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E D I T O R I A L L Y

Friday, February 18, 2011 Issue 27 I N D E P E N D E N T

Vol. 116 S T U D E N T

Cloudy with a 30% chance of rain HIGH LOW 67 44

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Senior uses unique lab to raise awareness ‘Andy and the Beats’ set to inform public about Type I diabetes through performance Zac Ellis Editor-in-Chief When Andy Rogers first came up with his idea for an independent project within the UT Department of Biochemistry & Cellular and Molecular Biology, even he wasn’t sure if it had potential.

“At first, it kind of seemed a little bit outlandish,” Rogers said. “I didn’t think it would actually be approved for a project.”

But with the help of UT faculty and students, Rogers’ idea became a reality. This weekend, the senior in BCMB will put his own informational musical for kids, “Andy and the Beats,” on display. Written entirely by Rogers himself, the performance is a musical meant to inform the community about Type I diabetes.

For Rogers, who is studying for a minor in theater, the idea to spread awareness of Type I diabetes came from a family background in the disease.

“This time last year, I knew I wanted to pursue an independent project pertaining to Type I diabetes,” Rogers said. “I’m a Type I diabetic and have been for seven years. My sister is also a Type I diabetic, and she was diagnosed six years previous to my diagnosis.

“I’ve lived with the disease for a really long time, and I’m very passionate about it and why it works.”

So Rogers decided to make his mark on diabetes awareness at UT. After deciding to register for BCMB 493, the department’s independent study course, Rogers opted to branch outside the typical lab studies performed by many biochemistry students and do his own type of project.

His idea? To write and perform in a musical designed to inform the community of the intricacies of Type I diabetes.

“What I’d try to accomplish in the musical is to educate the community about the disease,” Rogers said.

“And to relate that arts and sciences can be combined.

Some people often choose one or the other.

“A lot of people don’t understand the true meaning of the disease. It’s a lot more complicated, and there’s a lot of misconceptions about the disease.”

Cynthia Peterson, head of the BCMB department, said the idea’s unique quality, paired with Rogers’ enthusiasm, was enough to give the go-ahead on the project.

“I was a little taken aback at first,” Peterson said.

“But I thought it was a great idea. He’s a real gregarious guy. It was clear to me he was passionate about this. He was going to do a real scholarly job.”

After Peterson approved the initial plan, Rogers went to work on the project, which included a lengthy research paper detailing the disease alongside the

script for his musical. At first, Rogers planned on writing the research paper on specific cure options for diabetes, but he opted to craft the paper in the same manner as the performance.

“I thought it’d be more beneficial if I mirrored what the show was doing, which was giving the average person a direct connection to Type I diabetes,” Rogers said.

The musical and his paper are meant to go handin-hand, and theatergoers are encouraged to access Rogers’ research, which is available on the BCMB website.

“My idea is that when people come and see this musical, if they want to know why this doctor is singing a song about diabetic orientation, they can go to my research paper which is available on the BCMB website,” Rogers said.

“His primary goal was to do an educational piece,” Peterson said. “But he wanted to do it in another medium besides a written report.”

The musical itself is what Rogers called the “be-all, end-all” of his lengthy research. He solicited the help of a few UT students for help with the project, though the script and music are written entirely by Rogers.

The plot follows a young Andy — played by Rogers — as he attempts to understand the virus that’s attacking his body. Rogers wants the musical to entertain, but the underlying point of his project is to spread awareness of the disease.

“Andy is this 12-year-old kid, and he’s having an awesome day,” Rogers said, “Then he goes to sleep one night and this virus comes out and gives this creepy monologue about what he does to pancreases in the body.

“There are elements of fantasy tied in with moments of reality. You’re getting the entertainment aspect with real life.”

For Rogers, the opportunity to combine the arts and science, as well as spread diabetes awareness, made the project worthwhile.

“The arts have a very interesting way of reaching people,” Rogers said. “If you can teach through the arts, like things founded through science like Type I, people are going to remember it more than if I were to write a documented research paper or make a posterboard.”

“Andy and the Beats” will be performed at the Clarence Brown Lab Theatre at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with two performances on Sunday at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. The show is free of charge, but patrons will be able to make donations to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, which will have representatives at each show to discuss how people can become involved with JDRF.

• Photo courtesy of Andy Rogers

Senior pilot respected by peers Haley Hall Staff Writer The sky’s the limit — for everyone but a pilot.

Tall, athletic, and grinning Timothy McLerran sits casually in Hodges Library, appearing to be just like any other UT student.

However, to those who have had the chance to get to know him, he possesses character that is obviously beyond that of most 22-year-olds.

McLerran is a fifth-year senior in mechanical engineering, a leader among his peers in ROTC and a friend to many.

“He’s just a good guy,” his roommate, Andrew Carrier, junior in ROTC and environmental science, said.

“Tim has done very well on a lot of the tests that pilots have to take,” William Palmer, public affairs officer for ROTC, said. “He is also liked by everyone.”

Serving as a cadet-training instructor, McLerran has served as a Vice Wing commander over more than a hundred cadets.

McLerran says that all he’s ever wanted to do is fly.

“Ever since I was a kid, it’s what I’ve dreamed of,” McLerran, who received his pilot's license at 16, said.

“He’s great about helping me with homework, too,” Carrier said. “Things just seem to come naturally to him, but he also works hard.”

Modest as well, McLerran isn’t comfortable discussing himself.

“I just try to do the best I can at everything I do,” McLerran said.

Lieutenant Colonel Michael Angle, commander in charge of McLerran’s ROTC unit, says that McLerran “has grown into a leader who takes care of his people and a team player who strives for Joy Hill • The Daily Beacon greatness but doesn’t care who gets the credit.”

Lt. Col. Angle also said that one telling accolade Ashley Butawan, senior in psychology, and Hallie King, junior in nursing, enjoy the of McLerran’s character lies in a letter of appreciaweather by playing Frisbee on Thursday. The temperature will stay in and around tion he received from the lieutenant colonel of his the 60s throughout the weekend.

Summer 2010 Professional Development Training

program.

“Cadet McLerran far exceeded the expectations I had for a CIC,” Lt. Col. Douglas Crabb said. “Not only did he perform the accountability duties he was asked to complete with precision, he also displayed initiative and insight into additional areas that I did not even think of.”

Carrier said McLerran also has no bad habits or qualities about him.

According to Palmer, “giving it his best” has earned McLerran a long list of ROTC honors and the respect of many.

“He’s definitely someone you want flying a $2 million aircraft under enemy fire,” Palmer said.

McLerran said that, at this point, he would like to fly bigger C-17 cargo jets over the sleek Top Gun variety.

However, McLerran is more than just the ideal pilot, Palmer says.

“He’s a very kind, fun-loving guy,” Palmer said.

“We call him ‘The Leggy Blonde,’” Carrier said.

McLerran says he loves to play basketball, watch football and basketball, and line dance with friends at Cotton Eyed Joe’s.

“I’m a line-dancing expert,” McLerran said.

However, McLerran admits there were times when he had not always given things his best or felt the desire to do what was required of him.

“When I first got to college, I got to kind of live as (an) adult away from my family for the first time,” McLerran said. “I guess you could say I was kind of living the college life. Then one day I just kind of looked around and thought about the bigger picture and realized I wasn’t doing everything I wanted to do.”

Above all, McLerran says that family, friends, the desire to serve his country and God helped make him who he is.

“I know who I am for the most part, and my close-knit family has helped me realize that,” McLerran said. “And I talk to God at least once a day.”

“Tim will do anything he sets his mind to,” Palmer said.

2A • The Daily Beacon

InSHORT

Friday, February 18, 2011

Tia Patron • The Daily Beacon

Students wait in line at Chipotle for free burritos on Thursday. Students began lining up for the special, which began at 4 p.m. and ended at 8, as early as 3:15 p.m.

1885: Twain publishes Huckleberry Finn”

“The

Adventures

of

On this day in 1885, Mark Twain publishes his famous — and famously controversial — novel “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”

Twain (the pen name of Samuel Clemens) first introduced Huck Finn as the best friend of Tom Sawyer, hero of his tremendously successful novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876). Though Twain saw Huck’s story as a kind of sequel to his earlier book, the new novel was far more serious, focusing on the institution of slavery and other aspects of life in the antebellum South.

At the book’s heart is the journey of Huck and his

friend Jim, a runaway slave, down the Mississippi River on a raft. Jim runs away because he is about to be sold and separated from his wife and children, and Huck goes with him to help him get to Ohio and freedom. Huck narrates the story in his distinctive voice, offering colorful descriptions of the people and places they encounter along the way. The most striking part of the book is its satirical look at racism, religion and other social attitudes of the time. While Jim is strong, brave, generous and wise, many of the white characters are portrayed as violent, stupid or simply selfish, and the naive Huck ends up questioning the hypocritical, unjust nature of society in general.

Even in 1885, two decades after the Emancipation Proclamation and the end of the Civil War, “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” landed with a splash. A month after its publication, a Concord, Massachusetts, library banned the book, calling its subject matter “tawdry” and its narrative voice “coarse” and “ignorant.”

Other libraries followed suit, beginning a controversy that continued long after Twain’s death in 1910. In the 1950s, the book came under fire from African-American groups for being racist in its portrayal of black characters, despite the fact that it was seen by many as a strong criticism of racism and slavery. As recently as 1998, an Arizona parent sued her school district, claiming that making Twain’s novel required high school reading made already existing racial tensions even worse.

