If you’re anything like me, you have an intimate, lifelong love affair with food and a tendency to eat away your problems. As finals week begins its invasion into my life, I find myself turning to the sweet solace of overconsumption to numb the pain of logging into Blackboard to check my grades.
Sometimes my epicurean desires are overwhelming. I have to stuff myself at places that are just slightly out-of-the-ordinary, such as:
1.) Wholly Grill: If you’ve never tried Filipino food, please love yourself and change that. This little gem is located in the heart of the expansive Mekong Plaza, a destination that I feel is overflowing with excellent culinary options. I’ve never had a real meal from Wholly Grill, so I can’t completely attest to its authenticity, but its desserts are quite prime.
I’m no expert, but I have had more than my fair share of authentic Filipino cuisine in my lifetime, and I think this place is pretty excellent. Their turon with ice cream and halo-halo are truly gifts from God. Turon is a traditional dessert that usually consists of plantains wrapped and deep-fried in a casing dusted with sugar, and halo-halo is essentially next-level shaved ice.
The halo-halo is completely generous, and comes with a scoop of bright purple ube ice cream as well as various fruity additions. Both consist of rich, vivid flavors that might just add a bit of joy to your finals week. You might even smile.
Anywhere you go in Mekong Plaza will have something to satisfy you, but Wholly Grill is a must-try.
(66 S. Dobson Road, Mesa, Ariz. 85202, about 4 miles from the Tempe campus.)
2.) Melt: This eccentric ice cream shop is a perfect representation of Roosevelt Row’s distinct blend of urban artistry and creativity. A visit to Melt is an experience for the eyes and the mouth. It’s a relatively small space, but the walls are adorned with artistic oddities that vibe well with its icon, a one-eyed scoop of ice cream in the shop’s signature packaging.
Each order is served in a white Chinese takeout box and comes with a fortune cookie. The ice cream flavors are very bold and unique and generally have really beautiful colors, if that matters to you (it matters to me).
Melt will give you a tasty dose of urban whimsy that will add a pop of color into your day after staring at piles of textbooks.
(910 N. 5th St., Phoenix, Ariz. 85004, about half a mile from the Downtown campus.)
3.) Yo Waffle: I have never personally been here, but the five-star Yelp page includes photos of small children smiling and grown adults having whipped cream fights. I assume these are signs of a high-quality dessert establishment.
Waffles by themselves are the ultimate nutrition-free comfort food, but when you combine them with frozen yogurt, things get can really intense. Yo Waffles offers 14 flavors of yogurt, which they change on a monthly basis, as well as a variety of other toppings for your waffle to be buried underneath.
(143 S. Higley Road, Gilbert, Ariz. 85296, about 5 miles from the Polytechnic campus.)
4.) Nothing Bundt Cakes: Who would have thought something as simple as a bundt cake could be such a wild ride?
This shop offers truly adorable bundts of many flavors and sizes for all occasions. With about 10 cake flavors to choose from, you’re bound to find something for every mood; perhaps a tangy lemon to reflect the bittersweet experience of finishing a final term paper or a chocolate chocolate chip to numb the mental pain of anything.
The most dangerous option is the precious box of a dozen bundtinis, an alternative to cupcakes that can easily be hoarded.
(5890 W. Thunderbird Road, Glendale, Ariz. 85306, about 2 miles from the West campus.)
5.) Butters Pancakes & Café: There are thousands of amazing places you could find if you feel like you need to get away from campus for a while, but this one stood out to me because breakfast is especially significant.
Butters is about a 40-minute drive from Polytechnic, 20 minutes from Tempe and 30 minutes from West and Downtown, but it’s worth the time and effort. As you drive, clear your mind from exams and visualize your taste buds being wrapped in the warm embrace of a plate of French toast, pancakes, waffles, crepes or any egg-based delicacy.
A long wait time is not unusual, but the service is very fast, and there are so many good options that you’ll need the extra time to look over the menu anyway.
(8390 E. Vía de Ventura F108, Scottsdale, Ariz. 85258.)
Of course, try to balance your immodest consumption with healthier methods of stress relief.
Tell the reporter your favorite food to cry into at celina.jimenez@asu.edu or on Twitter @lina_lauren.
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