She wrote the 2012 review of the Olive Garden in Grand Forks, North Dakota that went viral, giving her some measure of fame. The obit from the Washington Post shows that there was much, much more to her life. https://wapo.st/4gDJEcj
(I’m having issues posting today, so this may be a duplicate)
Edit: Although this is allegedly a gift article, WaPo puts up a paywall anyway. So here are the first five paragraphs out of a much longer article. Sorry.
She was still writing columns until last year.
(I’m having issues posting today, so this may be a duplicate)
Edit: Although this is allegedly a gift article, WaPo puts up a paywall anyway. So here are the first five paragraphs out of a much longer article. Sorry.
She was still writing columns until last year.
When Marilyn Hagerty sat down to a late lunch at an Olive Garden in Grand Forks, North Dakota, on a chilly winter day in 2012, she had no inkling that her $10.95 chicken Alfredo would become one of the most important meals of her life.
The longtime newspaper journalist had been penning features and columns for the Grand Forks Herald for decades, keeping her loyal readers up-to-date with the latest on the local dining scene — a task Ms. Hagerty, then in her mid-80s, balanced with games of bridge. Her columns, called “THE EATBEAT,” much like Ms. Hagerty herself, were firmly grounded in the Midwest college town. For years, they went largely unnoticed outside Grand Forks and its surrounds.
That is, until the Olive Garden piece caught the eye of internet bloggers, who marveled at her unpretentious account of a culinary experience some might consider banal. The Alfredo, Ms. Hagerty wrote, was “warm and comforting on a cold day.” She turned down the server’s offer of a raspberry lemonade but said yes to the parmesan cheese. The restaurant, Ms. Hagerty observed, was appointed with “vases and planters” and “a fireplace that adds warmth to the decor.” The internet initially responded with snark to her descriptions of the “the largest and most beautiful restaurant now operating in Grand Forks.” Chef and author Anthony Bourdain sprang to her defense.
Ms. Hagerty took her subsequent brush with fame in stride and carried on writing into her 90s. She died Sept. 16 of complications from a stroke. Her son, James R. Hagerty, an obituary writer for the Wall Street Journal, confirmed her death. She was 99 years old.
Ms. Hagerty enjoyed the sudden attention, “but it wasn’t an ego trip,” said her son, who goes by Bob. Her subtle confidence and her “feistiness” only intensified the media interest, he added in a phone interview, recalling a moment when she told a reporter she was too busy with her bridge club and Sunday column to “read all this crap,” referring to the snarky comments and blog posts about her Olive Garden review.