Leaves and berries embellish the top of a beautifully browned pastry, enclosing the tender juices of filet mignon and pate de foie gras. Sherbet concealed in an orange shell hides under the crystalline caps of meringue curls. A gold-rimmed bowl displays adjacent pink and green soups.
At three dinners held last month, about 25 freshmen sampled these and other courses as they relived the final first-class dinner served on the doomed ocean liner Titanic.
Jamie Rankin, a lecturer in the German department, hosts the annual dinner at his home in collaboration with sophomores from the Princeton Evangelical Fellowship (PEF). Students get to know each other during the four-hour journey from the first course — goat cheese souffle — to the finale of tea, chocolate and homemade lemon shortbread.
"It's a relatively rare experience for students to sit down together and just talk together around a table," Rankin said. "They don't linger over a meal and have the luxury of getting to know each other over an extended period of time." Discussions have ranged from economic theory to the anticipation of next semester's courses.
The dinner is also a chance to escape from the academic orange bubble, as students are forced to forgo problem sets, papers and exam preparation. Students say they relish the opportunity to unwind and think about less stress-inducing themes.
"The focus of the night was the amazing food and the ambiance but more than that the dinner conversation," said Rachel Nesbitt '10, who attended the dinner this year. "All you had to do was converse. I found it to be really rewarding and refreshing."
The Titanic dinner also helps forge relationships between students from different classes. Traditionally, members of the sophomore class act as waiters and waitresses, in some cases donning formal wear as they serve from the left and remove from the right. Sophomores also printed formal invitations, organized the dinner groups, helped prepare the courses and cleaned up after the meals.
Alison Murphy '09, after being served last year, was eager to wait on this year's freshmen. "If I could help make someone's dinner wonderful, why not?" she said.
Christina Keddie '04 has experienced the Titanic dinner three times. "The sheer difference of it — being away from campus, being pampered in this way, in a way quintessentially Princeton, but at the same time not — makes a really fun bonding experience," she said.
Rankin credits the inspiration for the meal to his own undergraduate years at a small liberal arts college, where, he said, professors often invited students to their homes. "I really appreciated the college experience of getting to know the professors on more than one level," Rankin said. "I decided when I entered academia that I would like to offer the same kind of hospitality to my own students."
Rankin has hosted birthday parties, departmental gatherings and even a Hawaii-themed spring break party for seniors working on their theses.
But it is the Titanic dinner that freshmen anticipate each spring. Springing from the desire to christen a 10-person dining room table, Rankin and two University students first invited seniors to a black-tie version of the event several years ago. Since then, the dinner has become an effort undertaken by the sophomore class for freshmen.
"It was just ... such a comfortable feeling of being at home even though I wasn't at home," Nesbitt said. "Sophomores from last year told me to go really hungry and that it was the best meal I would ever have in my life."
Read More
Reunions, Commencement see isolated demonstrations as U. tightens protest warnings
Calvin Kenjiro Grover and Luke GrippoAt this year’s Reunions and Commencement, the University sought to get ahead of any potential demonstrations by exhaustively emphasizing its policies around protests and interruptions, including that those who disrupted an event could face arrest. However, there were only a few Pro-Palestine protest actions, all of them sparsely attended.
At this year’s Reunions and Commencement, the University sought to get ahead of any potential demonstrations by exhaustively emphasizing its policies around protests and interruptions, including that those who disrupted an event could face arrest. However, there were only a few Pro-Palestine protest actions, all of them sparsely attended.
Princeton awards 1,293 degrees to the Class of 2025 as speakers reference political headwinds
Maya MukherjeeReunions and graduation speakers referenced the tense political climate around higher education, adding urgent undertones — and sometimes overtones — to otherwise standard ceremonial speech fare.
Reunions and graduation speakers referenced the tense political climate around higher education, adding urgent undertones — and sometimes overtones — to otherwise standard ceremonial speech fare.
Joseph ’25 next Young Alumni Trustee in 21 percent turnout election
Vitus LarrieuGil Joseph ’25 won the Young Alumni Trustee election, which saw 21 percent turnout. Joseph, Stephen Padlo ’25 and Ben Wachspress ’25 competed in the final round of elections after advancing from a notably large primary in April.
Gil Joseph ’25 won the Young Alumni Trustee election, which saw 21 percent turnout. Joseph, Stephen Padlo ’25 and Ben Wachspress ’25 competed in the final round of elections after advancing from a notably large primary in April.