On March 3rd, Bon Appétit hosted a fun and fiery Palate Challenge at the Plaza. Students gathered to test their taste buds and see how much heat they could handle. There were five different levels of spicy sauces, ranging from mild to extremely hot, and each sauce had a creative ASL-friendly name.
The sauces were:
- Level 1 – Friendly Wave Sauce (mambo sauce)
- Level 2 – Raised Brow Sauce (buffalo sauce)
- Level 3 – Wide Eyes Sauce (Peruvian green aji sauce)
- Level 4 – Head Snap Sauce (habanero mango sauce)
- Level 5 – “What?!” Sauce (ghost pepper sauce)
Chef Nicholas Palazzo III did an excellent job hosting the event. He explained each sauce level and encouraged everyone to be brave and try them all. The Plaza was full of laughter, excitement, and a few shocked faces when the heat kicked in.
A total of 28 participants made it all the way to Level 5, proving they could handle the hottest sauce of the challenge. At the end of the event, a prize winner was selected through a drawing, and Juliana Sanchez was the lucky winner.
Participants also voted for their favorite sauces. The results ended in a tie between Level 3 and Level 5. Because of this, both sauces will become permanent additions to the Plaza menu and will be made in-house by the Bon Appetit team. Students will soon be able to enjoy the Wide Eyes Sauce and the “What?!” Sauce anytime.
Most of us enjoyed tasting the full range of flavors. In my opinion, Wide Eyes Sauce (Level 3) was the most delicious and flavorful. It had a perfect balance of spice and taste. The “What?!” Sauce (Level 5) was dynamite – extremely hot – but still delicious if you could handle the heat.
Kudos to Bon Appétit for putting together such a fun and tasty event for students. It was a great way to bring everyone together and add some spice to campus life.