Thirty-two college restaurants are facing off in a March Madness bracket-style showdown by the Food Network to determine the best campus eats in the country. The winner will be announced April 6, and a restaurant on the Highland Strip is in the running.
The pulled pork barbecue pizza from Garibaldi's Pizza will be vying for the title of top college campus food in America.
Garibaldi's takes Memphis' signature dish, barbecue, and fuses it with its main product, pizza, to create a mouthwatering meal.
"It is a great mix. We are a pizza place, but we are in Memphis, and Memphis is a barbecue city," Rob Hodges, manager of Garibaldi's Pizza, said. "The sweet pulled pork flavor of the barbecue mixes well with our sauce and cheese."
However, Tigers go there for more than the food.
"I always notice how friendly and down to Earth they are," Memphian Brandon Gaitor said. "You don't get the feeling that you're just another customer, they make it seem as if they were expecting you."
Mike Garibaldi opened the restaurant off of the Highland Strip in 1975 after graduating from the University of Memphis with a marketing degree. The restaurant has been a second home for Tigers ever since. According to Hodges, University students, faculty and staff frequent the restaurant.
"It is a great place," Bailey Patterson, an employee on the Highland Strip, said. "I feel like it is for everyone, families, students, whoever."
Hodges, who has worked at Garibaldi's for 32 years, is proud to work at a restaurant that supports his alma mater.
"We are big Tiger fans. We try to support the University every way we can," Hodges said.
There is a special "Tiger Hangout Room" painted Tiger blue, where the walls are filled with Tiger memorabilia and several televisions. Whenever a Tigers game is televised, it is sure to be playing at Garibaldi's. Several U of M sports teams including the soccer and baseball teams often eat in the "Hangout," according to Hodges.
"The football training table is fed here once a week," Hodges said.
A second Garibaldi's restaurant is open in Germantown and a delivery and pickup location is open in East Memphis.
While the restaurant has made a name for itself nationally for its barbecue pizza, it offers a variety of menu items including salads, pastas, pizza and sandwiches.
"I like their pizza. The best is one with Canadian bacon and pineapple," Patterson said. "It is really good."
The list, compiled by the Food Network and published by BuzzFeed.com, is certainly not a list of the healthiest foods in the nation. It is dominated by delicious, fatty foods including fries, burgers, ice cream and cookies.
Students can vote for their favorite dish on the cooking channel's "Bracket Battle: Best College Eats" page. Memphis is currently losing to Purdue University by 350 votes. First round voting ends March 21.
