The bar at the Hillsdale Brewing Company. Calli Townsend | Collegian
What do macaroni and cheese, ’80s music, and beer all have in common? It’s trivia night at Hillsdale Brewing Company every Tuesday at 7 p.m.
The restaurant hosts trivia in multiple categories, although most relate to pop culture from the 20th century. While it mainly attracts an older audience, according to Hillsdale College senior Joseph Perez, he said he loves attending with his six housemates plus two friends.
“We’ve been going on-and-off since the beginning of last semester,” Perez said. “We go because it’s fun, and we like hanging out there, eating appetizers and drinking beer.”
Perez says his team is one of the most competitive ones in town.
“We’ve cooled off from our peak about two months ago, when we won something like four out of five games,” Perez said. “It’s been several weeks since we’ve won, although we’re usually among the most competitive tables. The categories are usually impossible to predict, but often geared toward Boomer or Gen X contestants.”
Contact Center employee Allison Wetzel said she began attending trivia nights when she first started working for the college in 2022.
“They had a schedule on one of their tables which advertised the trivia nights among other events,” Wetzel said. “It piqued the interest of me and a friend. Both of us are big Jeopardy fans who were looking for something fun to do throughout the week.”
Some of Wetzel’s favorite categories in the past have included Christmas movies, Disney, Broadway musicals, fashion, and television.
“Me and my friend Lilly have been going together nearly every Tuesday for the past two years, but have had various friends come with us from time to time and now regularly have a group of three to five people on our team,” Wetzel said.
According to junior Monroe Beute, the restaurant attracts people not just for trivia, but inclusive dining options as well.
“Brewing Company was one of the first restaurants I found when I moved to Hillsdale as a freshman,” Beute said. “I was thrilled to see that they had gluten-free mac and cheese, and I’ve got to say it was really delicious. I love trivia and I love gluten-free mac and cheese. What more is there to ask for?”