Stuyvesant Runs on Takis

What food do Stuyevesnt students rely on to comfort them when they are feeling down?

“My favorite comfort food is chicken noodle soup. Whenever I got sick when I was younger, my mom would always make me some.” —Ana-Maria Skaricic, junior

“My comfort food is popcorn chicken. I used to go get some with friends after school, so I guess it just reminds me of simpler times.” —Camilla Gawronski, junior

“My comfort food is ramen. On a cold winter night, it’s nice to have because it’s warm.” —Eric Eom, senior

“There’s this Chinese dish that my mom makes: it’s white rice and white fish covered in a soy-ginger sauce. It reminds me of home and I love it. Every time we return home from a long flight or road trip, it [is] always the first meal we have.” —Charlotte Siragusa, senior

“My favorite comfort food is vanilla ice cream with Hershey’s chocolate syrup. I feel like the sweetness from the ice cream is kind of a nice warm hug, and it helps get my mind off of things.” —Khandaker Ridwan, senior

“In terms of food it’s probably soup dumplings, or 小笼包 (xiao long bao) in Mandarin. I don’t know why it’s called that, but the literal translation is “small dragon bun.” There’s something so satisfying and warm with having a thick soup within tender dumpling skin and a meaty filling.” —Alan Guo, junior

“My comfort food is mac and cheese because it reminds me of my childhood. My dad used to make the Kraft box one with the weird looking orange powder because it was quick and easy. I thought it was so amazing growing up, but I’m not sure if I would eat that now.” —Zoe Shah, junior

“My comfort food is spicy rice cake. It’s so spicy that when you’re sad you forget why you’re sad in the first place. It was one of the first things that my mom taught me cooking wise, and we would make it together when I was younger.” —Rebecca Kim, junior

“My favorite comfort food is Thai iced tea. I like the taste of it—it’s bittersweet taste. The aftertaste has a kick to it and nothing else is like it. I get it at a place that’s a ten minute walk from me. I associate it with myself because it’s what I drink when I’m studying alone.” —Dikkila Sherpa, senior

“My favorite comfort food is a traditional dish, “떡국” (tteokguk). It's usually eaten for New Years. There's a saying that when you eat it, you become a year older. It's my favorite because it's simple and very smooth.” —Stacy Kim, junior

“Sriracha. It goes with everything and the spiciness helps me forget about and relieve my pain. Sriracha is delicious. I can also use it as pepper spray 2.0 so that’s a bonus. I should be the next ambassador of Sriracha.” —Kelly Huang, junior

“I like cereal. Cereal is good. It’s not just a breakfast food, it’s everyday food. I eat Fruity Pebbles a lot. I eat it every day when I get home, and sometimes at night, but not in the morning. I have a stash at home, so I never run out. Cereal makes me forget about all my pains, about my failed test scores.” —Yi Ling Wu, junior

“Instant noodles. It makes me feel happy and warm because I make it myself and it's my own creation. Also, the flavor packets are fire.” —Abdullah Alam, junior

“Peanut butter M&M’s. I like chocolate peanut butter stuff. The chocolate shell around the peanut butter works really well.” —Margot Donnellan, freshman

“Pizza, because there are a lot of places around [Stuyvesant] to get it, and it’s really good. I really like pineapples on it.” — Diya Rao, sophomore

“My favorite comfort food is probably takoyaki. I think the first time I tried it was at a Japanese street festival a few years ago. I don’t know how I lived without it. I think they’re the tastiest balls I’ve ever put in my mouth.” —Dean Chen, junior

“My favorite comfort would definitely have to be a brand of chips known as Takis. Each level of spice intensity is an invite for you to burn your tongue and run for that carton of milk in your fridge. It's so spicy and entertaining to eat that you forget all about your worries that you have in the moment. Basically, Takis equal an escape from reality.” —Michael Nath, junior

“I have a lot of favorites, but my absolute favorite is probably scallion pancakes, because my aunt taught me how to make them and it's the only thing I know how to make. Whenever I make them, I remember making them with my family, which adds to the experience.” —Joseph Yu, senior

“My favorite comfort food is lasagna because I like making it, and my family makes it a lot, so it’s something I grew up with.” —Isabella Stenhouse, freshman