Chad Powers may have a cast of full grown adults playing college students and may go over the top with some Southern stereotypes. But they got at least one thing right about going to school in the South: The food.
In Episode 4, “4th Quarter,” Chad/Russ (Glen Powell) returns to the hotel in Knoxville, Tennessee after a long night searching for glue to apply his prosthetic makeup and picks up a styrofoam cup with a plastic straw.
While him doing so may have made environmentally conscious heads spin, this North Carolinian perked right up. I would know those red stripes anywhere. That was a Cook Out cup, which most likely means that Chad Powers a.k.a. Russ Holiday was drinking a Cook Out milkshake.
The South has been gatekeeping a perfect fast food chain.
Founded near-ish where I grew up in Greensboro, North Carolina, the chain now has locations in West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky as well as the Tar Heel state. If you hail from, currently reside in, and especially if you went to school in the South, chances are Cook Out and the phrase “cheddar style” mean something to you.
What’s its deal? Cook Out serves burgers and barbecue. If you order onion rings, the cashier shouts “ONION RINGS” to alert the kitchen. Don’t you think onion rings should be celebrated? If you get one of their famously cheap trays (a.k.a. a combo), you can get a corn dog and a quesadilla as a side included with your sandwich and add a tee shirt for like $2 extra. It’s delicious and it’s absurd and I haven’t even gotten to the main event: so many milkshake choices! You can get a watermelon milkshake in July and an eggnog milkshake in December. You can get a cheesecake milkshake that has actual cheesecake in it. It’s the best.
I cannot stress enough that this is not an ad! This is love. Chad Powers films in Georgia, so it’s not surprising that fans of Cook Out are associated with the production. While the greasy food is popular for late nights and hangovers, Cook Out has a very loyal fanbase no matter how old or dehydrated you are.
The “girls are gross” comment was unfortunately real AF, too.
Cook Out is a regional detail that helps fill out the world of Chad Powers. But the state of Sasha’s (Becca Breitfeller) car, which Chad/Russ and Danny (Frankie A. Rodriguez) steal, however, might be more universal to the college girl regardless of graduating class, school, or even country. At least, I hope it is. Just about every single girl’s car I knew in my 20s, including my own to a degree, was a black hole of takeout wrappers, extra napkins, and half-empty cups of soda and coffee. Even cheerleaders like Sasha, who might put pressure on themselves to look more presentable in public, need a place to let chaos reign. This isn’t necessarily news. The concept of a “messy car girl” is a bit of a meme. But as much as it pains me to say that a stereotype about women has any truth to it, I have to admit that they got this right.
I absolutely paused the screen to see if her trash was from Bojangles another Southern go-to fast food spots, as well. (It’s Chick Fil-A, obvs.) Football was rarely my scene by choice in North Carolina, but thanks to a Cook Out milkshake and a messy car situation I feel seen.
(featured image: Hulu)
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