I would like to take this moment to apologize to all the vegans, vegetarians, and healthy eaters out there. I empathize with the struggle and have the utmost respect for you guys, because I know for a fact that I could not survive without meat. Even if I tried, my body would not be able to resist the siren’s call of Chicken Tender Thursday.
I would like to take this moment to apologize to all the vegans, vegetarians, and healthy eaters out there. I empathize with the struggle and have the utmost respect for you guys, because I know for a fact that I could not survive without meat. Even if I tried, my body would not be able to resist the siren’s call of Chicken Tender Thursday.
Let me explain: Chicken Tender Thursday is a spectacle that occurs every other Thursday at lunchtime in dining halls all over Yale’s campus. On this day, meat-loving Yalies unite as the loving dining hall staff hand breads and deep-fries our dreams: Chicken Tenders. Chicken Tender Thursday will make you break your diets. It will make you fight to the death, armed with metal tongs and forks, for that final tender. It will make you ask yourself “Should I eat more?” The answer will always be: no…but you will anyway.
Chicken Tender Thursday will change the course of your week. It may be that you’ve just finished multiple finals and a paper, and you’re exhausted. It may be that you’re feeling homesick, and you miss the comfort of food. Maybe it’s just raining outside, and that makes you sad. But then it suddenly hits you. Your nostrils flare to the aromatic incense of grease. Your mouth waters from the urge for that hand-breaded crunch. Your fingers itch for the color medley of dipping sauce such as honey mustard, duck sauce, barbecue sauce, and the crowd favorite: sriracha. Your phone rings from a text message alerting you to the joyous occasion (literally, this website will text you when there are tenders: http://isitchickentendersday.com/).
Suddenly, everything about your week is better.
To someone who hasn’t yet experienced it, Chicken Tender Thursday might seem insignificant. And honestly, there are better chicken tenders out there. But Yale has a way of making you appreciate the little things. Whether it’s that conversation until 5 am when you know you should probably be asleep. Or that last minute extension on a paper you haven’t started. Or that twenty-minute nap that leaves you more refreshed than ever. Or maybe it’s just the Chicken Tender Thursday that comes right when you need it most. They’re fried. They’re crunchy. They’re delicious. What more could you ask for?
