"I wouldn't expect [HDS] to get all of the subtleties of the cultures," Simpson says. "It would have been cool if they had table tents that show what the different flags look like so that people could identify it with something other than just the Virgin Islands and Jamaica--more than just a spring break place."
"I think that they could say where the recipes come from," says Ariana Silverman '99 of Kirkland House. "I told at least 15 people what the difference between baba ganoush and hummous was at the last [Saharan Nights] dinner," she says.
Simpson suggests that the staff, too, might have played more of an instructive role yesterday, emphasizing the large percentage of dining hall staff who are Caribbean.
Miller says the rub on yesterday’s ribs came from the mental cookbook of Adams House Chef Winston Maynard, himself Caribbean.
According to Spingel, about a dozen members of his staff who worked on yesterday’s brunch were Caribbean, and he did consult his staff in preparing the meal. In the past, their knowledge of native cuisines helped in preparation of plantains, with which other staff cooks weren't as familiar.
Simpson and others say it would be nice if HDS allowed students to meet with these staff members in the context of Caribbean culture.
And Al-Ississ says he would want HDS to coordinate with ethnic student organizations when planning meals that claim to represent their cultures.
"If they approached us, we would be more than willing to provide them with suggestions that would make it more realistic," Al-Ississ says. "We could have coordinated other events at the same time to show our culture and food."
Given HDS's history of responsiveness to student concerns--exemplified by their ubiquitous yellow comment cards--Martin says her office is open to suggestions and has incorporated student input in the past.
Meanwhile, Watson says trying to win the authenticity game is useless.
"You can't win. A sense of humor is the only way to survive," Watson says. "Given what I had as an undergrad at the University of Iowa, I think that I would have been happy to have some sort of variation. The food then was unparalleled in foulness."