Could a student-run pub add a new dimension to campus social life? A group of Stanford students tested this idea with a pop-up pub last month, and the result was a resounding “yes.” The Rough Draught Pub – which was run by students and supported by staff and the Associated Students of Stanford University (ASSU) – hosted over 550 people over two nights.
Attendees said the pub, which was held at the 550 Lasuen Row house, helped augment
social opportunities on campus.
“I was excited at the idea of opening a pub – a place where students could enjoy the safe consumption of alcoholic beverages in a space that wasn’t a party,” said Sarah Jade Yao, ’25, who was the pub’s lead interior designer. “I thought it was a great opportunity to create a new community space on campus.”
Danny Kim, ’25, led the team that created the pub.
“We had a team of 12 students who hadn’t really worked together before,” Kim said. “At the beginning of the quarter, we had nothing except the words of the administration saying, ‘That’s a great idea.’ ”
Careful planning
The Rough Draught team had to plan the pub’s operations – kitchen, service, bar, interior design, events, marketing, and finances – then make it all happen.
To help students feel like they were in a pub, the team redecorated both the interior and the backyard of the Row house. The ski-themed entry was used for food orders and there was a sports-themed back room for games like darts, billiards, and Jenga. The boho-esque backyard had a full bar and made use of pallet tables and outdoor cushions for low seating. Colored fabrics and dim lighting lined the ceilings of all the spaces, creating an inviting ambiance.
“I tried to focus on creating a space that would take students outside of the dorm space they knew as 550,” said Yao, who said the team was trying to “emulate the intimacy of a pub.”
Yao and her design team, which consisted of three close friends who are also seniors, searched for second-hand goods on Facebook Marketplace and purchased décor including a one-of-a-kind Samuel Adams mirror at a flea market. For a personal touch, Yao added a hand-drawn poster with caricatures of the team.
Students also planned and cooked all the pub’s food – ultimately filling 675 food orders. After nine drafts of the menu, the team settled on food offerings that included jamon-wrapped dates, two kinds of tacos, and ham and cheese sliders. They held several tastings and prepared a meal for a campus co-op as a trial run.
“It went fantastically, considering that none of us had restaurant experience and we were doing a bunch of back-of-the-envelope calculations to determine how much food to make,” said Sam Jonker, ’27, who was the kitchen manager and head chef. “We ordered over $4,000 worth of food and ended up only having three bags of chips and some spices left.”
Jonker’s team coordinated with the bar team, led by bar manager Graham Griffin, ’25. The bar was busy, serving 1,834 drinks – including a selection of beers, cider, Aperol spritz cocktails, Jarritos, and Coke products – over the course of the two nights.
“We were back there the first night for five hours and it felt like 30 minutes,” Griffin said. “It was so fun seeing how much everybody enjoyed it.”
Part of the enjoyment came from the activities that accompanied the food and drink. The first night featured karaoke and trivia, and two student bands played live music on the second night.
“My goal was to create a space for students to enjoy each other’s company with activities that they couldn’t necessarily curate themselves inside their own dorm rooms,” said Rachel Lit, ’25, who handled activities and logistics. “That is something I think many students have a hard time finding outside of Greek life and the siloed party culture that currently exists at Stanford. We wanted to create an inclusive space where you don’t have to belong to any sort of group or organization to be a part of this.”
Positive feedback
“The Rough Draught Pub highlights students’ creativity and entrepreneurship,” said Amanda Rodriguez, assistant dean and director of the Fraternity and Sorority Life program. “It was wonderful to see them provide a lively, fun, student-driven third space for the campus community in the evening, to add to the other social offerings on campus.”
The student organizers said the support of administrators such as Rodriguez and Samuel Santos Jr., associate vice provost for inclusion, community, and integrative learning, contributed to the event’s success. The university provided help with administrative issues such as permits and navigating the county processes and university expectations. And the administration and ASSU provided funding for everything except the alcohol, which was funded through ticket sales.
A post-event survey of attendees provided overwhelmingly positive feedback, and organizers are exploring options for making a student-run pub an ongoing part of campus life.
“It really felt like the whole Stanford community was accepted there,” Griffin said.
“Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies 8,180 acres, among the largest in the United States, and enrols over 17,000 students.”
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