On Thursday, Oct. 2, what would usually be a normal school lunch was transformed into something different, and it all stemmed from a joke.
When students walked into the cafeteria that day, there was an option to be given a food ticket for “Taniel’s Grill,” and they were told to go outside the back of the cafeteria. This is where Vice Principal Steven Schibi and the school’s chef Andrew were grilling hotdogs and hamburgers underneath a sign saying, “Taniel’s Bar and Grill.”
HVRHS junior John DeDonato created the place name on Google Maps as a joke for a classmate’s friendly nickname, Taniel. “The origin of Taniel’s Bar and Grill comes from a nickname in math class last year, combining my name, Daniel, with tangent,” said Daniel Lesch. This then became a name widely used by Lesch’s friends, both for his name and the math term tangent.
DeDonato made this a place tag on Google Maps right behind the school, and another student even set it up so the phone number directed to Daniel Lesch, the namesake. “One of my friends texted me and she said, ‘check Google Maps,’ and she showed me a picture,” Lesch said. “On the Housy field in the middle of the softball field is Taniels Bar and Grill.”
A sign was made to be put next to the grill in the back field, and although not a lot of people knew what was going on at first, other than people who know Lesch or DeDonado, now many more people know.
This joke not only was a good laugh for students and teachers, but it created an event at HVRHS for all to enjoy. Vice Principal Shibi and Chef Andrew committed to this bit and made it an unforgettable event for Daniel Lesch as well as all students.
