What’s the Buzz with Tuesday Dollar Beer Night?
Tucked away in between Hulett and Jencks is a little place called Pub 56. Pub 56 is an on-campus bar where students can spend dining dollars on a variety of appetizers and meals. However, unlike the Northstar Café (also nicknamed “the pub”), students can spend their hard-earned money on alcohol as well. Every Tuesday, Pub 56 holds an event very rightly named “Dollar Beer Night” to rival “Tuesday Blues” at the Hoot Owl, a bar across the train tracks on the other side of Canton.
Eager to learn more about those who chose the earlier option, I made the walk to Pub 56 to ask some of the regulars what they thought about Dollar Beer Night. The bar was noticeably relaxed, which was a nice atmosphere for those looking to couple their drinks with a healthy dose of intellectual conversation. It was the perfect backdrop for figuring out what was on the mind of these Laurentians.
I first wanted to talk to the person who makes Dollar Beer Night possible, Maeve Curran. Curran has been working as the bartender at Pub 56 since the spring of 2022 and is a native of Massena, NY. I wanted to learn a little more about the history of Dollar Beer Night, which Curran was able to elaborate on saying, “it’s always been a thing,” however, adding that it has changed. “[It] used to be dollar blues 16 oz cans, [but it] switched to tap so students could get more bang for their buck.” She also spoke of what it means to St. Lawrence University, stating, “It’s a SLU tradition. If we have any special night, it’s going to be Tuesday Dollar Beer Nights.”
Now that I was more aware of the context and history surrounding this tradition, I wanted to hear what the average student had to say about it. I took a seat at the bar and began to do some politicking. The first to bite into the question, Ian Clark ’24 proclaimed, “(there is) no better place than 56 on Dollar Beer Night.” However, Clark also mentioned the challenges that arise on these nights, saying, “it’s hard when the keys start calling my name after eight beers.” Another bar patron, Nicholas Stolfi ’24, spoke of the advantages, mentioning, “it’s great because I can spend the same amount of money and get three times the beer!”
Former Thelomathesian Society President Alexander Reyes ‘23 also had an opinion, proudly stating that “Dollar Beer Night is the best because we don’t have to go to local bars to pay extra money when we have it on campus, and [we] can be safe with friends.” Other students were also grateful for the one-dollar beers but dreamt of an ideal world where it was always like this. One such student was Alex Karges ’25, who made it known that “beer should always be a dollar,” but complained that everyone’s always buying fancy beers and IPAs. “That’s bourgeois,” he added.
A select group had already been indulging in the event for quite a bit of time and their words were eagerly flying out of their mouths. When prompted like the others questioned, Daniel Edick ‘24 weighed in, saying, “Dollar Beer Night is pretty fired up. I’m going to have some drinks and head to the Hoot Owl,” implying that some use it as a pregame for “Tuesday Blues” at the rival bar. Then, with no question asked of him, Phil Fiorentino ’24 questioned, “How am I getting hammered off of four percent?” To which he later attempted to protest by only mustering, “I have no response. It’s pretty legit.”
Overall, it would seem that “Dollar Beer Night” at Pub 56 is a commonly recognized aspect of St. Lawrence night life. Countless people from various walks of life partake in this time-honored tradition that seemingly isn’t slowing down at all, especially after surviving the COVID pandemic. If you’re of age and are looking for something to do on a Tuesday evening, make the walk to Pub 56. You’ll be sure to meet some interesting people, have some good laughs, and most importantly enjoy the average college student’s favorite things: saving money and drinking beer.