Pierpont Cafe. It’s an interesting place. Most people have no idea where this place is located. If you can locate Pierpont Commons (it’s a student union, fyi) you’re half way there. It’s basically the highest level in the building – about the 1.5th floor. I would try and explain how to get there, but it probably won’t mean much. If you go at lunchtime, just follow the noise and the smell…….

So I made the mistake of venturing up this study spot around 12:30pm – a.k.a. lunchtime. There were a ton of people there (more than I’ve ever seen before), and it was an older crowd. This is a place to which professors/GSIs congregate for lunch. Don’t be surprised if you’re a north campus student (art, music, engineering, architecture) and you run into one of your professors there…I mean, I did. It was awkward, I’m not going to lie.

Another downside to this spot at lunch was all the smells. People were constantly using the microwave (in addition to the smelly food served by the Cafe) and bring out all the aromas into the area. Of course, I was sitting right next to the microwave, cause that’s where all the smaller tables are. It gets busy during lunch, so I wasn’t about to take a large 6 person table for myself.

Now don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of great things about the Pierpont Cafe. There are a ton of windows to let in some fresh sunlight during the day. It’s a great location for people watching, if you don’t feel like studying much (simple solution of facing away from the windows…). People watching here is quite entertaining – primarily when you see the kid half losing his backpack running after the bus that is just starting to pull away.

The microwave, although it is the location for smells of all types, it works extremely well. The best public microwave I’ve used (despite the fact it has a knob, and no buttons…). The people talking was great background noise. I was really tired and the noise helped keep me awake when trying to get some work done. At night though, it’s really quiet – since there are very few people who hang out in Pierpont Cafe at that time.

Bottom Line: Pierpont Cafe is noisy during lunch time, but great for people watching. Might not be the best study spot around.