Aside from its controversial nature and its continuing popularity with young readers, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been hailed by many serious literary critics as a masterpiece. No less a judge than Ernest Hemingway famously declared that the book marked the beginning of American literature: “There was nothing before. There has been nothing as good since.”

— This Day in History is courtesy of history.com

Friday, February 18, 2011

UT symposium to explore science, risk communication research “Science Communication and Information Research” is the theme of the College of Communication and Information’s 33rd annual Research Symposium on Feb. 25 on UT’s campus.

Bonnie Carroll, founder and president of Information International Associates (IIa), an Oak Ridge-based company that provides information management systems to governments and private industries in the U.S. and around the world, will deliver the keynote address. Carroll will speak on “Science, Government and Information: Finding and Communicating the Results of Research.”

The symposium will be held in the college auditorium (321 Communications), with the poster session located in the foyer outside the auditorium. All events during the symposium are free and open to the public.

The symposium begins at 8 a.m. with a continental breakfast in the foyer, followed by research paper presentations in the auditorium on the topic of “Science and Journalism.”

Another paper presentation session begins at 9:35 a.m. on the topic of “Communication in the Personal Life,” and the poster session begins at 10:35 a.m. in the foyer.

A special session on the research being conducted in the college’s new Risk, Health and Crisis Communication organized research unit follows at 11:30 a.m. Lunch begins at 12:30 p.m. in the Scripps Convergence Lab (402 Communications) and will feature the keynote address.

The afternoon paper session on the topic of “Innovative Technologies and Their Role in Communication and Information” begins at 2:10 p.m., and the closing comments and awards ceremony are set for 3:30 p.m. Awards will be given to the best paper by undergraduate students, the best paper by master’s students, the best collaborative paper by faculty and doctoral students, and the best poster.

For more information about the research symposium program, visit http://www.cci.utk.edu/symposium/2011program. To register, call 865-974-6651 or visit http://www.cci.utk.edu/symposium/registration.

Two UT Institute of Agriculture deans accepted to leadership institute Dr. Caula Beyl, dean of the UT College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, and Dr. William Brown, dean for Research and director of the UT Agricultural Experiment Station (UT AgResearch), have been accepted as members of the newest class for the Food Systems Leadership Institute (FSLI). The FSLI dedicated to advancing and strengthening food systems by preparing a set of

NEWS new leaders with the skills and knowledge necessary to invent and reinvent the food systems of the future. It is a two-year program of the Association of Public and Landgrant Universities (APLU), with the initial funding provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

The FSLI is an executive leadership development program for academia, industry, and government that emphasizes the development of leadership competencies, skills for organizational change, and a broad, interdisciplinary perspective of food systems. The FSLI experience prepares scholars for upper-level leadership roles in food system programs, and to assume broader leadership responsibilities within their organizations.

During the FSLI program, scholars work with expert instructors, leadership development coaches, and an upper level mentor to help increase their leadership abilities. They meet with leaders of universities, political leaders, industry leaders and others who have advanced to the highest levels of leadership. Leadership theory is combined with practical experience, often in the context of food systems and higher education.

The first year of the program includes intensive executive education-style residential learning sessions at three university locations. Scholars perform assessments to increase their self awareness of their leadership style, and the results are used to develop and implement a personal development plan, prepared with the assistance of a professional coach. North Carolina State University is the host site with The Ohio State University and The University of Vermont being residential sites responsible for implementation of the program. Interactive distance learning is used between residential sessions. During the second year of the program participants apply what they have learned to develop and carry out an Individual Leadership Project.

Dr. Beyl is the first female dean of UT’s College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR). A professor of horticulture, she has received numerous awards for her teaching and research and she has also served in editorial and review capacities for a number of scholarly publications, including the Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science. Prior to her appointment with UT, Beyl served as director of Alabama A&M’s Office of Institutional Planning, Research and Evaluation. Beyl holds a Ph.D. in stress physiology and a master’s in horticulture from Purdue University. She earned her bachelor’s of science degree in biology from Florida Atlantic University.

As Dean of UT AgResearch, Dr. Brown oversees the research programs of some 130 faculty in seven academic departments as well as the management of ten research facilities strategically located across the state. Previously he served as Assistant Dean and Assistant Director of the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station. He is a professor of animal science and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska. His master’s and bachelor’s degrees are from the UT and the University of Florida, respectively.

Past fellows of the FSLI from the UT Institute of Agriculture include Dr. Tim Cross, dean of UT Extension, and UT President Joe DiPietro. Dr. DiPietro entered the program while dean of the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine but completed the FSLI while serving as UT Vice President for Agriculture.

Additional information is available at http://www.fsli.org.

New UT/ORNL center: taking on world's energy problems and translating intellectual capital into economic investment

The Daily Beacon • 3A

UT, in partnership with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), is launching an academic unit that seeks to transform the energy industry in our country and the world, as well as the state and local economies.

Called the UTK/ORNL Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education (CIRE), CIRE will train scientists to take on the world's most challenging energy problems by working with teams of researchers making scientific breakthroughs that could become thriving business enterprises. Last month, CIRE had its unique doctoral degree in energy science and engineering approved by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, named its first set of faculty and began the process of naming its inaugural class.

UT and ORNL recruited for the inaugural class at some of the most prestigious universities in the nation, yielding candidates from the University of Virginia, the University of Michigan, Northwestern University, the California Institute of Technology, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, The Ohio State University and Purdue University, among others. The curriculum was developed with input from leaders of energy-related industries such as Chevron, DuPont, Siemens and Exxon Mobil.

The program will focus on six areas of research that address 10 of the grand challenges the country faces in the energy arena: nuclear energy, bioenergy and biofuels, renewable energy, energy conversion and storage, distributed energy and grid management, and environmental and climate sciences related to energy.

For instance, energy science and engineering graduates will be a source of talent in Tennessee in the continuing development of Nissan’s all-electric Leaf, the new Volunteer State Solar Initiative, as well as attracting pre-eminent new energy industries to the state. The regional and national scene is similarly in need of solutions to extreme energyrelated problems which bring with them opportunities for economic development in the form of new businesses, new jobs and new careers.

The CIRE program also will translate intellectual capital into financial capital by with UT’s College of Business Administration in developing and implementing business plans for students who want to take their ideas to market by partnering them with scientists with entrepreneurial experience.

CIRE is part of the Tennessee lawmakers’ landmark Complete College Tennessee Act passed a year ago to reform state higher education. CIRE's role in reform is to enhance research for state economic development. Each graduate student brings with him or her research dollars and potential job opportunities aiding the local and state economies. The center will also be instrumental in helping UT Knoxville in its mission to become a Top 25 public research institution by increasing its number of doctoral students.

CIRE continues a longstanding partnership between UT Knoxville and ORNL. The two institutions have collaborated for more than 50 years and currently share more than 50 appointments, five institutes and successful Governor’s Chair and Distinguished Scientists programs. In 2010, the U.S. Department of Energy extended the $1.6 billion contract for UT and Battelle Memorial Institute to co-manage ORNL for another five years ensuring Tennessee will be well-positioned to continue to attract research investments and other economic benefits generated by ORNL. The center is co-located at UT and ORNL.

OPINIONS

4A • The Daily Beacon

Friday, February 18, 2011

GuestColumn Americans have obligation to fight genocide Read the daily headlines of newspapers, and you can see the world reduced to a series of measurements — the state of the economy, the rankings of sports teams, the tragic results of a terrorist attack. We watch the news and hear about the consequences of war, natural disasters and political decisions. Contrarily, even harder to convey in the media are the monumental moments where a major event doesn’t happen. Such is the ambiguous and often unnoticed nature of prevention.

In January, the people in Southern Sudan had the opportunity to vote on a referendum signifying their secession from the larger state of Sudan. Now, if you have any idea where Sudan is located in Africa, or have perhaps heard the term, “Darfur,” you might comprehend the volatility of the region and the government’s reputation for using violence against its own people to destroy lives.

A number of individuals across the country, ranging from high-level policymakers in Washington to students here at UT, called upon our country to help ensure a diplomatic peace process surrounding the referendum and its aftermath. Actor George Clooney even appeared in the media to help draw attention to the high risk of violence that such a seemingly insignificant event could foster. The world tensely waited to see if Sudan would fall into a bloody civil war such as the one it experienced in the 1980s.

This February, the referendum results announced that Southern Sudan would successfully break away from the larger nation. Concerned individuals sighed with relief and the situation seemingly faded into the past. The potential for violence held at bay, many wondered what all the commotion was even about. Preventing a catastrophe hardly yields tangible results. Peacemaking rarely makes the news — war garners media attention.

In addition, this month marks the 25th anniversary of the United States’ ratification of the Genocide Convention. After the Holocaust, the world said never again would it allow such an atrocity, yet hundreds of thousands of people have lost their lives to government-sponsored militia attacks in Darfur. Without people dedicating their time and energy to genocide prevention efforts, we would certainly be bystanders to murder. It’s hard to measure the number of lives saved, but that hardly constitutes an excuse for inaction.

So, why should we care? Why does it even matter to honor the Genocide Convention? Because prevention works, and we have come a long way over the past 25 years. For instance, the topic of genocide prevention is now acknowledged in election debates and is rising as a high-profile issue for sitting presidents. A strong anti-genocide constituency has condemned and pressured the murderous actions of governments like that of Omar al-Bashir in Sudan and has worked to ensure peaceful facilitation on behalf of innocent citizens living under dangerously oppressive regimes.

