After I graduate from Oberlin this spring, one of the places I will miss the most is The Feve. The Feve is a popular bar and grill restaurant in downtown Oberlin that the vast majority of Oberlin students have been to. If you are an Oberlin student reading this and you haven't been to the Feve, you better shut down your computer and go now. You are not officially an Oberlin student in my eyes--no offense.
Last night, a group of my friends and I went to the Feve at about 11:50pm. Yes, last night was a Wednesday, which I am aware is not one of the days that qualifies as a typical weekend/drinking day. And yes, we did have homework to do. And no, we don't usually drink during the week. We went to the Feve last night to celebrate one of the most important rites of passage of young adulthood, usually experienced during the junior or senior year of college: the right to purchase your own alcohol. Today is my boyfriend's 21st birthday, so it was only appropriate that we celebrate in traditional Oberlin fashion and help him celebrate the joyous event with a drink at midnight.
The Feve serves as a 21st birthday hot spot among Oberlin College students, and I'm sure has been doing so for years. The Feve's purpose of celebrating 21st birthdays had not really emerged in my life until last year when my friends all started reaching this monumental age. However, since my 21st birthday was not until last summer, I was not able to partake in anything but pop (yes pop, not soda) and tater tots. But I digress.
My eyes were also opened this year to the Feve as a Mecca for the undergraduate elders of Oberlin on Friday afternoons. For the past three years, I had always witnessed the hordes of people crowded in Wilder Bowl for TGIF on Friday afternoons lying in the grass and enjoying the company of friends with loud music blasting in the background. It seemed that nearly all of the student population stopped by TGIF at some point. Little did I know that a 21+ demographic that I had recently become a member of often goes to a little thing called "Happy Hour." I went to my first happy hour this year, and I was amazed at how the Feve's bar area seems to shrink exponentially on Friday afternoons when the Feve is flocked with thirsty college students with a taste for cheap beverages.
Sure, it's nice to have a cold beverage after a stressful week of classes, work, and tests. But more importantly, I like Happy Hour for the sense of camaraderie I feel with my fellow Obies as we all share in the strife of academic life and escape the confines of King for the more crowded and more confining physical space of the Feve bar. The atmosphere during happy hour is incredibly warm, which is reflective of the environment on campus as a whole during a the week except that during the week there's that lingering feeling of a paper that is waiting to be written or a problem set that must soon be completed.
During the week, the Feve has often served as a place for group meetings and discussions with professors. The summer months bring about Feve dance parties in the bar. Also, take-out from the Feve is a tasty alternative when I am too lazy to cook (which isn't terribly often but happens from time to time).
For those under 21 (such as myself prior to June of this year), or those in the general population that require nourishment, the Feve offers some of the best food this city has to offer--in my (expert) opinion of course. Here I would like to share with you some of my top culinary choices that the Feve has to offer:
1) Iced Chai
- Need I say more?
2)The Number Nine
-A pita with falafel and hummus and other veggie-like delicious goodness
3)Erica's Burger
-A Boca (vegan) burger with grilled portobello mushroom and red onion and avocado
4)Shishtawouk
-I believe it is pronounced like Shish-ta-walk. This took me awhile to learn--hence the title of this post. This sandwich has cilantro lime marinated chicken breast grilled and served in a pita with lettuce, tomato, and garlic mayonnaise. Although, since I am a vegetarian, I replace the chicken with tofu. You can replace meat in any of the items with tofu, and any of the burgers can be replaced with Boca burgers. So carnivores and herbivores can share a meal in perfect harmony.
And last but CERTAINLY not least...
5)Tater Tots
-I will make an educated guess that Tater Tots are one of the Feve's most popular items. They have various seasonings you can choose from to enhance the fried potato treasures, and I personally always go with "Megan Seasoning," which is their herbal seasoning.
Of course these are the Feve's best food items according to me. If you ask another Oberlin student what their favorite items are at the Feve, they will most likely readily answer you. Oh, and I should add that the Feve (supposedly) has great brunch on Sunday mornings. I've only had it once and it was years ago, so I don't really remember. Brunch at the Feve is so popular that the line is usually quite lengthy, and when it comes to food, my patience is little to non-existent. So my opinion on their brunch is also non-existent but I don't want that to discourage you from exercising a bit more fortitude than I can and stick it out.
The Feve has many happy memories for me. Even when I am physically away from campus, my heart and stomach will always keep a place for the Feve.
I actually have to go to dinner (at the Feve) now. No, I'm not kidding. And no, I did not just say that so that I could have a cheesy, cliché ending for this post. The tater tots with Megan seasoning are beckoning.
