Dylan Haviland – General Assignment Reporter
On Oct. 29 the Farnham Programming Space buzzed with activity as students garbed in colorful and intricate costumes stood at attention. One student, dressed as a creature strolls around with a menu in hand and a smile on his face, regardless of bloody rags he is wearing.
Overnight, the Farnham basement was transformed from a student lounge center, into a high end café, only with the waiters and waitresses in exceptionally different uniforms. This casual restaurant experience was hosted by the Anime Society, called the ‘Cosplay Café.’
“It’s very similar to what they have in Japan called the Maid Café, traditionally they dress up as maids and serve people,” said Kristen Suzzi, a SCSU Senior and President of the Anime Society. “But we thought we would make it a little more modern and do cosplay near Halloween just to make it a more comfortable for people that don’t know anything about anime or Japan.”
The event hosted a wide variety of food to create a genuine café experience. The menu boasted extensive entrees ranging from pork buns to panda cookies. Every guest was greeted by a member of the Anime Society and was served the freshly cooked dishes. In charge of the meal plans was Chris Edmunds, a SCSU marketing major and a former student of the Culinary Institute of America.
“Tonight my goal was to make authentic Asian food for the cosplay café. I also wanted to have a few options on there for people who want to play it safe, like the fried rice,” said Edmunds. “The two big dishes I wanted was the yakitori which is a traditional Japanese smeared chicken and brazed eggplant in some sake.”
In the makeshift kitchen, students dressed as warriors and princesses worked hand in hand to make traditional and elegant Japanese meals.
“The guys upstairs are doing a really great job, they have never worked in a professional cooking environment before but they are really hustling and helping each other out. They are doing a great job and it shows in the food,” said Edmunds.
The costumes worn by the students showed true craftsmanship. A large majority of the Anime Society explained how they created their own costumes, adding in excruciating amounts of detail to make everything perfect.
Costumes and apparel not only ranged from popular anime shows such as ‘Attack on Titan’ and ‘Black Butler’ but even popular video games. Jenny Stosh, a SCSU sophomore and exercise major exhibited a detailed costume of the famous video game princess, Zelda from ‘The Legend of Zelda.’ Her costume was down to the tiniest detail, showing how hard the students and cosplay fans work to stand out.
“You put in so much effort and if you really dedicate to it, it’s just completely worth it in the end,” said Stosh. “So many people appreciate it and stop to compliment on it, we get a lot of joy out of it.”
Beyond the physical aspect of dressing as a favorite character, participants at the café explained how anime is an art form, unique in its own rights.
“I appreciate the art styles, it can be very wacky and non-naturalistic and it’s a lot of fun to see how a creator responds and works with it,” said SCSU sophomore and art education major Caroline Hammel. She proudly displayed her own original artwork to many of the visitors of the café.
“It’s a very close nit community,” said Kerstin Moreau, a SCSU Sophomore and secretary of the Anime Society. “Once you are in there it’s like a family.”
Photo Credit: Dylan Haviland