Though you may wonder why it matters to help people across the world, or how it relates to you, we are all neighbors in this increasingly globalized world and we all deserve the right to our lives. Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel famously expressed, “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”

As U.S. citizens, we assert our nation’s leadership of the free world, and with that position comes responsibility. We have studied the Holocaust, and it would be unacceptable for future generations to hear about a horrific repeat of history when we can learn from our past, move forward, and take up our role as “upstanders” on behalf of humanity.

—Megan Wanee is a senior in political science and the outreach coordinator for STAND, a division of the Genocide Intervention Network. She can be reached at mwanee@utk.edu.

SCRAMBLED EGGS • Alex Cline

THE DAILY BACON • Blake Tredway

Columns of The Daily Beacon are reflections of the individual columnist, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or its editorial staff.

Present provides surprises held by future F r ac tur ed Co n sc i o u s n e s s by

Brittany Vasquez When you walk into my bedroom, many items may jump out at you. I like to think that what draws your eye the most is the horoscope sign that hangs above my bed. It speaks volumes to the more perceptive set of eyes. It is a wire frame of a crab with the word Cancer. Aside from this, though, my Magic 8-Ball should be the next item to grab attention. It sits on my desk by my computer and workstation, as though it is a guiding principle in my daily work habits.

Astrology and Magic 8-Balls — two very different ways people attempt to tell the future. One is founded on stars and historical observances, the other, a toy used by masses of children to determine whether Johnny likes Sarah. Astrology has been a part of my life since I was little. I have relied heavily on it at times to help me express myself to others and to help understand my future. My experience with a Magic 8-Ball, on the other hand, ranges from its use to determine what my grade will be on my upcoming tests to how organic mechanisms will proceed.

A desire to know the future is something many people habe in common. Seeing fortune tellers, reading a daily horoscope and asking a Magic 8-Ball questions are all ways we ponder where our lives are going. Some, though, ponder it to the point of living in the future — setting in stone how life will proceed with specific destinations and arrivals, treating life as a flight to the next place, always having to arrive at the airport on time and ready. These people have no time for diversions, surprises and the minuscule details of daily living.

In allowing yourself to be focused on the future and all that it holds and longing for the day when you have finally achieved all that you had planned, you may end up selling yourself short. Surprises hold so much of life's delicate wonder, splendor and greatness. When one loses sight of the mystery of

the future and becomes so entangled with its everpromising hopes and dreams, the simple phenomenon of life is lost.

Moving forward at a day's pace, rather than a year or many years, and not living by an internal planner can be a minute change that makes all the difference.

Sometimes, to just live life without a plan can bring unprecedented happiness. And yes, some surprises are not always the best or the most fulfilling, but to grow from these, rather than explaining to yourself that the future will be better, may be the most crucial building block for the present, and at some point, the future.

I am not necessarily advocating a “Carpe Diem” lifestyle, but rather a life that takes enjoyment in the smallest details of the present. From a friend remembering your favorite cookie while you are grocery shopping, to perhaps the bigger surprise of a “secret lover” stashing gifts for you on a special day, can be what brings the greatest joy in your life.

To move forward on a course and at a pace that is not predetermined can still put you on the right path, a path that may not lead one astray. In the end, the path that is unknown and not planned for can be the right road. You just may not know it until the last moment of life, and that is okay.

My last fortune cookie read, “You do not have to know where you are going to be headed in the right direction.” I thought it a bit ironic that a “fortune” cookie was telling me that my fortune was perhaps never to be told, and that this was sufficient.

This is a message to all those with undecided majors and the people who do not have life worked out. It is not a dismissal of people who have had their lives planned out from the beginning (I would fall into this particular category), but an acknowledgement to the idea that some parts of life are better left to surprise. To move forward day by day, week by week, and not always know what is to come but know that you will continue to press forward is what my fortune cookie dictated could be the right direction. The Magic 8-Ball and my horoscope could have never predicted that.

—Brittany Vasquez is a junior in anthropology.

She can be reached at bvasque1@utk.edu.

Student apathy perfectly acceptable trait Ac orns and Other Seeds by

Anna-Lise Burnette

Zac Ellis

Ally Callahan

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The Daily Beacon is published by students at The University of Tennessee Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters and Tuesday and Friday during the summer semester. The offices are located at 1340 Circle Park Drive, 5 Communications Building, Knoxville, TN 37996-0314. The newspaper is free on campus and is available via mail subscription for $200/year, $100/semester or $70/summer only. It is also available online at: http://utdailybeacon.com.

LETTERS POLICY: The Daily Beacon welcomes all letters to the editor and guest columns from students, faculty and staff. Each submission is considered for publication by the editor on the basis of space, timeliness and clarity. Contributions must include the author’s name and phone number for verification. Students must include their year in school and major. Letters to the editor and guest columns may be e-mailed to letters@utdailybeacon.com or sent to Zac Ellis, 1340 Circle Park Dr., 5 Communications Building, Knoxville, TN 37996-0314. The Beacon reserves the right to reject any submissions or edit all copy in compliance with available space, editorial policy and style. Any and all submissions to the above recipients are subject to publication.

Every so often, I realize that life is going on around me all the time. Though I'm busily cramming my brain full of concepts and vocabulary in my small-but-cozy collegiate bubble, there are things happening outside my dormitory that have nothing to do with academics or the pursuit of a college degree. In fact, the vast majority of goings-on aren't related to this stage of my life at all. And so I think, when did I become such a hermit?

It's a natural response. With tests and quizzes to study for, courses to pass and teachers to impress (or not impress, as the case may be), I have a suspicion that I'm not the only one on campus who lives a life of quiet desperation, carried out in regular fits of cramming and utter laziness. (I ask you: Why else would so many college students get drunk on a weeknight?)

But the thing is, we've already successfully escaped, at least for the most part. Many to most college students don't have to worry about paying (heavy) bills, filing taxes, cooking meals or raising children. The pressure to grow up, in a lot of ways, has been lifted for us. As college students, we've simply traded off one set of responsibilities for another, and this can be dangerous. It is a gross understatement to say that so much of the world exists outside of UT (or academia, or Knoxville) that forgetting it is almost criminal.

And so I feel like a jerk. Just thinking about all of the problems I've not helped to resolve, all of the concern I've never exhibited or even thought through ... It's enough to make you question the virtue of even attending a university.

For some it's a badge of honor, for others it's the means to get a salary — but all of the things it can be, going to college shouldn't be a refuge.

It frightens me to think that a whole generation, my generation, could very well be

hiding out on purpose. I'm willing to bet that recently you have heard one of your peers (or even yourself) say something like, “I'm glad I'm not finished with school yet; the job market really sucks right now.” To be sure, I'm not denying the existence of an economic downturn, but using up prime years of life playing the waiting game can't be fulfilling for anyone. More than that, it's an affront to the dignity of higher education.

This strikes at the heart of our conceptions of learning, because for most people, college is just one more step, usually the final step, toward “finishing” their education. Compulsory gradeschool attendance, those 13 or so years when we as a generation learned to love and hate and work the system together, laid the foundation for this attitude. College, then, merely takes students through 16th grade.

But just because new generations of American students are growing up with the expectation of going to a university after high school doesn't excuse the wholesale dismissal of its value beyond a superficial level. And it most certainly does not excuse the seclusion of our nation-wide student body.

There are surely many students who would disagree with me on the nature of this seclusion.

There are student-led organizations that are actively involved in myriad realms outside of campus life, and there are many individual students who are working to be a part of the community “at large;” the argument could be made that these students and student groups are prime examples of young people living outside the bubble. But I'm not so sure.

Because the more I look at myself and others around me, the more I realize that very little we do is outside social expectation. Even “standing out” and “going above and beyond” are now so heralded that they aren't really anything special.

By not being a typical college student, I'm just your average kid.

And if that's the case, then I may as well shut my mouth and get to studying. I've got extracurricular activities to do, after all.

—Anna-Lise Burnette is a junior in global and Asian studies. She can be reached at kburnet7@utk.edu.

Friday, February 18, 2011

The Daily Beacon • 5A

ENTERTAINMENT

Local band creates wild concert atmosphere Oh No Fiasco lives up to name with dancing, varied costumes at constantly changing show Brittney Dougherty Staff Writer Oh No Fiasco is a Knoxville band that wants its listeners to dance, paint themselves and generally go wild.

The band, formerly known as The Few, formed in 2010 when the artists’ other bands broke up. Vocalist Lindsey Stamey, guitarist Seth Rowlette, bassist Thomas Boyd, keyboardist Cameron Cunningham and drummer Colin Cunningham joined together to create a band full of surprises.

“The name pretty much says it all,” Colin Cunningham, the older of the two Cunningham brothers, said.

The Cunninghams said the name was chosen partly because the members wanted to be able to take the band anywhere, in terms of theatrics as well as music.

Influences range from Muse to MuteMath to Circa Survive. Ray Charles and soul music, as well as hip-hop, also play a part in influencing its music. Fiasco considers these artists to be influences but admits it doesn’t actually sound anything like them.

“We like to call it progressive or dance pop, and we encourage dancing,” Cunningham said.

Everyone in the band grew up with music in his or her life in some way. The Cunningham brothers’ entire family is musically inclined. Their father was even a drummer in a band when they were children.

“Pretty much everybody in my family plays an instrument or sings,” the older Cunningham said.

