Getting "Husky" at Late Night.

                If you were asked to describe the term “Late Night” the first thoughts that might occur in your mind may be the comedy styles of Jimmy Fallon or Jay Leno, but if you have ever been a student at Bloomsburg University the phrase “Late Night” may make your stomach growl. For a thrifty college student, the late night special at the Husky Lounge in the Kehr Union Building is ideal option to eat a quick snack, save some money, and mingle with friends. As the late night special begins at exactly nine thirty a wave of famished college students enter from the pitch dark night outside into the lounge. When you enter the building a rush of sights, sounds and smells will hit you like the sizzling of the grills, the cooks shouting orders, the scent of fries and burgers being cooked and deep fried, and the constant chatter of people waiting in line. Students both upper-classman and freshman ritualistically make the trek to Late Night to find a bargain. They have the choice to bring their meal back to their dorms or relax and enjoy their meal at one of the many tables. Late Night provides students with the incentive to be able to use a meal swipe instead of money. But that fact alone is not what makes Late Night so unique. It has become an informal tradition for Bloomsburg students to not only get a quick bite to eat but to relax, socialize with peers, and enjoy their college experience.

The doors to the Husky Lounge beam in the night as
students arrive for the late night special

                As you walk through the two sets of glass doors to enter inside the lounge you are instantly hit with a plethora of sights and sounds. The vibrant artwork on the walls draws your attention immediately as you enter. A large mural of a small Italian village with detailed images of villas, people doing daily business and children playing occupies an entire wall of the lounge. The floor has rosy red and dark black tiles with many green circular tables that spread throughout the dining area. Booths with lime green cushions and brown tables are situated near the walls are the most popular place to sit among customers. Each table has four to five metal green seats which during the late night special are continuously occupied. Four flat screens are mounted on each of the four walls as onlookers intently watch a football game or the evening news.

The central hub of the lounge includes two bulky, black, kitchen island checkout counters. Cashiers standing at the end of each counter wait to check people out. A line of students stands to the left of each of the counters as the cashier swipes their cards for the transaction. The lounge has multiple lines during the busiest hours of the night. Around nine thirty to ten o’clock the lounge is the most crowded. During those busy times of the night the lines have been rumored to stretch as far as through the front door. All different kinds of people graze through the lounge like athletes, students hungry after a long class, couples on a date, and even ROTC members dressed in full uniform after a PT session. Some prefer to eat alone while others dine in a large herd.



The Husky Lounge Snack Bar has been around since the 1960s
serving students for generations.

          Students use the Kehr Union Building, or "KUB" as many refer to it, for more than just the snack bar. As the social hub of the lower campus of Bloomsburg university, KUB is a massive building with a ballroom, game room, computer lab, information center, multicultural center, student government center, and last but not least the Husky Lounge snack bar. KUB was most recently renovated in 1993 to modernize and refurbish the snack bar. Click here for more information about the snack bar and KUB.

Dennis Nunan, a sophomore who lives in Luzerne Hall, frequently visits the Husky Lounge especially during Late Night. “One of the ways I made friends my freshman year was by coming to Husky. I met my best friend Matt here last year and we're rooming together this year in Luzerne.” Dennis's short and heavy stature does not deter his outgoing and friendly personality. He likes to wear cargo shorts and a t-shirt everywhere he goes and he has short red hair and a Philly accent. As he walks around he converses with familiar faces with either a quick “hey” or a flamboyant yell of name as he shakes their hand. When it’s time to eat Dennis gets his usual. “It might seem boring that I get the same thing almost every time I’m here but I just stick with a either a Swiss burger or a turkey bacon cheesesteak from the Burger Studio. Some people may call me fat for eating a lot of junk at my weight. To be politically correct I’m not fat I’m just 'husky'.”

                Ordering food during any other time of the day at the husky lounge is a quick and simple process. But during the night time it requires an extreme amount of patience for both the mind and the stomach. If you are a starving baseball player like Nate Reigner and have just come back from a night practice your patience may run too thin. Nate a short but athletic sophomore is not usually interested in waiting in a large crowd for his food, “I might just leave it’s too crowded in there. I’ll either come back later or I’ll just eat the food I have in my dorm. I need to shower anyway. "Nate leaves the lounge obviously tired and downtrodden from a long day of school work and practice. It is not uncommon for the over population of students in the lounge to deter people from eating. The special ends at midnight so people have the option to wait until it is less crowded to buy their food.

                The lounge provides a variety of options of food from the burgers at “The Burger Studio”, to salads at “Salad to Go” and pizza at “The Home Station.” When you walk up to the Burger Studio you place your order into a computerized menu and receive a white slip for your order. This menu gives you the option to choose a burger, a cheesesteak, or salad. Once you choose which option you want numerous amounts of toppings and side options appear on the screen.  Some of the toppings available include ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, chipotle mayonnaise, BBQ sauce, onions, tomatoes, lettuce, black pinto beans, and even hot sauce. You have the option to include a side of curly fries or french fries with a fountain drink.

Students mosey about the Lounge as they converse with each
other.

The longest lines are for the “Home Station” and “Salads to Go.” The Salad to Go offers you the option of healthier food while the Home Station offers a buffalo chicken pizza, pepperoni pizza, and chicken fingers. It is usually gone within the first minutes of the special. As you wait for you meal you can observe the cooks working tirelessly on the orders they have to prepare. The cooks in their black hats, black aprons, and brown shirts constantly communicate with each other on what orders need to be completed. You can see and hear the fryers as they sizzle and the grease pops on the stove. There is a constant movement of workers behind the counters as they try to keep up with the ticket times.

Once the orders are done the head cook Brenda yells out the order number in a  high pitched womanly voice.  Brenda is a short middle aged woman with brown hair usually worn in a ponytail. She is very personable and often socializes to her customers as she serves them. “I’ve been here the longest so I’m responsible for making sure everything runs smoothly when it’s really busy,”she exclaims. She is a people person who likes to become friendly with the regulars of Late Night. “I love seeing new faces but I’ve come to know many of the upperclassmen that come here all the time. I know most but not all by name but I try my best when I can. Usually it’s hard the first week back when the new ones are mixed with the old but I still have good memory and usually they remember me first.”
As Dennis orders his food he gives a hearty hello to Brenda who is supervising some workers as they cook the food. "Brenda it nice to finally see you!" he says in his
"Dennis you've lost some weight! Have you been working out?"
"I have actually. It was leg day today. I just got back from the rec I've been there for two hours. I lost forty five pounds in the summer", he exclaims proudly, "I think not being here all time helped too. I got to start eating more salads and stay committed but I'm getting there."
Brenda and Dennis laugh as they continue the conversation. Both have such an outgoing nature that meeting new people and remembering old friends is second nature to them.
"OK well I got to go Brenda I'll see you"
"I'll see you too Dennis," she says politely.
The ability to socialize and make new friends is very important aspect of college. Eating at the Husky Lounge provides a great way to meet new people and try new things. College is the time of your life, so why not enjoy it. The lounge gives you the opportunity to enjoy yourself through a different method other than partying. College students need to escape the intensity of school work and life. The Late Night special at the Husky Lounge provides them with that escape. But as you enjoy the food, just remember that the freshman fifteen is a very real thing. You don't want to get too "husky" at Late Night.