Village provides quaint setting for social jaunts

  MINDY ROSS/Daily Bruin Senior Staff A line forms at Diddy
Riese Thursday night in Westwood. Diddy Riese is a popular place
among UCLA students.

By Garrett Spooner
Daily Bruin Contributor

Each June UCLA’s seniors say goodbye to more than
classrooms, professors and textbooks.

They leave with memories generated from giddy nights of beer
guzzling, nightclubbing, and ecstatic house partying that will last
them a lifetime.

Westwood Village offers an intimate setting for much of the
social life the UCLA student population experiences. Located
adjacent to the campus, the Village provides a quaint environment
for recreation and exploration for its student patrons.

“The main idea is to get away and just have fun,”
said Teri Gamble, a senior theater student who is familiar with the
local night scene.

Wherever a Bruin may roam within the Westwood area, he or she
finds a home away from home among a student culture in various
entertainment venues throughout the Village.

On any given night, the Village’s streets, restaurants,
bars and lounges cater to the varying needs and desires of the
university’s inhabitants.

Madison’s Bar and Grill on Broxton Ave., the closest thing
the Village offers to a dance hall, plays host to an eclectic mix
of students who gather to mingle and release the stress of
prolonged study via the diversions of popular music, fermented
beverages and romantic prospects.

“We get people from places like Northridge, USC, Irvine
and from all over coming here,” said Eric Woodard, manager of
Madison’s.

Offering differing genres of popular music each night, this
hangout is a staple of Westwood nightlife, providing a welcome
diversion from a heavy college workload.

Another popular retreat is Maloney’s on Gayley Ave. With
its walls thickly covered with mug shots of various Hollywood movie
stars and its big-screen TVs, the place has the atmosphere of a
classic neighborhood bar.

Graduating theater student Jake Bern describes the club as a
regular meeting place for local fraternity chapters.

“It’s so close to the frat houses that the place is
like their living room,” Bern said. “It’s a
tradition for them by now, and I’ve had some wild times in
there.”

Many nights there are lines full of eager revelers extending
across the large parking lot. Everyone waits to cram inside the
small pub and join in on the fun.

Meanwhile, the Westwood Brewing Co. on Glendon Ave. offers live
music most nights along with its food and drinks.

“It’s a good spot just to chill out over some
drinks,” said Jeff Olin, a graduating theater student.
“I’m not into the excessive noise and flashing lights,
so I can unwind there.”

However, for those whose ideas of fun are even more temperate,
places like Relaxation on Gayley Ave. provide a comfortable
environment for students to come together for a more sober
communion over trendy Thai food and boba drinks. Remaining open
until 2 a.m. on most nights, students are always welcome to study
or socialize.

Many other establishments around Westwood also offer students
the opportunity to mingle as a pleasant diversion from the stresses
of university life. Bruins can escape the confines of local bars
and clubs by flocking to local landmarks like Diddy Riese Cookies
on Broxton Ave.

This Westwood hot spot cleverly and conveniently offers both
tasty confections and a public forum for students to see and be
seen by their peers. By tempting patrons with its one-dollar ice
cream cookie sandwiches and other treats, this place adds a certain
sweetness to college memories.

The entire Village plays a role in satisfying students’
search for thrills and adventure as they develop their independence
and identity within the UCLA community

The class of 2001 will move and grow beyond the experiences that
are unique to UCLA life. The paw prints these Bruins leave around
Westwood must eventually give way to time and traffic as new
generations of students blaze their own trails.

By partaking in the leisure activities available beyond campus,
Bruins employ their creative energies not only to define
themselves, but also to establish a social framework that will
inform and guide them throughout their lives.