The band likes to mix things up, and it has played with brightly colored body paint since its beginnings as The Few. For the first few months, the members often covered

themselves in paint as part of their costumes. They encourage the audience to do so as well.

“We were in Michigan doing a festival, and we had a whole bunch of extra little vials of bright-colored paint,” Cameron Cunningham said. “We threw out into the crowd about 30 little vials, and by the end of the show, everyone was just covered in mud and paint.”

The band does not stop at body paint, though. It also sports matching costumes at its shows, and every tour gets a different outfit.

“Our show is ever-changing,” said Colin. “That’s the thing that we pride ourselves on.”

The lead singer likes to jokingly pick on the wallflowers at shows, the Cunningham brothers explained, mentioning a time when she singled out a security guard in the back of the room.

“She got off stage and walks through this crowd all the way to the back,” Cameron Cunningham said. “At the end of the song, she got on the floor and was singing the song hugging his ankles, and the spotlight was on this guy, and he couldn’t help but smile.”

Oh No Fiasco will perform at the Square Room on Saturday. The doors open at 9 p.m. and the Cunninghams promise a great show.

“There will be lots of dancing, people covered in paint, bright lights, zombies, zebras,” Colin Cunningham said.

The group will be shooting a video of the show Saturday for a DVD, and the show will also be broadcast over the Internet.

“If anybody wants to be on camera, then this would be a good opportunity to do so,” Cunningham said.

Tara Sripunvoraskul • The Daily Beacon

Students from All Campus Theatre perform Months on End on Sunday. The play was directed by Danny Sierra. The next theater event is “Andy and the Beats,” which is showing tonight and Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 2 and 5 p.m.

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61 ___ el Amarna, Egypt 62 Author Beattie 63 Former Ford 64 Small gull

6A • The Daily Beacon

SPORTS

Friday, February 18, 2011

Pearl, Vols helping in fight against cancer OUTLIVE program inspired by former basketball Vol Lofton’s battle with cancer my Tennessee basketball family when Chris Lofton was diagnosed with testicuSports Editor lar cancer. But for the work at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, Saturday’s home game against Georgia his life was saved.” isn’t just a critical SEC East matchup for Lofton played his senior year while Tennessee; it’s the Vols’ annual OUTLIVE recovering from cancer treatment. game.

Pearl said the goal of OUTLIVE is to Partnering with the UT Medical raise more than $1 million for the UT Center’s cancer institute, coach Bruce Medical Center Cancer Institute.

Pearl and the basketball program have “Working with coach Bruce Pearl and become crusaders in the fight against can- Tennessee basketball in 2010, the Cancer cer.

Institute at UT Medical Center and the “This Saturday, of course, CBS will be OUTLIVE program reached more than here, and that’s our OUTLIVE game,” 15,000 people in our community with eduPearl said. cation and preven“Every time tion programs, you hear that which included word ‘outcancer screenlive,’ it’s a ings,” Dr. John L. reminder to Bell, director of go get the UT Medical checked — Center Cancer men and Institute, said. women — “Prevention and and outlive early detection cancer. remain the founda“Early tion for long-term detection is survival. Without the key to programs and survival, and research funded so through by the OUTLIVE what will be a partnership, we white-out on would not be able Saturday to continue our – UT coach Bruce Pearl, on the basis of UT’s where people mission of educaOUTLIVE campaign, which helps raise cancer awareness are going to tion, research and at Tennessee have the patient care. I am opportunity grateful to everyto buy their one for their supT-shirts, port.” come to the While supportgame wearing their OUTLIVE T-shirts, ing OUTLIVE financially requires buying and Tennessee basketball and the UT hos- a T-shirt, Pearl doesn’t want UT students pital’s cancer institute’s fight against can- to worry. cer. It all just reminds us of Chris Lofton’s “Once again, my family and I are going battle against cancer and his victory over to buy 3,000 T-shirts for the students so cancer.” those starving students won’t have to buy Lofton was a star for the Vols from their T-shirts,” Pearl said. “It is our honor 2005-08. The Maysville, Ky., native was a and privilege to be able to do that again three-time second-team All-American this year.” selection and finished his career as the Pearl just had one stipulation for the school’s fourth-leading scorer.

Rocky Top Rowdies.

“Cancer is something that has affected “You have to be here to get that Tevery single one of us,” Pearl said. “It has shirt,” he said. “That’s the one incentive.” affected my family. It certainly affected

Matt Dixon

“

Cancer is something that has affected every single

one of us. It has affected my

family. It certainly affected my Tennessee basketball family

when Chris Lofton was diagosed with testicular cancer.

”

File Photo • The Daily Beacon

Chris Lofton lays the ball in on Jan. 13, 2007. Lofton was diagnosed with testicular cancer while playing for UT and used the experience to help inspire OUTLIVE, a partnership between UT and the UT Medical Center Cancer Institute.

Friday, February 18, 2011

The Daily Beacon • 7A

SPORTS

Depth key in UT’s rout over Gamecocks New year brings hope for Diamond Vols it feels good to finally put it on display.”

Along with getting to the foul line Sports Editor almost twice as much as the Gamecocks, the Lady Vols also controlled the glass, The No. 4-ranked Tennessee Lady grabbing 51 boards, compared to just 30 Volunteers clinched at least a share of the from South Carolina. regular-season SEC Championship “Pleased to see that we had 51 Thursday night in Thompson-Boling rebounds,” said Summitt. “That’s big.”

Arena, defeating South Carolina 82-60.

Freshman guard Meighan Simmons was The Lady Vols (25-2, 13-0 SEC) led by the team’s second-leading scorer on the 11 points at halftime and never let the night, finishing with 17 points.

Gamecocks (15-11, 7-6) get any closer, The only other Lady Vol who finished leading by as much as 24 in the second in double figures in scoring was junior half.

Shekinna Stricklen, who notched a double“I actually felt like we had good focus,” double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

UT coach Pat Summitt said. “We knew Junior forward Alyssia Brewer got a this team was going to come in here and rare start down low and scored seven battle us really hard, but I thought we realpoints, all early in the first half. ly bought into our scouting report.”

“I just think she is getting more and A late run more confident to end the first and playing half gave the better and betLady Vols a 40ter,” Summitt 29 lead headsaid of Brewer, ing into the who’s still locker room. working back Tennessee into form after utilized its an early season size in the injury. paint, going to Said the free-throw Brewer: “It’s line 17 times just all about in the first 20 getting back minutes and into the flow of 25 times for the game.” the game.

Nine Lady Junior forVols scored on ward Alicia the night.

M a n n i n g Having that scored a kind of luxury, career-high 22 especially points, shootgiven the ing 8-of-11 injuries to senfrom the field, ior guard including 3-ofA n g i e 4 from threeBjorklund and point range. junior forward “She’s a Vicki Baugh, player that has neither of really invested whom played, in her game,” was an added Summitt said. bonus to “There’s no Tennessee. substitute for “I think our getting in the depth has realgym and getly worked for ting extra us,” Summitt shots. I think said. “It’s been she’s playing very, very with a lot of important for confidence, us.” but she’s The victory extended her extends the range, which I Lady Vols’ winthink has realning streak to ly helped her 32 games at game.” home and 16 Manning games overall said she since losing at believed it was Tia Patron • The Daily Beacon No. 2 Baylor on only a matter Alicia Manning shoots over South Carolina Dec. 14. of time before defenders on Thursday night. She scored 22 Tennessee she was going points to lead the Lady Vols in their 82-60 win will next play to have a over the Gamecocks. host to Georgia breakout game on Monday. A offensively. win would clinch the SEC regular-season “I’ve been shooting a lot more in praccrown outright. tice, and I was just feeling it,” Manning The Lady Vols and Lady Bulldogs tip said. “I think mostly I’ve just been focusoff at 7 p.m., and the game will be broading all year trying to work on my offensive cast on ESPN2. game. Got the opportunity this game, and

Matt Dixon

The Vols are hoping the increased emphasis on “small ball” will play to their Gentry Smith favor. Losing the power of Hawn and Staff Writer Forsythe will not be as hard to overcome with the bats being more similar to wood.

The UT baseball team’s ability to adapt However, losing Polk’s speed and dynamic to a new atmosphere in the clubhouse will playmaking ability might raise a red flag be a recurring theme as the 2011 cam- on the surface.

Raleigh expressed confidence in freshpaign begins. man Andrew Toles, during his endorseThe NCAA’s changes to bat specificament of the Georgia native, who was a tions and its implementation of a new 2010 fourth-round draft pick of the pitch-clock will be challenges faced by Florida Marlins. every Division I team this season. For the “We have a lot of guys that are going to Vols, adjusting to the loss of seven players impact the program,” he said. “I think to professional baseball and the addition Andrew Toles is certainly one of those of 14 new players will be an internal chalguys.

This guy is a future first-rounder.

I lenge. don’t think there’s any question about it.

The hollowed-core aluminum bats will have a significantly denser center this He can run, he can hit and he can throw, season, which will reduce the explosive so I think that’s what you want. He’s cerpop off the bat that fans have watched in tainly going to impact the game as a true recent past. The pitch-clock is baseball’s freshman.”

Assistant equivalent to bascoach Ash ketball’s shot-clock, Lawson related to as pitchers will the incoming have 20 seconds to class as well as deliver the next the theme of a pitch when the new atmosphere. bases are empty. As A former 2006 for the 14 new Vols, Scout of the Year some will be called for the San Diego upon to fill the gaps Padres, Lawson left by P.J. Polk, will be starting Blake Forsythe and his first season as Cody Hawn, among one of Raleigh’s others. aides on Friday.

