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What Happened To The Quiet Room?: Trappeze Pub

by Allison Carter
01/19/2008

Thoughts pre-Trappeze visit:

Why is Hot Corner turning the quiet room into a bar? That’s not going to work well. Plus no one will go there.

After being in Athens for less than three months a person will find out that Hot Corner is the place to get coffee downtown, the place to play scrabble with your friends on a down night, and most of all a place to study for big tests.

All of the things mentioned embody Hot Corner, but directly conflict with any idea of a typical Athen’s bar.

Thoughts with one of 200 beers in hand and bread on the table:

My invite to Trappeze was a spur of the moment idea and a good way to relax on a Monday night. Before my friend and I got to Trappeze, she told me that what makes the bar stand out, and what will possibly make it succeed in a town where so many bars fail, is that they have at least 200 different types of beer to choose from. That might sound ridiculous, but it’s true. After flipping through the menu numerous times, my selection was number 10, which turns out to be an Athens’s beer called Terrapin. My companion’s choice of beer was number 20, some sort of Belgian beer (they're big into Belgian at Trappeze).

Trappeze has an atmosphere unlike most bars in Athens. First of all, the door is hard to find, especially for someone who has previously studied in the ‘quiet room’. The door that was formerly not an entrance is now the main entrance. The actual bar is lined with beers on tap. And there's a special contraption which chills the beer glasses. At least that’s what a friend of mine said. There are comfortable booths for big groups or just a couple of friends. They also have bar stools available at the bar and the smoking room is now full of tables, too.

As would be expected for that end of town, Trappeze brings in a more mature crowd. However, this maturity is not just age. It’s demeanor.

The bar has been described as having a European pub feel and it most certainly does. They bring bread upon request and it’s more of a place to socialize. No loud music is playing. It's just you, your friends, 200 beers and a good time.

Thoughts post-Trappeze visit:

Why hadn’t anyone thought of making the Quiet Room a bar until now?

Honestly, when I was sitting in the booth I couldn’t quit thinking of all the people I wanted to bring to this newly opened treasure chest of a bar.

Sure, Trappeze will change the atmosphere of Hot Corner a little bit, but it gives Athenians a good place to just relax and have a beer. However, the time people spend studying in the coffee side at Hot Corner may drop. We all know that given the choice of multiple beers or economics textbooks, there is a clear winner.