Thing for August 28: Smart Alec’s

what: “healthy” fast food
where: corner of Durant and Telegraph

Smart Alec’s bills itself as healthy fast food, which if you ask me is kind of an oxymoron, particularly when it comes to things like burgers and fries. So I can’t actually say for sure that it’s healthy, but it’s definitely healthier than your run of the mill fast food (which I generally refuse to eat anyway). And it’s not “healthy” in the Subway, “eat like Jared and be skinny but you can’t have any condiments or fixings or anything on your sandwich except for a single piece of lettuce” sense of “healthy.” Smart Alec’s actually has large portions of legitimately tasty food, mostly burgers and soups, plus some other sandwiches and salads. They do vegetarian food the right way (i.e., not just substituting soy-based fake meat products or simply removing the meat from a meal) and have several good vegetarian burgers (some with avocado! mmm). What really gets me, though, is their soups. The corn chowder soup – which is vegan, mind you – is inexplicably creamy. Accompanying each soup (regardless of whether you order a bowl or do a cup of soup plus a half sandwich, which I prefer) is a HUGE slice of cornbread. The cornbread…it is to die for. Probably the best cornbread I’ve ever had, and there is so much of it! Although I really like their avocado veggie burger, I find myself ordering soup every time just to get that cornbread.

And yes, it’s pretty cheap, and yes, it’s fast, and yes, it’s literally right off campus. All around, pretty darn good.

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