Coach Todd His confidence Raleigh seemed paralleled the unfazed by the head coach’s in ample amount of regards to the change the Vols ability of the must address as the Vols’ players. He season opens spoke to his against Wisconsin– UT baseball coach Todd Raleigh favorable percepMilwaukee at home on the impact of the new dense tion of both in Lindsey Nelson aluminum bats implemented into college Knoxville and the Stadium Friday at baseball by the NCAA team.

4:00 pm. New bats, “I couldn’t be new rules, new more impressed with the city of Knoxville players — none of these factors made as a whole,” Lawson said.

“It has a ton to Raleigh nervous. offer a family.

I’m amazed at the support He addressed the bats with optimism this university gets from the town.

It has during the team’s media day this past to be one of the best college towns in Saturday.

America.

The guys in the program have “Fortunately for us, we have a little more speed than we’ve had,” Releigh said. been very impressive to me, just their “We kind of recruited to (the bat changes) willingness to try new things and their a little bit and saw it coming. Hopefully, desire to get better.”

The new-look Diamond Vols will seek we're ahead of the curve a little bit on to continue their success at home from that. last season (20-15) while improving both “I just think the home runs are going on the road (10-11) and in conference to go down. It’s going to put more empha(12-18).

The SEC’s competitiveness will sis on pitching. It’s going to put more be a tough task to handle, but the team emphasis on walking hitters and making errors. You’re going to see more bunts and hopes its fresh outlook and Raleigh’s optimism will provide great success in 2011. stolen bases.”

“

I just think the home runs are going to go

down. It’s going to put more emphasis on pitching. It’s

going to put more emphasis on walking hitters and

making errors. You’re going to see more bunts and stolen bases.

”

8A • The Daily Beacon

THESPORTSPAGE

Friday, February 18, 2011

Hopson must lead Vols against Georgia UGA hopes to bounce back against UT Gentry Smith Staff Writer At the beginning of the season, Scotty Hopson anticipated being the go-to guy for the Volunteers in 2010-11.

Hopson is living up to those expectations of being the Vols’ playmaker, as he often carries the fight to the opponent for the Vols. In the games that he has been atop the leading scorer column, UT boasts a 10-3 record.

Coming off of a pair of highlight-reel performances against Florida and South Carolina (22 points and 23 points, respectively), Hopson’s re-creation of such production will be the key ingredient to Big Orange success this Saturday against a talented Georgia squad.

After Hopson led the way in beating the Gamecocks to end a three-game conference skid on Wednesday, he acknowledged the necessity of his playing at an elite level.

“I just made it an emphasis to stay in attack mode,” Hopson said. “Making plays for myself and the other guys on this team is obviously what my job is. That’s what this team needs me to do, and I want to do that at all costs.”

As the team’s leading scorer — averaging nearly 17 points per game — Hopson’s numbers, as well as his recognition of his role, speak volumes to the effort he brings to the court each game. The Vols will need him to play aggressively on Saturday, as their last meeting with the Bulldogs was literally a toss-up, as Brian Williams’ put-back buzzer-beater helped the Vols escape an imminent overtime in Athens a month ago with a 59-57 victory.

In addition to Hopson’s leadership, the Vols will need to continue their sharp defensive play.

“You’ve got to start with defense and realize that, with Josh Bone and Melvin Goins, we have got a good defender on the ball,” Pearl said.

While the Vols have been successful as a whole defensively, the free-throw line has been an irksome nemesis for this team. The Vols have attempted 13 or fewer free throws in a game five times in conference play this season. The

team has found itself lining up on the blocks Matt Dixon rather than the charity stripe on a regular basis, Sports Editor but home-court advantage produces less parody in the Vols’ free throw game (UT attempts Georgia is hoping the second matchup seven and a half fewer free throws on the road this season with Tennessee has a different and about three fewer at home). e n d i n g Georgia from the a n d previous Te n n e s s e e one. are in a A conthree-way tie troversial for third B r i a n place in the Williams SEC East put-back as s t a n d i n gs , t i m e and the Vols expired know that gave the the Bulldogs Vo l u n t e e rs will come to a 59-57 vicThompsontory over Boling with t h e a bad taste in Bulldogs in their mouths Athens on and revenge Jan. 18. on their “I think m i n d s . they are H o w e v e r, two differPearl’s team ent games,” should not UGA coach lack motivaMark Fox tion, because said. “But I victories in think you upcoming look at the head-to-head first game g a m e s and try to against evaluate Vanderbilt, what you Kentucky did well, a n d what you S at u rd a y ’s George Richardson • The Daily Beacon didn’t do bought against Georgia could Scotty Hopson slams a dunk home during the South well, how vault UT into Carolina game on Wednesday. Hopson’s dunk was t h e y second place in one of many of his SportsCenter-worthy plays on the played, and the East. night. He also led the Vols to a 73-67 victory, scoring so obviously you use a team-high 23 points.

it. But I think we’re both different teams than we were then.”

Georgia (17-8, 6-5 SEC) is coming off another heart-breaking home loss Wednesday night to No. 18 Vanderbilt.

The Bulldogs led by as many as 14 points in the second half but collapsed late, losing 64-56.

“That’s a tough loss,” Fox said. “Our kids played hard, but Vanderbilt shot the ball well in the second half, and you have to give them credit for that.”

Junior guard Gerald Robinson was the Bulldogs’ leading scorer against the Commodores with 15 points. The Nashville native averages 13 points per game on the season, ranking third on the team.

Junior forward Trey Thompkins leads Georgia in scoring, averaging 16.6 points per contest. The preseason SEC Player of the Year also leads the team in rebounding, grabbing 7.6 boards per game.

Junior guard Travis Leslie is second on the team behind Thompkins in both scoring and rebounding. Leslie averages 14.2 points and 7 rebounds per game.

In the first meeting this year, Robinson and Leslie each had 14 points to lead Georgia, while Thompkins added 13. No other Bulldog had more than six points.

Much like the Vols, Georgia is in need of a win to improve its standing in the SEC East race. The Bulldogs are currently third in the East race with their 6-5 conference mark, tied with Kentucky and Tennessee.

For Georgia to avoid a season sweep at the hands of the Vols, it will need to do something it failed to do against Vanderbilt Wednesday.

“We’ve just got to keep playing all 40 minutes,” Leslie said.

Tennessee and Georgia tip off at 1 p.m.

Saturday in Thompson-Boling Arena.

Kristian Smith Student Life Editor College students know a lot about dining out; many students eat out on a daily basis. Most UT students know when Old College Inn and Tin Roof have drink specials and which takeout place has the fastest delivery time. This works for everyday dining, but what happens when you ask that cute girl or guy in your Spanish class out on a date?

Since drinking beer and eating wings or pizza somewhere on the Strip is probably not your date’s idea of romance, finding a great place for a dinner date could be a problem. Which restaurant has good food? Which restaurant has good drinks? And most important to college students, which restaurant is affordable on a college

budget?

When choosing a restaurant for a dinner date, these questions need to be taken into consideration. A good meal is always great, but most college students do not have the money for a five-star, four-course dinner. There is no need to worry though, because the dining guide has the answers.

Each restaurant in this year’s dining guide has been reviewed, not only for quality and service, but also for the potential for an affordable date. From cozy bistros like Nama to fun hotspots like Downtown Grill & Brewery, our reviewers have provided Knoxville’s best for date night.

The guide provides a wide range of food, from Asian cuisine to pizza, for every taste and occasion. Whether it’s a get-to-know-you, casual, first date or a date for cel-

ebrating a two-year anniversary, our dining guide has it covered.

Budget is usually a major concern for college students when planning a dinner date, but don’t let money keep you from enjoying a great meal.

Many restaurants offer reduced-price menus or specials during lunch or happy hour, especially on weekdays. But if you still want to go out for a Saturday-night dinner, try splitting an appetizer, entree and dessert with your date. It can be a romantic gesture to split a meal, and you’re really getting two meals for the price of one.

Next time you’re worried about impressing that special someone, check out one of the restaurants in the dining guide for a fun, affordable date.

2B • The Daily Beacon

Friday, February 18, 2011

DINING GUIDE

Unique, tasty pizzas fit budget DaVinci’s provides Jersey taste Zac Ellis Editor-in-Chief The concept of wood-fired pizza has found yet another outlet in Knoxville in the form of Brixx Wood Fired Pizza, located on Kingston Pike near West Town Mall.

There is very little middle ground with pizza; for the most part, pizza is a dish that can either be totally screwed up or perfectly prepared. Though delivery pizza chains have dominated the market for decades, the idea of wood-fired pizza preparation has recently intrigued consumers with the likes of Brixx, which bills its food as having its flavor locked in by the restaurant’s brick ovens. Though the concept is not entirely new, pizza outside the realm of delivery status hardly enters the minds of college-aged consumers. Still, Brixx needs to be on that list, especially for students looking for an affordable date location.

The Brixx franchise started in North Carolina, and according to the restaurant’s website, the founding partners simply wanted to make “the best pizza in Charlotte” at the time. The idea grew, however, and soon after the first location opened its doors in 1998, restaurants had spread into Tennessee, South Carolina and Virginia.

The foundation of the Brixx atmosphere is to be simple and fun, and the feeling inside the restaurant echoes that sentiment. Though Brixx has a family feel about it, the philosophy behind the menu is to offer great pizza with great beer, so consumers can have their choice of a dozen different wines and nearly 24 beer selections with each meal.

