Curry in a hurry

By Jill Bowers

Red curry, green curry, spring roles, rice and pad Thai noodles; there can’t be anything better for lunch than authentic food from Thailand.

On Tuesday from 11 a.m.– 1 p.m., the Thai food cookout took place on the patio at the TSC on the USU campus. The purpose for the event was much more than just to share the goodness of Thai food with others for the nicely priced $6 for a fulfilling meal.

“Most people hear ‘Thai’ and think ‘Taiwan– you must speak Chinese,'” said Wannarat Simpson, one of the women in charge. “But it’s not true. We have our own country, our own language, our own script, our own culture.”

The main purpose of the Thai cookout was to let people know that there is a Thai organization here on the USU campus, Simpson said. She said there are about 15-20 students involved in the organization so far. Their intention is to let people know about the Thai culture so they can help them celebrate it, she said. Anyone can be involved in the program, whether they’re Americans or people from foreign countries, she said.

“Mostly people just know about the famous food,” said Simpson.

At the Thai cookout, everything from a red curry combination, a green curry combination and plenty of food a la carte was available. Drinks were also available for $1 each.

Also at the Thai cookout were some $1 bills hanging from a small tree. It was an opportunity to donate to the construction of a Thai temple being built in Layton.

“Most people from Thailand are Buddhist, that’s part of the culture,” Simpson said.

Though the Thai association here at USU is not directly involved in erection of the temple and it was not the cause of the cookout, the organization still wanted to help support the cause and give other people the chance to donate, Simpson said.

– jill.bowers@aggiemail.usu.edu