Over the last three years, Weinberg senior Maggie Schneider has spent most of her Tuesday evenings at Bob’s Pizza, taking part in the bar’s beloved Tuesday Trivia Nights.
The pizza joint will close at the end of the month after four years at 616 Davis St. Following the closure of Reza’s Restaurant and Lounge last May, many college students are feeling the acute lack of Evanston late-night spots.
Medill senior Austin Kim regularly visited Bob’s Pizza with his friends, not just for the trivia, but for the bar’s “homey” atmosphere and drinks, he said. He described the closure as “devastating.”
“I was joking yesterday that this is the most grief I’ve experienced in my whole life,” Kim said. “The pints of Old Style — nothing will be better than that.”
Bob’s Pizza was the “closest thing” Evanston had to an institution, Kim said. Bienen senior Jeremy Berkun echoed this sentiment. He said Bob’s Pizza was, “without a doubt,” some of Evanston’s only nightlife.
Along with trivia nights, Berkun frequented Bob’s Pizza for the “great food, great vibes and the cool community of people.”
“Like, where else are you going?” Berkun said. “I hope that the Evanston community can figure it out, because it seems like there’s not that much after this is closed.”
McCormick senior Jonah Turner has been attending trivia nights since his freshman year — one time, he even maintained a 12-week streak, he said.
When it comes to other nightlife highlights in Evanston, Turner named places like Insomnia Cookies and Ridgeville Tavern, which Turner has only visited a couple of times.
“It’s funny because every time I talk to alumni, they’re like, ‘Is The Keg still here?’” Turner said. “I’m like, ‘No, everything got killed by COVID.’”
The Keg of Evanston was a popular dive bar on Grove Street that closed in 2013. More recently, the bar Bitter Blossom closed its doors last year after only 10 months in business.
Before Trivia Night came to Bob’s Pizza, Tommy Nevin’s Pub hosted it for a decade. The popular college spot closed in 2017.
These trivia nights are run by Chicagoland company Go 4 It Entertainment. Owner Gabriel Ortiz said the company hosts weekly trivia nights at 36 bars in the western suburbs of Chicago.
Bob’s Pizza’s trivia nights were some of the most well-attended, attracting over 30 teams every week while the other bars averaged around 15, Ortiz said.
He said that Bob’s Pizza became “one of the places to go” in Evanston. On regular nights, competing teams showed up to claim a table as early as 5:30 p.m., and sometimes, the bar even had to turn people away.
“Everyone’s excited to play,” Ortiz said. “You can feel when you walk into that room that something is about to happen.”
The final Trivia Night at Bob’s Pizza took place Tuesday. However, the tradition will live on: Prairie Moon, located less than a block away from Bob’s Pizza, “enthusiastically” offered to host trivia nights at the same time every week, according to Ortiz. Trivia nights at Prairie Moon are slated to start up on Oct. 28, so the city won’t see any weeks without trivia, Ortiz said.
Schneider hopes that trivia nights at Prairie Moon stay “exactly the way they were” at Bob’s Pizza.
“Hopefully, we’ll continue one way or another,” Schneider said.
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Related Stories:
— Bob’s Pizza to shutter at end of month, staff confirms
— Reza’s Restaurant closed ‘until further notice’
— Bitter Blossom closes its doors, leaving Evanston’s nightlife wilted