For the dating collegian, a little wine with dinner is never a bad thing, especially when the price tag doesn’t raise eyebrows to the extreme. Glasses of Chardonnay can be had from just less than $6 a glass, while Brixx’s most expensive cabernet fails to break the bank at $11.50. The beer selection is varied with several regular beers and domestics on tap.

The menu itself offers several selections

other than pizza. Sandwiches and salads are plentiful, and those seeking a perfect lunch date need not look any farther than the midday pizza-salad combo, where patrons can enjoy two slices of any of Brixx’s pizzas alongside a smaller-portioned salad for less than $6. This is one of the best lunch deals on the menu.

Then, of course, there’s the pizzas, the crown jewels of Brixx’s menu and the claim to the franchise’s fame. All 19 pizzas are, of course, wood fired and are served in 10-inch sizes fit for two. Customers have the choice of traditional or whole-wheat crust, though each pizza comes as thin crust only. Gluten-free crust is available for an upcharge of $2.

The Brixx pizza menu can best be described as “unique.” Customers won’t find regular pepperoni or cheese; instead, unorthodox recipes fill the Brixx pizza menu.

There’s the Buffalo Chicken pizza, served complete with Texas Pete hot sauce, while the Mexican pizza incorporates a black-bean spread with fresh jalapenos and sour cream.

One can try the Hawaiian pizza with its fresh pineapple and cilantro or dive into the Wild Mushroom pizza, which is covered with a mix of shiitake, portobello and button mushrooms.

For those outside-the-box pizza eaters, this is the menu for you.

From a dating perspective, most gentlemen will agree that the most important aspect of Brixx’s offerings is the low price. Each pie ranges from $8.95 to $10.95, and though the portions lend themselves to personal meals, two dates looking for a light lunch could easily split a serving. Take into account the solid pizza-salad combo, and a man is looking at an intriguing midday meal sure to sweep any woman off her feet amid the smell of woodfired pizza.

For that romantic duo seeking a unique pizza meal, Brixx should be high on the list of possibilities. Forget regularly accepted ideas about delivery pizza; based on the variety of different pizza options at Brixx, no two visits would the same.

while the other two sets, including the one over the bar, featured the Westminster Kennel Club Copy Editor dog show, non-sporting group.

To give the reader an impression of the kind of DaVinci’s Pizza and Calzones, located on South Central Street in the Old City, claims to be the playlist DaVinci’s might be rocking, “Love Like only place in Knoxville that offers New Jersey- Woe” by The Ready Set was playing as the reviewer’s party was seated. The song was promptly style pizza.

To most people who don’t live in New Jersey, changed, however, to the Australian fist-pumping that means nothing, but apparently the difference ballad, “For Those About to Rock (We Salute is in the sauce. According to DaVinci’s website, You).”

After these seeming inconsistencies, it came as “unlike N.Y. style pizza, we make a sweet sauce to no surprise when two of the party’s orders were add flavor to your pie.” mixed up.

It also uses more The calzone, on sugar in the dough, the whole, is a better and it’s noticeable. choice than the pizza.

The sweetness isn’t The calzone is very really a good or bad cheesy, the ingredithing; it takes more ents are tasty than extra sugar to enough, the dough is make or break a better than average pizza. In all honesty, and it doesn’t overthe food at DaVinci’s power the other is nothing special, ingredients.

The but there is more to sweet marinara dipa pizzeria than its ping sauce, while flapizza. vorful, isn’t essential.

DaVinci’s was virDaVinci’s calzone tually deserted on a proves its worth by Tuesday night, with the fact that it just one of the woodreduces the sweet en table-and-chair dipping sauce to just sets occupied and that, a dipping sauce. four or five middleGeorge Richardson• The Daily Beacon Plus, it’s filling. An aged men and adventurous couple women sitting at the bar. The menu was written on a chalk board, could conceivably split a Buffalo Calzone (breadthough, judging from its exact similarity to the ed chicken, mozzarella, ranch and hot sauce).

The pizza, on the other hand, is little more than electronic menu on the website, the items don’t just pizza. As said earlier, adding sugar to the change much.

The framed Jersey Devil and New Jersey state sauce and the dough doesn’t raise the pizza up posters were hardly perceptible in the excessively over the hundreds of other pizzas the average dim lighting — of course this is sometimes a dat- American will experience. And if the dough isn’t ing preference — and a large painting of an urban mixed with water from the Hudson River, then it isn’t authentic Jersey pizza. street front spilled onto the otherwise brick wall.

Take a Tennessee-born date to DaVinci’s Pizza Couples may appreciate DaVinci’s willingness to accommodate multiple viewing tastes with its and Calzones and show him or her that there is a three televisions. The large TV was tuned in to the dark horse in the New York vs. Chicago pizza race.

Kentucky vs. Mississippi State basketball game, But go on a Wednesday, for the $5 calzone special.

Robbie Hargett

Friday, February 18, 2011

DINING GUIDE

The Daily Beacon • 3B

Wok Hay updates Asian cuisine Nama charms sushi rookies, veterans soup, Wok Hay also offers wonton soup and Thai curry vegetable soup.

Kristian Smith Appetizer specialties include sweet and spicy Student Life Editor shrimp and spring rolls, along with many others.

For anyone looking to take their date on a long, A modern, chic bistro, Wok Hay is the perfect nice dinner date, this is their best option.

For all three courses, prices range from $15 for place for a nice, semi-casual date night.

With its convenient location on Kingston Pike, chicken entrees to $19 for seafood entrees. Since Wok Hay is the perfect place for a romantic din- these entrees normally range from $10 to $15, ner date or casual drinks and dessert. The dim each diner gets an appetizer and soup for only $5 lighting, soft music and cozy booths provide a more with this menu.

The restaurant’s portions are pretty big, so it romantic atmosphere, while the price tag — all may be a good idea for diners to split an entrée entrees are priced between $9 and $15 — prowith their dates. vides a great option for dining out on a budget.

If diners are lookA Knoxvilleing for a faster (and based restaurant, cheaper) dining Wok Hay combines experience, try Wok elegant, contempoHay during its rary décor with an Happy Hour, from 3 update on traditionto 6 p.m. on weekal Asian fare. days. There is less Chopsticks and forof a crowd and it has tune cookies at the some great specials. end of the meal During Happy give an authentic Hour, four of its Asian experience, most popular appebut the unique prestizers, Kung Pao entation of food spring rolls, Wok and variety of menu Hay spring rolls, items distinguishes fried shrimp wonthis restaurant from tons and sweet and traditional Asian Wade Rackley • The Daily Beacon spicy shrimp, are places. only $3.

Compared to For those over 21, its drink specials are hard other Asian restaurants in Knoxville, Wok Hay has the upscale feel of P.F. Chang’s but with to beat during Happy Hour. Glasses of beer and prices more similar to a takeout restaurant, like wine, as well as a selection of cocktails, are only $3. And these aren’t just normal margaritas and Hibachi Factory.

The menu is separated into chicken, seafood, martinis. Wok Hay offers Asian-inspired drink beef and pork entrees. The menu is very large, selections, like the Singapore Smash, Zen Zang but some items are repeated in the different meat and Lychee Martini. These cocktails are still only sections. It offers classic Asian dishes, like Ginger $5 after Happy Hour. To stay within a strict Broccoli and Pad Thai, but it also have its own budget, try Wok Hay during lunch, where every specialties, like green-tea ice cream and “over-the- entrée is $2 off.

To provide a sweet end to a date, try one of top” rice and noodle bowls.

A new addition to the menu is the three-course Wok Hay’s desserts. Ice cream is its specialty, but prix-fixe menu. Unlike typical prix-fixe menus, for a truly delicious dessert, try the banana and though, diners can choose any item off the menu. mango eggrolls. The fresh mango and banana This menu allows the choice of one soup, one pair perfectly with the coconut ice cream, providappetizer and one entrée off the regular menu. ing just the right amount of sweet and tart. And Besides the usual egg drop and hot and sour the portion is just right for two.

rolls, which range from eight to 10 pieces per order, are fresh and have an excellent quality.

There is, of course, the typical anxiety for those Nama Sushi restaurant, with its two conven- trying sushi for the first time. Luckily, the restauient locations at 5130 Kingston Pike in Bearden rant offers a range of delicious, simpler options for and downtown (with the location moving from those who are new to the cuisine. The Crunchy 135 South Gay Street, across from Sterchi Lofts, Shrimp Roll, for example, with its tempura to farther west downtown, next to the Regal shrimp, avocado and spicy mayo, or the Cali Roll, Riveria movie theater and close to other down- which consists of snow crab, avocado and cucumber, are both great rolls town attractions like the for sushi newbies who Tennessee Theatre, Bijou are afraid of some of the Theatre, Market Square more elaborate rolls. and a variety of other venFor those who are seaues … perfect for a short soned veterans of sushi, stroll on a romantic though, it is hard to top evening), lends itself to the the Pizza Roll in terms of perfect date night for coutaste variety and quality. ples seeking a little differThe roll is made of snow entiation from the standard crab, smoked salmon and meal. avocado. It is topped with The dim lighting, with TNT sauce, baked and each table’s individual canthen drizzled with eel dles adding a warm flicker sauce and topped with to the ambiance, sets a perbonito flakes and green fect, romantic tone. The onion. The roll packs just mood is stylish yet still clasenough kick in the flavorsically sophisticated, with ing to distinguish itself, modern aluminum fixtures yet isn’t too overpowercomplementing classic ing in the spice to mask wooden booths. the flavor.

