Chew on This

NUHS students and their longtime open-lunch traditions

Cullen Slette and Brecken Neuman

January 17, 2025

Senior friends (L to R) Jack Greibel, Jaxon Buegler, Nick Risen, and Eli Gieseke relax after a full meal, watching “The Herd”

Brecken Neuman

Open Lunch

Cullen Slette

Friends, food, and fellowship. These themes are prevalent among certain groups of students here at New Ulm. Over the years, some close-knit circles have forged traditions over the open lunch period. From listening to the same songs on the short commute to the Slette residence to exclusively indulging in breakfast food, their stories display the unique and warm experiences of NUHS students.

The Friday Six

Brecken Neuman

Every Tuesday and Friday for open lunch, this group has started many traditions that will make memories of a lifetime. The group is Brecken Neuman, Cullen Slette, Eli Gieske, Jaxon Buegler, Nick Risen and Jack Griebel.

Every Tuesday, one tradition is for the group to head to Cullen’s and listen to all types of songs. “When I get in the car, I complain about Nick’s music and Cullen’s empty Bubbl’r cans every time,” Gieske said.

The background behind going to Cullens on Tuesday is that the school’s best lunches are on Tuesdays with a wide variety of nachos, tacos, pork carnitas, and the worst of them all, totchos. Tuesday is also the day Jack is made fun of. He always gets a pizza because he does not like the other choices. “The day he showed up with his personal large pizza from Domino’s, we all laughed at him,” Nick said.

Fridays have the same type of star; they all ride in the car together and listen to songs. Once they arrive, they are greeted by Cullens’s cat, “Mr. Whiskers,” as all the boys call her. Her real name is Poppy. “It is one of the best reasons we go to Cullen’s on Friday. We get to see Mr. Whiskers, Eli said.

After being greeted by the cat, they see the food that Cullen’s dad prepared. He regularly makes spaghetti, lasagna, and his famous smash burgers, and once a semester, he picks up McDonald’s. After the six eat, they thank Trevor like always and have a sweet treat, sitting on the couch watching “The Herd” with sports analyst Collin Cowherd, or during Christmas, the six watch Elf, “The greatest movie of all time,” says Eli.

Senior Cullen Slette eats lunch in a turkey hat on the week of Turkey Bingo. (Jack Griebel)

Senior friends (L to R) Bodee Schmiesing, Jaxon Salonek, Brandon Sieg, Jocelyn Pettersen, Henry Waloch, Sam Chalakov, Ambriel Roberts, and Tia Adame gather outside of grandma Kathy’s house earlier this year (Brecken Neuman)

Kathy’s Crew

Cullen Slette

Another Friday tradition lies in the home of senior Joci Pettersen’s grandma, Kathy. Senior Bodee Schmiesing said, “For the last day of the week, Grandma Kathy graciously hosts a group of about eight for lunch.” Schmiesing said the friends regularly indulge in pasta and breakfast food but spice it up sometimes. “We strayed from our normal routine for Thanksgiving with a full Thanksgiving feast. The group dug into turkey, ham, potatoes, stuffing, pie, and every other Thanksgiving delicacy the mind could imagine. “We all love grandma Kathy,” Schmiesing said. “It is like she is an honorary part of our friend group.”

He also rates her food as a 10/10, but the best part is, “It’s free, and you don’t have to do anything for it.”