Study Abroad: Program adds South Africa to list of destinations, p. 4
Technology: University updates Flagship IT strategy, p. 3
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Baseball: Tigers to take on No. 1 Florida today, p. 5 Friday, March 18, 2011 • Volume 115, Issue 109
GO FISH
As the Catholic season of Lent continues, students may find Baton Rouge restaurants are working to make their menus more Lent-friendly. Jack McLemore, general manager of TJ Ribs on South Acadian Thruway, said the restaurant has to take extra steps to prepare for Lent because a majority of the dishes on the restaurant’s menu are meat-based. He said the restaurant offers fresh fish nearly every day but adds more to its menu during Lent. “We absolutely have to order more fish,” he said. McLemore said the restaurant typically receives fewer patrons on Fridays because most people don’t consider TJ Ribs a Lent-friendly option. “People’s first thought when they hear TJ
Morgan Searles Contributing Writer
SEAFOOD, see page 11
RESTAURANTS, see page 11
Local restaurants adjust menus to accommodate Lent’s eating restrictions Ribs is not fresh seafood,” he said. “But we have it here.” Brad Loveless, manager at Mike Anderson’s on Lee Drive, said the restaurant sees a significant increase in traffic on Fridays during Lent. Loveless said to prepare for the season, the restaurant staffs more waitresses, cooks and hostesses on Fridays and orders more fish to accommodate the influx of people. Loveless said Mike Anderson’s has seen an even bigger boost in revenue this year because Lent is occurring during crawfish season. He said he has noticed the restaurant getting busier as the season goes on. “With Lent, we’re filling up a lot earlier,” he said. “The wait sometimes starts at 5:30 p.m. now.” Anna Atwell, accounting junior, said she never has trouble finding restaurants on Fridays. “You can really go anywhere,” she said.
McDonald’s ranks first on campus
“Tons of places offer seafood.” Atwell attributes the abundance of seafood to the state’s reputation for good food. “You can’t get better seafood than Louisiana,” she said. Atwell said since she gave up junk food for Lent, she has found a lot of options at Subway that meet both of her restrictions. “Sandwiches are good, even without meat,” Atwell said. Atwell said she has found that even fast food restaurants offer non-meat items on their menus. McDonald’s offers its famous Filet-O-Fish, sandwich Burger King offers the BK Big Fish sandwich and Taco Bell replaces meat with Pacific shrimp in several of its dishes. “Around this time, restaurants do try to cater to people who do this,” Atwell said.
BRIANNA PACIORKA / The Daily Reveille
Staff Writer
Subway has most locations worldwide At the close of 2010, numbers for popular fast food moguls revealed a new top dog has emerged for the most restaurant locations internationally. Subway squeezed ahead of the pack with 33,749 restaurants worldwide, while McDonald’s fell just short with 32,737 locations, though the burger chain remains dominant in sales with a reported revenue of $24 billion last year. Similar to this international sales trend, McDonald’s comes in first on a list of the top 10 University dining retail locations on campus. Subway ranks No. 6, according to the rankings compiled by LSU Dining. Both restaurants do well on the University campus, said Stephen Barr, assistant director of University Auxiliary Services. “With McDonald’s, it’s easy for students to get a burger for a couple of bucks, make a fast grab and go,” Barr said. “But Subway’s
Mike Anderson’s Seafood serves crawfish and other seafood plates. Restaurants across Baton Rouge are adjusting their menus to accommodate the Lenten diet.
Rachel Warren
FOOD
STUDENT LIFE
Graduate student recovering from hit-and-run accident Celeste Ansley Staff Writer
Doctors told geography graduate student Michael Bitton he wouldn’t be able to ride his bicycle again, but 10 months after being severely injured from a hit and run, he can swim, run and ride. A Toyota truck hit Bitton on the morning of May 15 while he was riding his bicycle on River Road. Bitton was found in a ditch shortly after and spent the next four weeks in the Intensive Care Unit at Baton Rouge General Hospital. Bitton said doctors weren’t sure if he would make it through the
first few days. “Baton Rouge General did an amazing job,” Bitton said. He said doctors didn’t offer much optimism to his parents during that time. Bitton said he was then transported to a hospital in his hometown of Listowel, Ontario, Canada, where he spent about three more weeks under hospital care. “The doctors said I wouldn’t be able to bike again,” Bitton said. He said at first he was spending 23 hours a day in bed, so he believed he might not bike again. He said he has no recollection of the accident or anything seven
and a half weeks after it. “The last memory I have is the night before the accident,” Bitton said. Bitton said he received care for his open wounds at his parents’ house in Canada for two months. A month after being discharged, he underwent surgery and spent another week in the hospital. Bitton said he returned to Baton Rouge in October and got clearance to begin swimming and water jogging. He said his doctors cleared him to start running and biking again in January. RECOVERY, see page 11
CHRISTOPHER LEH / The Daily Reveille
Graduate student Michael Bitton swims Thursday at the UREC Student Recreation Complex Pool. Bitton is rehabilitating from injuries he sustained in an accident in May.