The outdoor patio, open A less spicy menu during seasonable weather, option is the Tempura is also a perfect choice for Tia Patron. • The Daily Beacon Roll, which is a snow crab those in the amorous frame and salmon roll, filled with of mind. The wine selection is both expansive and rather reasonable, and the full bar inside the cream cheese and avocado before being fried. The restaurant offers a great variety of beers and roll is a bit heavier than others, but the cream cheese and avocado complement the snow crab mixed drinks.

The most important component to the evening quite well. The roll is also a tad more pricey, but is the food, and the sushi restaurant does not dis- the extra dollars aren’t wasted in terms of quality appoint when it comes to the menu. With delec- and quantity.

The restaurant also offers a full menu of eight table and relatively inexpensive appetizers, like the kimchee and rice, the portions are small vegetarian rolls, including the very filling Veggie enough to keep patrons from getting too full but Futo Roll, which is packed with vegetables including asparagus, snow peas, carrots, tomatoes, still sizeable enough to share.

The rolls, though, are really what make Nama spring mix, avocado, pickled gourd, cucumber, worth the visit and the price (which isn’t exces- zucchini, gobo, daikon sprouts and wakame. sive, but can be a bit much for students on a budg- Nama also offers a variety of dessert options.

For couples looking to change up their stanet — luckily the restaurant offers half-off nights on select rolls on Mondays and Thursdays). The dard date night dinner, Nama is an ideal choice.

Brandi Panter

Managing Editor

4B • The Daily Beacon

Friday, February 18, 2011

DINING GUIDE

Customization sets Cilantro’s apart Oscar’s offers twist on Italian cuisine Robby O’Daniel Recruitment Editor Cilantro’s Grill, the Strip’s best-kept secret, is the most enjoyable Southwestern grill around for two reasons: customization and price.

Moe’s Southwest Grill has proven a college student’s staple on the Strip for years, and Chipotle Mexican Grill rode into the area with much fanfare back in December.

But Cilantro’s, which will experience its oneyear anniversary in the area in a few months, manages to provide quality food at a price that will not leave college students’ wallets hurting.

On this reviewer’s first visit just a week ago, I was simply told by a friend and frequent customer, “You have to try the queso.”

Indeed, if there is anything about Cilantro’s that will guarantee a repeat visit, it is, first and foremost, the queso. Cilantro’s has the best queso this reviewer has ever tried, a delicious, pure melted cheese.

A cursory glance of the menu might leave readers wondering, what's so great about Cilantro’s? It seems to offer the usual fare that its Southwestern grill brethen provide: burritos, tacos, nachos, etc.

But the real difference is the customization.

Unlike other restaurants, where the addition of one ingredient here or another there will change your purchase from one “type” of taco or burrito to another, at Cilantro’s, the customer orders and then has free rein of what to include, no additional money necessary.

Admittedly this reviewer is a very boring taco eater. Tacos with lettuce, cheese and ground beef — essentially a regular soft taco at Taco Bell — is optimal.

But at Cilantro’s, with such options, it’s hard to resist the clarion call of trying new things. That is what college is all about, after all, right? So I added pinto beans and corn to the mix.

The result were three soft tortilla shells so full of food that they nearly burst, and at the end of the meal, the stomach is about to burst as well.

Other main entrees include a burrito or a Cilantro bowl, which is essentially a burrito without the tortilla. Choices of meat include beef, steak and chicken.

And a taco lover can pack them full of other ingredients, like sour cream, guacamole, black beans, onions, salsa and a litany of others.

Asking for a card at Cilantro’s will ensure that, after buying five entrees, the sixth one is free, as well.

Cilantro’s also prides itself on serving as a healthier alternative. The restaurant serves angus beef and white-meat chicken.

The local, mom-and-pop touch of the restaurant makes it stand out. There are a lot of places on the .

Strip that either have huge crowds or tons of loud televisions broadcasting endless sports.

But Cilantro’s has just two widescreen televisions, and the owners are willing to let the customer change the channel if he or she wishes.

When this reviewer went the first time, the sitcom “Two and a Half Men” played on one television, and “The Colbert Report” played on another.

In addition, the staff lets the customer even sample items on the menu before they buy. Not sure if you want chicken or beef? Sample a little.

Down-home Southern hospitality, coupled with grade-A quality food, makes Cilantro’s a worthy addition to any UT student’s diet.

Down-home

Southern hospitality,

coupled with grade-A quality food, makes Cilantro’s a worthy addition to any UT student’s diet

For those seeking a more eccentric meal, the restaurant has a wide variety of Mediterranean Art and Entertainment Editor dishes, as well as those of other ethnicities, that probably would not be found at a local pizza If there ever was a food that could be consid- chain. These include gyros, hummus dip and a ered romantic, it would probably be a dish kifta burger, among other items. belonging to Italy.

Considering the country of origin for most of Whether it is for love of marinara sauce or a its menu, of course Oscar’s also has a phenomeparticular scene in “The Lady and the Tramp,” nal list of pizzas to choose from. Regulars like an the fine cuisine of this European country has all-meat pizza and barbeque chicken make an become one of the most popappearance, but ular genres of food in the there are also more world. exotic choices, like The problem with this eggplant, chicken delicious style of cooking is parmesan, Philly that there are more than steak and cheese enough restaurants out there and New York meatto satisfy the community’s ball. need. So how is one to know No matter what which of these locations have one prefers on top of the best product? their pizza, the most Oscar’s Restaurant, locatimportant factor in ed on Cumberland Avenue, the restaurant’s has been a staple of pizza is the crust.

Knoxville dining for just While toppings more than 25 years, making might be the first it one such location that a question one would lover of Italian cuisine should think about when check out. ordering a pizza, the The restaurant, found light, fluffy breading adjacent to night spots and a is the backbone of cleaning service, is not exactthis section of the Tara Sripunvoraskul • The Daily Beacon ly impressive from the outmenu. side. However, this is an Although the example of one of those times where a book restaurant prides itself on “fine Italian cuisine,” should not be judged by its cover. one doesn’t have to be in the mood for Italian Upon entering the restaurant, there is an food to make a trip to Oscar’s. The menu also immediate understanding that this business is a offers an array of burgers, subs, sandwiches and marriage between authentic Italian food and a salads, all at a very reasonable price. good ole Southern geography. Oscar’s more likeOscar's also has a delivery/carry-out feature ly resembles a diner that would exhibit slices of which, combined with its low prices, as well as pie on a rotating glass platter than the “authen- working hours comparable to Taco Bell, makes tic” approach many Italian restaurants strive for. the restaurant into the perfect eating destination “It definitely isn’t what I expected,” Mallory for today’s college student.

Campbell, sophomore in ecology and evolutionWhether looking for a meal late at night or a ary biology, said. “I thought it would be more value-priced location for a dating rendezvous, ethnic, but it’s more of an Americanized version, Oscar’s Restaurant is one of the best-tasting which is my favorite.” options near the UT campus.

Will Abrams

DINING GUIDE

Friday, February 18, 2011

The Daily Beacon • 5B

Copper Cellar boasts classic burgers Knoxville gem combines elegant downstairs, relaxed upstairs environment the same class in atmosphere but has a less elegant feel and provides a better atmosphere for colStaff Writer lege kids to hang out in.

The Copper Cellar has been an Wednesday night is $5-burger integral part of dining in night, and Copper Cellar has Knoxville and at the University of some of the best burgers in Tennessee since 1975. The restau- Knoxville. At such a great price, rant is located on Cumberland the deal is hard to pass up.

For those who are not fans of Avenue and is a favorite of UT meat, both menus offer good vegstudents.

“It’s one of the best restaurants etarian choices as well.

Having trouble deciding what in town, definitely the best on to order? Try the Volunteer burgcampus,” er, as it defiH u n t e r nitely lives up H e r r i n , to its fame. undecided For those freshman, who aren’t too said. fond of burgCopper ers, the menu Cellar is has many more famous for entrees to having two offer and there restaurants. is something The original for everyone. restaurant is One patron downst airs recommends and provides the Maryland more refined Crab Cake and elegant Sandwich, dining, and which uses the there is an C o p p e r upstairs Cellar’s homerestaurant made tartar that caters sauce. more to colThe restau– Joel Bowers lege sturant is very on dining at Copper Cellar dents and popular as a offers a more p re - ga m e relaxed hang hang-out spot, out that is often popular before UT football but is usually busy most nights of the week. The best plan is to and basketball games.

“It provides a high-class atmos- either make reservations or go phere with reasonable prices, and before 6 p.m., which is when the its one of my favorite place to be main dinner rush arrives.

The upstairs Copper Cellar is before the game,” Joel Bowers, every day, with Sunday featuring undecided freshman, said.

The downstairs area is the per- its special brunch menu. The fect place for a formal night on downstairs is open Monday the town or a night with someone through Saturday. Operating special. The menu features several hours vary from day to day but it entrees of steak and more elegant usually opens at 11 a.m. and closfood that are less than kind on a es at 11 p.m. and stays open until college student’s wallet. The midnight on the weekends.

Whether looking for a classier atmosphere is elegant and provides excellent atmosphere for an date in the downstairs portion of epicurean dining experience, as the restaurant or a more relaxed well as some of the best steaks in atmosphere upstairs, Copper Cellar can deliver just what everytown.

The upstairs portion maintains one is looking for.

