Pep alumnus Scott Porter created an activity for funseekers who which to explore the clubs and sights of the Universal CityWalk without the travel concerns
By Malana Jones
Staff Writers
Ask Pepperdine students where their favorite hotspot is and several possibilities come to mind. Some prefer the trendy atmosphere of the Sunset strip while others prefer the less crowded, more casual ambiance of the Santa Monica area. A few even opt for the quiet Malibu bars or even the sparse choices that the Valley has to offer. This week however, several students chose to explore Universal City, specifically, Universal CityWalk.
Universal CityWalk is a promenade-style strip near Universal Studios, containing venues such as Jillian’s, Howl at the Moon, Rumba Room, Karl Strauss and several others.
Scott Porter, Manager of Special Events and Promotions at Universal is the mastermind behind C3, College Club Crawl. According to Porter, the idea originated in April, when he decided to tap into a previously overlooked market –– college students. For a group constantly looking for something fun to do to help escape the stress of school, college students thus far have made the program a success for schools such as University of Southern California, University of California, Los Angeles, and Cal-State University Northridge.
The program is simple. Interested students contact Scott about bringing a group out to visit on a Thursday evening. Universal provides the buses, fliers, food and drink specials, and waives the cover charges to all participating venues. Basically, all the school has to provide is the people.
Coordinating the event for Pepperdine’s Graziadio School of Businessproved to be a bit tricky, since the graduate business school was heading into finals at the time. Also, the schools brought to Universal City Walk have been larger than Pepperdine, and certainly larger than the Graziadio School of Business, which has roughly 213 students at the Malibu campus.
The evening started out slowly, with only about 40 of the expected 80 students actually showing up. The students loaded the buses and headed out to Universal City. The first stop on the crawl was Tu Tu Tango, a quiet bar comparable to Duke’s Barefoot Bar. Offering an appetizer menu of calamari and chicken egg rolls, as well as very inexpensive beer, Tu Tu Tango was a great way to ease into a night of fun.
The next stop on the crawl was to Jillian’s, a multi-venue establishment containing a restaurant, a bowling alley and a game room. Although the crawl included the bowling alley, most of the students preferred heading downstairs to play the video games. The only downside to Jillian’s was that it closes at 10 p.m., when many party-goers were just getting started.
Karl Strauss Breweries was a restaurant with a small bar and great patio overlooking the City Walk. By this point, several more students who had opted out of riding the buses had arrived and the group became more energetic and loose. The time spent here was actually very short because everyone was ready to start dancing.
The final stops were Howl at the Moon, BB King’s and Rumba Room. Howl at the Moon was packed already, so the students decided to move on to BB King’s, which was surprisingly empty. The music was amazing, with Blues blaring from the moment you entered the bar.
Rumba Room is where the group decided to stay for the remainder of the evening. Playing an awesome mix of hip-hop with a few tracks of house music, the energy was high and everyone had a great time. The buses didn’t leave until the bars closed.
Overall, the event was definitely a success. When students are looking for a fresh alternative to Hollywood, Santa Monica, Malibu or the Valley, Universal City is the place to be.
October 31, 2002
