As part of their Cityscapes program, Sodexo served a special menu on Wednesday, February 19 to celebrate Mardi Gras. Students were welcomed into the Midtown Student Center Restaurant with music, purple, green and yellow balloons, and free bead necklaces.

The menu was New Orleans inspired, featuring Cajun Catfish, Black-Eyed Pea Casserole, Green Beans & Stewed Tomatoes, Southern Cornbread, Veggie Brown Rice, and Roasted Cajun Vegetables.

The featured recipe for the day was Shrimp Etouffee, a regional dish made up of veggies, shrimp and rice smothered over low heat.

If you’re interested in trying Shrimp Etouffee at home or in your residence hall kitchen, you can try these recipes from Spicy Southern Kitchen and African Bites.

Sodexo’s Cityscapes program emulates recipes from major North American cities for special menus offered through Dining Services at many partner universities like WCSU. That’s not all Sodexo has planned for this month, though.

On Thursday, February 27, the Westside Campus Center Marketplace will be serving a Black History and Heritage Month Dinner starting at 4:30 pm. Sodexo hasn’t shared the menu for the dinner yet, but Midtown Student Center started serving Chicken and Waffles as a Black History and Heritage Month themed meal starting on Thursday and will continue through Sunday, February 23.

Also celebrating Mardi Gras, the Newman Club is hosting a party for Fat Tuesday, February 25 in the Newman center on 7th Avenue.