ben Werner, senior Evelyn Schwartz, and senior Tregan Johnson attended the dinner in Dunklau

Roush said the meal prep had been taking place since Sunday and that all of the food was as close to traditional Japanese food as one could get in Nebraska. All of the meal credit is due to Chef Patrick from Chartwells.

“Patrick dug into, as close to traditional Japanese preparations as you can get in Nebraska,” Roush said. “I know he had started prepping some of the menu items as early as Sunday, because it just takes so much time for some of those flavors to develop. He was working on it all day.”

Roush said he would encourage students to keep an eye out for more information about The Supper Club going forward.

“I would encourage everyone to stay tuned when we have the menu and the timeline available,” Roush said. “It will be posted in Janzow down in the cafeteria to sign up.”