As a soon-to-be graduating Senior, I have to say, I absolutely love going to The Seagrape on the weekends. Whether it’s the music, the $1 house shots or the company I bring along with me, the atmosphere there is unmatched.
As I rapidly approach my graduation day, my last time in a Fairfield bar, in turn, encroaches. As an upperclassman, attending nightlife establishments like the Grape has truly been a highlight of my weekends. I recommend going with one’s close friends, even if it’s just one singular time.
Every time my friends and I end up going, however, there’s always one diminishing factor. One thing that I’m sure every Senior and Junior in attendance can relate to. That being the amount of space.
Getting into the Grape is one thing. If you’re there after 9:30 p.m., you might as well forget getting in. At least, getting in within a reasonable amount of time for a bar of the Grape’s caliber.
If you are lucky enough to get in, even after the hour-long wait that inevitably comes, should you not get there soon enough, congratulations! You get the joy of going to a bar where you’re not able to move, hear, or get up to the bar to order alcohol. Which just sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
Sure, there are other options as a Fairfield student. But those options are locked behind an expensive 30-minute Uber to Stamford or the MTA to New York City, which doesn’t allow for students to stay out past 1:00 a.m. due to train time restrictions.
Despite being a legacy location for Stags to make memories, the Grape just simply isn’t enough for Fairfield University’s nightlife population. And that’s before you factor in the Sacred Heart students who make their way over.
The older population of Fairfield deserves multiple options to spend their weekend evenings at. Because, as it stands, there is a singular, inundated nightlife bar in our college town.
While I myself will not be able to experience what I suggest as an undergraduate, I would love for rising Fairfield Seniors and Juniors, as well as future undergraduate students, to have more options in where they get to go with their friends.
This town is long overdue for another 3-5 college bars, and it has been for some time. While others, like The Reefshack, have certainly tried to appeal to college students, controversies surrounding customer age range and liquor license suspensions have caused activities surrounding these other locations to come to a screeching halt.
With Fairfield’s rapidly growing student body and reputation, it’s high time that Fairfield gets a series of new bars to complement its flourishing status. I only hope that these changes come sooner rather than later.