Lunch lady land

Homesick for some school lunches, we search local restaurants for a bite out of the past

By Josh Gilbert, Special to Metromix

This time of the year always drags up memories of back-to-school. Even though it’s been years, I always get very specific feelings: the cool early mornings waiting for the bus, the wild sense of freedom in the late afternoons, the bittersweet pleasure of Sundays. Okay, so going to school is kind of like having a full time job, but the hours were better, and so was the food. I know, I know; many of you hated the food in your elementary and high school cafeterias, but I look back on some of those meals pretty fondly. And since being a stranger in a grade school cafeteria is creepier than H.R. Pufnstuf, I went in search of local restaurants that served up some of the delicacies that defined my school years. Remember, the sense of smell is the closest related to memory, and the sense of taste, well, that’s right next to smell. Here we go; the first bell’s ringing; don’t be tardy...