West Ashley Flashback — The Wright Touch

Recently the community lost the man who entertained us with: “Hey, hey, what I say, I got some boiled, got some toasted, got some stewed, got some roasted!” as he sold us a bag of boiled or roasted peanuts. Tony “The Peanut Man” Wright was a fixture at the RiverDogs games, the Citadel football games, and generally around town — always with a smile, his signature song, and a delicious bag of peanuts.
But before there were peanuts, there was Virginia’s chili at Roy Hart’s. The magic touch of bringing joy to people through food is a family trait in the Wright family. Virginia Wright Rouse lived in Maryville when she worked for Roy Hart at his “walk up diner” – officially known as the Dairy Royal – that sat on the property that now houses Triangle Char + Bar.
If you lived in St. Andrew’s Parish in the 1950s and 1960s, you passed through Roy Hart’s at some point. If you ask about Roy Hart, besides a litany of food descriptions and savory memories, you immediately get a story about Virginia and probably another long description of her chili.
When I interviewed Tony in 2011 he was a rapid fire of quick story lines, local social history, and a grand admiration for his mother and the man she worked for, Roy Hart. We walked the Avondale area and he pointed out where landmarks once were. Discovering his mother’s chili recipe was an added bonus for me and he was grateful to have it back in his hands. Considering all the sensory memories that I have heard about Virginia’s chili, one would expect a secret ingredient. There are only five simple ingredients. It must be the Wright touch that not only made the chili divine, but also the peanuts delicious.