By John Seevers

Most New Year’s resolutions typically last for about a month, and in some cases up to a few months, but Collegiate Seniors Clarkie Ackerly (‘24) and Stella Williams (‘24) agreed to a New Year’s resolution in 2021 that is still going strong to this day, and will be for the foreseeable future.

In January 2021, the girls were looking for a feasible New Year’s resolution, and they decided that to resolve to be more adventurous eaters. Both of them had been very picky eaters up to this point, and in their eyes, they could encourage and push each other to branch out more frequently, whether it be trying restaurants in Richmond, or branching out while on vacation, regardless of how bizarre the local cuisine may be.

About a month into this task, the girls struck gold with a brilliant idea. They created a food Instagram account, @grubbinwgirlies. The inspiration for this came from boredom, as well as seeing countless other online influencers posting about trying new foods. This type of social media has become increasingly popular. Ackerly added, “@grubbinwgirlies also encouraged us to keep trying new and foreign foods wherever we go, since who wants to see a food Instagram that posts the same meals over and over?” Looking for new content forced them to expand their horizons. 

Things got off to a rough start when the account first started, especially regarding the account name. Williams stated, “We started off as ‘grubbinrva,’ but we received tons of hate from our followers for not staying local to Richmond.” They knew they needed to make a change, so they changed it to @grubbingwgirlies and gained the versatility to post food from all over the world.

When asked what city offers most to the grubbinwgirlies account, Ackerly and Williams eagerly offered up Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, where they visit regularly. Ackerly stated, “It was in Wrightsville where we had the best açaí bowl on the planet at Adapt. I will always cherish our morning walks to Adapt for breakfast every summer.” Williams agreed that these walks followed by a delicious breakfast keeps them coming back each summer. As for dinner options in Wrightsville, Williams and Ackerly frequent the Tower 7 Baja Mexican Grill. Williams acknowledged, “Tower 7 is the perfect place to eat after a long day out in the sun.” It should also be noted that at this restaurant, the “quickest meal” title is held by none other than Warner Lewis (‘24). The VMI lacrosse commit put on a clinic of raw athleticism when he cleaned his plate in 2 minutes and 49 seconds. The plate consists of a humongous burrito accompanied by a pile of rice and beans. Impressive, to say the least.

Another area the account thrives in is the Big Apple. When scrolling through the page, it seems like almost half of the content is from extravagant meals enjoyed in New York City. When asked to choose some of their favorite NYC eateries, Williams responded, “there are too many to choose from. Every time we go to New York, we could post three or four times a day. The best part is that you can find culturally authentic food everywhere you go in New York.”

The girls are also very open to posting their own baked goods, often times in the form of delicious homemade cookies prepared on special occasions for the varsity boys lacrosse team, for whom they were both managers. They decided to step it up a notch one Easter, making cookies that incorporated Cadbury chocolate eggs.

As far as the actual reviews go, the Williams and Ackerly keep it simple and generally stick with positive remarks regarding their food. When asked why they don’t get more analytical in the captions, Ackerly responded, “Because that’s not what it’s about. We want our account to consist of fun inside jokes and captions that show the importance of sharing good meals with friends and family, but without sounding like a robot.” This reflects the nature of the account and its managers. 

As Williams and Ackerly go their separate ways next year, they plan to continue posting as frequently as possible. I am sure Tuscaloosa (Ackerly is attending the University of Alabama) and Columbia (Williams is attending the University of South Carolina) will have plenty to offer to the account, so keep following their account for future eating adventures. 

All images are screenshots from @grubbinwgirlies via Instagram.