Many residents of St. John’s have taken note of quirky posters put up around downtown advertising a public “Dirt and Worms” eating event.
Dirt and worms is a semi-popular children’s dessert usually consisting of chocolate pudding, crushed up chocolate cookies and gummy worms.
The event is being put off by Nick Jacobs, a downtown resident who hosts the online cooking and interview show “Country Cookin’.” I sat down with Nick to get some more information on the event.
Can you give a general rundown of what the event will be?
Nick: Yeah! So on the 19th at 3pm you can come down to Harbourside Park, I’m going to set up a table and make a large portion (2-3 individual servings worth) of dirt and worms … and then eat that portion of dirt and worms. I’m partially inspired by Alex Tominsky and Riley Merry, who have done similar things with rotisserie chicken and potato salad respectively.
Why dirt and worms out of any dish?
Nick: I’m a big fan of foods that look like other things: your dirt and worms, your ants on a log, etc. It’s a fun kids dessert but it’s also a nice dish, so the event is dirt and worms advocacy in a way.
People seem to really resonate with it ‘cause it was part of their childhoods, on kid’s menus at places like Boston Pizza, Swiss Chalet, and Pizza Delight. People have fond memories of the dessert but no one’s really making it as an adult, and I think we should be making fun little things. I made it for my roommates and we shared it, it was a fun event. I want to put people on.
I know it’s going to be a pretty large portion, do you think it’s going to be a challenge getting through it all?
Nick: I don’t think so. I made the same portion for me and my roommates. I know I’m going to have a bit of a stomach ache but I don’t think it’s going to be unreasonable. I think I can do it, I don’t want to disappoint the crowd.
What do you hope people who attend the event will get out of it?
Nick: I hope they get a positive community experience, coming together for the sake of togetherness. I also hope they are reminded of the silliness that is possible with food. On Tik Tok I had one comment that stood out to me, someone asking if the event would be a good place to meet new people. I think it probably will be, I think anybody who is going out of their way to go watch someone eat dirt and worms is likely pretty chill. I think there will be a nice sense of community.
People are invited to bring their own dirt and worms. Is that correct?
Nick: If they want to yeah! If there are any extra people can feel free to have a worm. You can bring an even bigger vat of dirt and worms, or your favorite kids menu items. Bring whatever you want. I would really like it if someone brought a Pizza Delight kitty cat pizza.
What’s a Pizza Delight kitty cat pizza?
Nick: It’s a cheese pizza with smarties and licorice in the shape of a cat. It’s my favorite kid’s menu item.
Nice. I know you had a bit of an issue finding a venue for the event, what were some challenges you faced while organizing it?
Nick: One challenge was figuring out if I could do it in a public space. It was kind of hard to figure out since it’s not quite busking and it’s not quite a public event, it kind of falls into a grey area. There’s not much dirt and worms by-laws and regulations already in place.
It was a matter of talking to the city and everyone seems ok with it … or doesn’t know. If there is some sort of interruption I think it would be kind of funny. I was initially gonna have it on a private parking lot but I think it’s funnier to have it on a public wharf and if it gets shut down it gets shut down. I also really like Harbourside Park.
You’ve had a pretty solid response to the event already. Has it gotten more traction than you were expecting?
Nick: Yeah I should have picked a bigger wharf! It’s gotten a lot more traction than I thought. There’s only five or six posters up but even the response from those has been great. I didn’t realize how many people in town knew about it.
I knew people were aware of it on Tik Tok but they could be from anywhere, but I went into a store the other day to put a poster up and they said “Oh shit it’s you!” I also went to get a tattoo the other day and my tattoo artist – shoutout Jordan Brenton – said he already had it in his calendar. I’ve been really pleased with the response.
Is there anything about St. John’s or downtown St. John’s specifically that you think has led to the event getting the attention it has gotten?
Nick: St. John’s is such a relatively small city – especially downtown – and I really love being able to walk down the road and see a bunch of people I know. I think that sense of community really lends itself to an event like this, I really want to highlight the community. I know there’s lots of tourist stuff and interesting history but my favourite part of town is probably saying hi to my neighbours who are up blasting K-Rock up on their deck everyday.
I think there’s so much interesting stuff going on in the city right now, whether that be with food or music or anything. I hope that if anyone takes anything away from this other than “make dirt and worms,” it would be to get involved in their local community.
The event will be held on July 19 at 3pm in Harbourside Park and will go ahead rain or shine. Be sure to check out Jacob’s tutorial on how to prepare his personal dirt and worms recipe on his “Country Cookin’” Youtube channel.