Sam Scott

“

It provides a

high-class

atmosphere with

reasonable prices, and it’s one of my favorite places to be before the game.

”

Tia Patron • The Daily Beacon

6B • The Daily Beacon

DINING GUIDE

Friday, February 18, 2011

Brewery offers unique, historic atmosphere Downtown Grill & Brewery menu highlighted by intriguing selection of local brews Zac Ellis Editor-in-Chief Amid the revitalization that downtown Knoxville has experienced within the last 10 years, Downtown Grill & Brewery has remained one of the few staples of the old downtown Knoxville that few often remember.

Before Market Square was booming each Friday night and before Regal Riviera began offering flicks on Gay Street, the city’s residents billed Downtown Grill & Brewery as the place to eat since the restaurant’s inception in the early 1990s.

After downtown Knoxville’s renaissance?

The restaurant remains better than ever.

Located on Gay Street, only one block north of the historic Tennessee Theatre, Downtown Grill & Brewery’s lobby is frequently filled to capacity with weekend patrons hoping for a seat inside the restaurant.

Dozens of tables grace the hardwood floors in the two-story eatery, with the establishment’s own bar situated in the middle of the ground level, directly in front of the 15-gallon Bohemian brewhouse near the back entrance.

The Woodruff Building, which turned 100 years old in 2004 and houses Downtown Grill, is as iconic as it is old among downtown Knoxville destinations. For a potential dinner for two, few establishments offer a better experience in town.

Once seated, the ambiance of the restaurant becomes hard to ignore. It is a true gathering place. Most every night — especially weekends — unoccupied tables are few and far between, and some patrons are even lucky enough to snag balcony seats overlooking the bar on the bottom floor. Strategically placed big-screen televisions can be found across the restaurant, but the televised games don’t serve as a bother for dinner conversation.

The menu itself offers a variety of entrees and appetizers, many of which feature a distinctly Knoxville twist. Feast on Downtown Nachos or Knoxville Wings before the entree, or go for the Sampler Platter for a taste of

everything.

Diving into the entrees, the selection is wide.

Try the Market Square Burro for a Knoxvillestyle Southwest burrito, or go big with the Sunsphere Scampi, where you are served 14 sauteed jumbo shrimp. For the regulars, the Teriyaki Chicken dinner is not to be passed up, while the Downtown Sirloin is a Knoxville classic. The restaurant’s grilled entrees are continual crowd-pleasers, and many selections on the menu are large enough for two to share.

Of course, Downtown Grill & Brewery wouldn’t be a brewery without its own unique selection of ales. The restaurant offers seven beers brewed on site by its own selected brewmaster and tapped from serving tanks located below the main dining area.

Like any traditional brewery’s selection, each beer offers a different taste to customers. Try the Woodruff IPA for a full taste of English hops, though the Downtown Blonde Ale and the New World Porter are worth a try, as well.

Downtown Grill & Brewery’s menu even suggests certain beers to accompany entrees in an effort to maximize the dining experience.

On the weekends, the back corner of Downtown Grill & Brewery’s second floor becomes one of downtown’s best bar scenes.

Patrons can take part in traditional pool tables and darts while enjoying one of the brewery’s in-house beers. Kegs of any style of the restaurant’s craft beers are even available within seven days of notice to those hoping to enjoy the brewery’s unique ales at any gathering.

On a college budget, Downtown Grill & Brewery doesn’t break the bank, even as a potential date location. Most main entrees falls within the $10-$15 range, but the affordable prices shouldn’t rob Downtown Grill & Brewery of its high-class atmosphere. For downtown dining, there is no other location that matches the historic value that Downtown Grill & Brewery brings to the table.

Downtown Grill & Brewery is located at 424 South Gay Street and is open Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to midnight and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m to 3 a.m.

George Richardson • The Daily Beacon

Friday, February 18, 2011

DINING GUIDE

The Daily Beacon • 7B

Crown and Goose provides English alternative Brandi Panter Managing Editor For the average college student, or, for that matter, the average American, a romantic getaway weekend abroad is not only financially unfeasible, but also highly impractical.

For couples seeking a change of atmosphere, the Crown and Goose, located at 123 South Central Street in the Old City, is a great spot for a momentary escape. The dark, wood furnishings, dim lighting and steady rotation of classic English pop music like The Beatles, playing throughout the restaurant, sets a fun, nontraditional vibe for couples seeking a little escapism from East Tennessee.

The restaurant, styled after a traditional English pub, offers a wide selection of beers and wines, including two sold exclusively at the Crown and Goose.

The London India Pale Ale, a pale and bitter ale infused with hops, is a perfect complement to fish or chicken dishes. The Royal Stout, the restaurant’s exclusive dark ale, is rich with an almost roasted undertone.

The beers come in either 20or 16-ounce sizes, and the restaurant also offers a threebeer sampler. The fully stocked bar offers a wide selection of custom-made house drinks, including the Hot Irish Monk, which is made of hot chocolate, Irish whiskey and Frangelico, or the Jack the Ripper, which is composed of Jack Daniels, cherry brandy and lemonade.

The Lady Guinevere, made of chilled champagne, apple schnapps and cranberry juice, is perfect for a warm evening on the patio — the Crown and Goose boasts a sizeable outdoor dining area during seasonable weather.

The dinner menu, though, is what makes the Crown and Goose such a great pick for an evening out.

The Fish ‘n’ Chips — fried Atlantic cod, hand-cut potatoes and house-made tartar sauce — is a safe bet for those unfamiliar with a menu comprised of traditional

English dishes. The heaping portions of the Gobble the Gobbler — a roasted turkey dish — the Henry VIII Shepherd’s Pie — filled with lamb, vegetables and other goodies inside a flaky, browned crust — or the authentic Bangers and Mash — a sausage dish — all three are worth their price in not only the quality and taste of the food, but also the size of the dishes.

The only downside to the large dinner portions is that it leaves little room for dessert, which is well worth splitting with a date, after your meal is finished.

The Sticky Toffee Pudding, Guanaja Chocolate and Pecan Tart and the Whiskey-Soaked Craisin Bread Pudding are all well worth a try and cost a very reasonable $8 at most.

If the decision on dessert becomes too much of a burden, though, the Crown and Goose offers a sampler of all three for only $12. There are also the options of sorbet, Crème Brulee, rootbeer floats or traditional English Truffle if you are seeking something George Richardson • The Daily Beacon a bit less elaborate.

For couples wishing to try something new with their night out and feel like they are really “getting away from it all for a little while,” the Crown and Goose is a great fit.

8B • The Daily Beacon

DINING GUIDE

Friday, February 18, 2011

Cocoa Moon offers multiple cuisine options Menu gives diners tasty Latin, Asian, ‘Fusion’ selections, lackluster dessert options Brittney Dougherty Staff Writer Cocoa Moon on Market Square has obviously worked hard to create a comfortable, yet trendy, atmosphere.

The lighting is dim and made up of tiny, twinkling lights and candles. The dining room has a bright color scheme to make up for the low lights.

The earthy wooden tables and exposed brick are accented with many vibrant greens, as well as deep reds.

Instead of the typical tableand-chairs set-up, the owners of Cocoa Moon decided to give customers more options. The booths are made of cozy leather love seats, complete with pillows.

The owners paired this modern seating arrangement with modern décor and music.

Remixes of top-20 hits thump in the background, sometimes a little too loudly.

The restaurant seems to specialize in options. The menu has a lot to offer to people with different tastes.

Coco Moon’s menu is divided into three distinct types of cuisine. There is a Latin selection with items like quesadillas, nachos and burritos. Next is an Asian-inspired section with Teriyaki, hot-and-spicy shrimp and Hong Kong-

style chicken. A third option is the “specialties” menu, which is made up of fusion-style food.

Prices for the Latin food are very reasonable.

The “Nachos Samba” is a little more than $10, which may seem a little steep until it actually arrives. It’s a towering pile of meat, peppers,

salsa and cheese. Unlike most other Latin restaurants, there are far fewer chips than toppings, and a fork is very necessary.

The Asian dishes are similarly priced and are also heaping portions. One dish is served sizzling in a large bowl housed in a wooden

chocolate. The only non-chocolate option is a spiced apple cake.

Although the cake tasted good, it was dry and definitely not homemade. It was very pretty though, and the plate was decorated with zigzags and spirals of chocolate and fruit sauces.

Unlike the desserts, the drinks menu is extensive. There are mixed drinks, as well as a wide selection of wine and beer. The Asian and Latin theme is continued with the beer selection.

There are options like Dos Equis and Tsing Tao, mixed in with the Blue Moon and Bud Light. There are also wine specials on Monday nights.

To set itself apart from some of the other restaurants on Market Square, Cocoa Moon has a dance floor in the back. Every third Friday of the month, it holds a salsadancing lesson at 9 p.m., Tia Patron • The Daily Beacon and afterwards, the dancmain dishes — there are egg rolls mixed in ing goes on until 3 a.m.

Cocoa Moon is a pretty good place to take a with chips and salsa.

The only thing missing from the menu is date. The stylish restaurant comes complete dessert. Cocoa Moon does have some, but they with comfy couches and a dance floor. If differare disappointing. The waiter can run through ing tastes make choosing a restaurant a proba short list that is almost entirely made of lem, Cocoa Moon is the solution. box.

Items from the Fusion section are a little pricier. However, this section features dishes like filet mignon and “Savannah Grill”— a medley of steak, chicken, shrimp and scallops.

The appetizers, soups and salads mirror the