But students may soon anticipate the arrival of an alternative to the pizza parlors and grease pits: Nate’s Diner.

Nathan Poole, a junior from Gaffney, S.C., recognized years ago the growing demands in the health food industry.

That’s when his idea for a health-oriented restaurant came into existence.

Providing a healthy alternative for college students, Nate’s Diner will offer a menu featuring hot or cold sandwiches and smoothies, each with a healthy spin.

Sandwiches will be served on whole-wheat bread; smoothies will be all fruit, and there will be no soda on the menu.

Poole already has a business license, and the remaining permits are well on their way. The only anticipated hang-up is the funding. Poole is counting on a bank loan to help him get started.

This loan will not be available until January, so Nate’s Diner is not expected to come about until near the end of Winter Semester 2007.

He eventually plans on turning this eatery into a franchise and expanding the market. This is still only one of the initial steps toward Poole’s ultimate goal.

“Once I have money from the franchises, I [will] travel the world and plant fields of grain, dig wells and grow fruits and vegetables for starving nations—spending more time outside the United States than in it,” Poole said.