Starting the weekend early

While bantering in the gym about second semester senior year, someone said to me, "Is it terrible that every Monday morning I wake up and all I can think about is Thursday night?" Definitely not -- Class Free Fridays are the greatest invention in senior year scheduling. It leaves you in the home stretch by Wednesday night, and most importantly, free to release the stress of the week (hey, admit it, senior year isn't always fun and games) and make the most of Thursday night.

Last Thursday, "wicked tired" from our week of classes, work, and whatnot, we sought refuge, socializing, and cold drinks at Underbones. Satisfyingly, we found all three.

Upstairs, the restaurant, Red Bones, is famous for its barbeque and southern flair; downstairs, the bar is known for its beer selection, relaxed atmosphere, and err, interesting paintings. The walls in Underbones are decorated with psychedelic artwork depicting mostly dogs, and of course, tons of bones (there's even bones on the ceiling). The colors are neon and vibrant against the shady lighting.

Although I'm not a beer connoisseur myself (I'm much more a Bud Light girl), the beer list, I was told, is quite extensive. They currently have 27 beers on tap, not to mention all your bottled favorites, and, for the girlies, mixed drinks. The drinks are reasonably priced: around $4 for beer, and $5.50 for mixed drinks.

Underbones also has a late night menu (which ends at 12:30 am), perfect for people with the munchies. The menu features a wide variety of bar fare from the more unusual -- Catfish sandwich (solo dish $5.95) and Hushpuppies (fried corn fritters, $1.95) -- to the more traditional -- nachos ($5.95) and fries ($1.95).

As the food upstairs is noteworthy, so is it downstairs. My friend ordered the Hushpuppies and said they were "absolutely delish;" she also praised the restaurant, saying that despite the roasted meat premise, the place has great side dishes for vegetarians. As for my male cohorts, who housed the nachos and buffalo shrimp, no comments were necessary -- they just licked their fingers.

The bar isn't too large; it's essentially one big room, so you can see everyone there. On this particular night, there were plenty of Tufts kids, so there was a friendly (not obnoxious) "seen and be seen" attitude with lots of "hellos" and "I haven't seen you in forever!" -- kinda like the campus center at lunchtime, but less hectic and more relaxed. It was also Max Twine's birthday, so everyone sang him Happy Birthday. Twice.

There are lots of tables and chairs, and the place is great to sit, drink, and chat. On other nights, the chill atmosphere can be too sedating, so it's always good to come with a big group of friends. Don't expect too wild of a night at Underbones (or at least on Thursdays), and even though I'm sure it's happened before, if you get smashed here, you're probably the only one.

Before 12:15 a.m. the music was unclassifiable; I think it was classic rock, or something that matched the walls of the room, but I can't quite remember. (And yes, I was still sober.) After that, however, the music changed to current hits and hip-hop. Although a bunch of us shimmied and danced in our seats, there wasn't really any place or space to dance. The music's volume was loud enough to remind you were still in a bar, but quiet enough so that you could have conversations with people at your table.

From everyone I talked to, people seemed to really enjoy the night -- one person even claimed that Underbones is the equivalent of the Burren (in terms of student popularity) for Thursdays this semester (minus the cover charge). Whether it was the company of friends (except for a few locals, the bar was mainly filled with Jumbos), the lip-smacking food and array of beer, or just the fact that we didn't have classes the next day and the weekend was still to come, Underbones whetted our appetites for the weekend and gave us something to look forward to on Monday morning.