St. Olaf College - Nightlife

C-

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Comparable Schools' Nightlife Grades:

Quick Stats

Primary Areas with Nightlife		Carleton College The Cities Division Street Dundas
Student Favorites		Carleton College The Contented Cow Froggy Bottoms Irish River Pub The Grand/The Legion (when there's a party)
Other Places to Check Out		Minneapolis dance clubs and bars
Local Specialties		The Contented Cow offers a fantastic variety of British ales.:
Favorite Drinking Games		Beer pong Card games Century club Power hour
Useful Resources for Nightlife		Seniors

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

Using the word nightlife already puts Northfield at a disadvantage. Sure, there are plenty of things to do around town and on campus, but this isn’t exactly the kind of city for people who want to get dressed up and go club hopping from dusk to dawn. If that is what nightlife means to you, then St. Olaf gets an “F.” However, if you aren’t Paris Hilton, then nightlife may mean having a few drinks at an unpretentious bar or even just watching a movie with friends. If this is the case, St. Olaf has a fantastic nightlife.

If you are looking for a party that extends beyond six friends crammed in your dorm room, then just go off campus. There is no party scene at St. Olaf—the dry campus policy killed it. The closest thing Olaf will ever have to a real on-campus party is a bunch of people crammed into a tiny room where its owner is paranoid about getting busted. However, most people, including the under-21 crowd, who go in search of actual parties usually end up at an off-campus house near St. Olaf Avenue or over at Carleton. Don’t think this means it’s impossible to have a good time on campus—of course not. You don’t need a crazy party of free-flowing booze to enjoy yourself. All you really need is good people, and Olaf has plenty of those.

St. Olaf Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Nightlife at St. Olaf College

JFaye

'14

Biology

C+

Loud in the Dorms

Living on the top floor the noise level is not too bad, but the floor below me is loud almost every week Thursday-Sunday.

Feb 13, 2012

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Nightlife at St. Olaf College

mckinney

'13

Environmental Studies

D+

Almost Non-Existent

The only real parties are in off campus houses, but with most of the student body living in dorms, the options are limited. The saying is that the only safe place to have alcohol on campus is in your bloodstream because the administration is so strict about the dry campus policy. This causes many students to feel the need to binge drink. Pause dances are fun, but there's not much else to do. Every once in a while the one bar in town will have a concert, which is a blast, but they usually only happen in the early fall and late spring/summer.

Jul 07, 2011

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Nightlife at St. Olaf College

Hkmadland

'14

Psychology

B+

Eventas Are Fun, but Parties Are Available

There are generally tons of random events going on around campus if you aren't into the party scene, and they are generally high quality and well attended. It is technically a dry campus, but alcohol is pretty common if you look for it. Parties are generally very fun and in the houses, but sometimes it's cold to walk down there. They are also just starting up a late night entertainment section of the student government, so there are also late night events.

Jan 27, 2011

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First

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate the off-campus bar and club scene on the following topics

What is the party scene like on campus?

What’s the best way to get to the popular nightlife spots?

Facts

Club Crawler

The Grand and the Legion are the closest things Northfield has to clubs. They have parties if enterprising students decide to rent them out. When they do open their doors, debauchery ensues. Usually, it’s 18 and up, but be prepared for a skeezy, sweaty, drunken grind fest.

Closing Time

1 a.m.

Cheapest Place to Get a Drink

Carleton College

Organization Parties

The formal President’s Ball is always a big hit, but if you aren’t into ballroom dancing, it can be a bit of a drag. There are a few parties that the residence halls or student organizations will throw, but the turnout is usually pretty sad. Carleton’s student government actually gives them free alcohol, so those parties are always a blast.

Club ListingsWhat's This?

The Legion

1055 Highway 3 N

(507) 645-8541

The Grand Event Center

316 Washington St.

(507) 663-1773

www.thegrandnorthfield.com

Bar ListingsWhat's This?

J. Grundy’s Rueb ‘N’ Stein

Affectionately referred to as “The Rueb,” this is the largest, smokiest, liveliest, and most crowded place in town for people over 21. The second floor often features a band or DJ.

503 Davidson St. S.

(507) 645-4405

www.ruebnstein.com

L & M Bar Grill & Patio

The other trashy Dundas bar, the L & M is also known for it’s no-nonsense, straight-to-business approach, and it’s business is getting college students wasted.

224 Railway St. N.

Dundas

(507) 645-8987

The Tavern

Located in the Archer House, the Tavern offers patrons an intimate wood-covered room and an extra large patio overlooking the river. The Tavern also has the best prices for the best drinks. Don’t get it confused with the Tavern restaurant, which is downstairs.

212 Division St. S.

(507) 663-0342

The Contented Cow

The Cow is on the opposite end of the spectrum from the Dundas bars. Frequented by professors and with the ambience and beer selection of an English pub, this is certainly the classiest bar in town. Plus, it’s the only one that doesn’t card at the door.

302 Division St.

(507) 663-1351

contentedcow.com

Dawn’s Corner Bar

Dawn’s features live entertainment and dancing. It is home to several leagues and tournaments including, euchre, darts, poker, and pool.

Railway Street & Mill Street

Dundas

(507) 663-0593

www.dawnscornerbar.com

Froggy Bottoms Irish River Pub

Froggy’s best features are definitely the scenic riverside patio seating and Thursday night karaoke.

305 Water St. S.

(507) 664-0260

www.froggybottoms.com

What to Do if You're Not 21What's This?

Most underage students stay on campus in the evenings and on the weekends. There are always plenty of activities going on around Olaf, such as concerts, plays, and movies. Of course, you can always just hang around with your friends.

Most Recent Student Author

College Prowler guides are in the hands of students throughout the entire process. Because you can't make student-written guides without the students, we have students at each campus who write, edit, and survey their peers for every guide that we publish. Thanks to our most recent student author at St. Olaf

Name: Nathan Hopkins

see all student author bios >

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College Prowler is seeking talented student authors to assist with writing and updating the College Prowler guides to their schools. This is a great opportunity for a student to gain experience and tremendous exposure, utilize new media techniques, and share advice with high school students about what life is really like at your college.

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Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate the off-campus bar and club scene on the following topics

What is the party scene like on campus?

What’s the best way to get to the popular nightlife spots?

Facts

Club Crawler

Closing Time

Cheapest Place to Get a Drink

Organization Parties

Club ListingsWhat's This?

Bar ListingsWhat's This?

What to Do if You're Not 21What's This?

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Nightlife at St. Olaf College

Nightlife at St. Olaf College

Nightlife at St. Olaf College

Rate the off-campus bar and club scene on the following topics

What is the party scene like on campus?

What’s the best way to get to the popular nightlife spots?

Facts

Club Crawler

Closing Time

Cheapest Place to Get a Drink

Organization Parties

Most Recent Student Author

Become a Contributing Author

Find a college

Find a major

Scholarships

Reviews

You are a . . .

Company

St. Olaf College
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Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

St. Olaf Student ReviewsWhat's This?