In this recession, Columbia students need to go for a drink.
Despite widespread economic downturn that has businesses around the neighborhood struggling to stay afloat, off-campus nightlife continues to sustain local bars.
“We don’t have that kind of recession,” said Gus Hookanson, owner of Lion’s Head Tavern on Amsterdam and 109th Street, where $2 beer and lively game nights attract a constant stream of students and locals.
Caroline Camargo, who lives above Lion’s Head and across the street from Village Pourhouse, said she has seen more students this year than ever before flooding Amsterdam in
search of cheap drinks. “People are flocking to the dive bars,” Camargo said.
A Columbia sophomore who requested anonymity because he is not of legal drinking age explained: “Why would I go to the Underground, where I get a small beer for $5, when I could just go to 1020 and get a big beer for $3?”
Recession or no recession, he said, college is about having a good time, so when money is tight, “You just have to be a little bit more careful about where you go.” He added that
Columbia’s fraternities, with their promises of free alcohol, have become more popular as well.
But as more people trade in their double-digit “Old Fashioned” and “Brass Monkey” drinks for beers they can buy with pocket change, mid-range venues are hurting. Two years ago,
Cuban chain Havana Central opened a third location on Broadway and 113th Street following the closing of famed hangout, The West End. Owner Jeremy Merrin admitted that establishing the new location has been harder than he and his associates expected.
To compete with 1020, Lion’s Head, and other inexpensive bars, higher-end venues like Havana Central, the Underground, and Campo have begun to offer “recession specials.” At
Havana Central, for instance, a hungry student can walk away with an appetizer, entrée, and dessert for just $12.95, and Merrin offers $5 sugarcane mojitos during Happy Hour.
“Nowadays students go where the cheapest beer is, and I can’t play that game,” Merrin said. To pay rent and other costs, “I need to bring in a lot more revenue than they [dive bars] do.”
But not all students have been driven to dive bars—some continue to seek their fun downtown. Waiting in line at Webster Hall—a nightclub and concert venue in the East Village—a
Columbia senior, who identified herself only as Molly because she did not want potential employers to see her quote when Googling her, said she and her friends had gotten $30 tickets for free from a promoter on the street.
“Sure, it’s a bad time for the economy and for a lot of people,” Molly said. “But am I going to stay inside and sob about it, or am I going to go out and have fun and maybe even help the economy along the way?”
Martin O’Keefe, a producer for the East Village Comedy Club, said a lot of Columbia students come downtown, where they “are taking advantage of discounts.”
“During times of recession, entertainment is always on top,” O’Keefe said, adding that students—a reliable target audience—keep it that way.
Pete Vek, manager of St. Mark’s Alehouse, said he wasn’t surprised students have kept partying through tough times.
“How affected are students by the recession? They’re not working, they’re in school,” Vek said—and south of 14th Street, he added, nightlife is “hopping.”
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