Gumby's Pizza Abandons Chapel Hill

Yet another of the restaurants that helped destroy my svelte figure in college has closed, as Gumby's Pizza, the dependable late night delivery joint, has closed after 18 years on Franklin Street. Though not the local institution The Rathskeller or Hector's was — Gumby's is a chain that specializes in college towns — it's tough to find a Carolina grad who didn't in part subsist on Pokey Stix, the best cheese and garlic sauce delivery system devised by man. Between the aforementioned closed businesses and Gumby's, I think the only Franklin Street food haunts left from my time in Chapel Hill are Linda's, Peppers Pizza, and Time-Out.

Anyway, if you don't find yourself near one of their other franchises, a couple of people have endeavored to replicate the Pokey Stix recipe on line. I'm not sure how exactly to break it to the wife that this is the best use of our wedding gifts, but here's one from a Virginia Tech alum and another from an Illinois grad. I don't recommend either in a dorm room however; just stick to burritos like everybody else.