New on today’s menu: Tang Kitchen and CRH Grilling. These two pop-up eateries, both entirely operated by students, have taken over the school’s non-SAGE dining scene via their three-course tasting menus and weekend cookouts, respectively.
Tang Kitchen, run single-handedly by Kenny Tang ’22, is a “boutique restaurant” that operates out of the SAC’s kitchen. Tang’s passion can be traced back to the pandemic, when he found himself with more time to explore his passion for cooking. “I started cooking a lot during quarantine, because my family and I love to eat, and the pandemic limited our ability to get good food,” he said. “Cooking is one of the most rewarding and relaxing things that I do. It’s beautiful to be able to take raw ingredients and create a dish in my head while balancing flavors and textures on the plate.”
Although Tang Kitchen originated as a blog, increasing attention from students on campus allowed Tang to transform it into the “restaurant” that it is now — renowned on campus, with weekly tasting menus carefully tailored to fulfill every customer’s personal preference.
When asked about the inspiration for his recipes, Tang said, “All the recipes are my own, but I draw inspiration from different culinary ideas and chefs. I learned how to cook through watching YouTube and eating in different restaurants. The menu changes according to the guests, and I prepare different dishes for each one.”
Even as the business grows, Tang continues to showcase the delicacies he cooks up as well as the smiles of guests enjoying quality food regularly on both his website and Instagram account, @tangkitchen_.
“The website and account mean a lot to me. The Tang Kitchen account is also a way for me to get the word out about my cooking. It’s a great way to engage with the community and see what people think of the dishes,” Tang said.
The absolute reverse of Tang Kitchen’s classy five-star restaurant vibes is another student-launched organization, characterized by raucous late-night bonfires and lots of good meat, which has also made its way into the public eye: CRH Grilling.
CRH Grilling, run by co-owners Jack Dillon ’23 and Brooks Roach ’23, made its debut in the fall term of this academic year. The pair is now famous for their open Saturday night grill outs, usually located in the Bernhard-Tenney courtyard. They have also provided catering services for events at senior dorms such as Lewis and Homestead.
The group’s origin story has the same laidback, impromptu nature as their weekend grill outs. According to Roach, “I just remember a good quote that Jack said — ‘Let’s actually do something this weekend.’”
Dillon and Roach bought their very own grill, some burgers, sausages, and vegetarian options that week and hosted a simple grill out outside their dorm, Tenney House, the first of many more to come. The surprisingly large turnout from that night turned into an incentive for the pair to make Saturday night grilling a Choate tradition.
According to Dillon and Roach, they plan the events on the Friday nights prior to their grill outs and source ingredients from local supermarkets. The next day, the meat (or vegetarian alternative) starts sizzling. As a self-proclaimed “underground organization,” CRH Grilling operates independent of Choate, relying mostly on student Venmo donations to help cover costs.
In thanks, the pair has established a thank-you system. “Similarly to how Choate names its buildings, we name apparatus after our donors. For example, we have the Varun Spatula and the Chessen Bucket of Truth,” said Roach.
Despite not advertising events, the group’s popularity amongst students always brings a busy night of grilling. The pair can also be seen donning their bright-pink cupcake aprons across campus, an indication of upcoming events.
Scrambling for the funding for ingredients, setting up the space, and spending the night behind the grill is hard work, yet when asked why they devote so much time and energy into organizing these events, Dillon said, “I love this whole grilling thing. I love being seen as the grilling guys on campus. But, at the end of the day, it’s all about the community that we have created. I’ve had people come up to me and say like, ‘Hey, you’ve got something special here.’ That warms my heart.”
