Bacchanalia at 33 Dunster Street

About 200 students yesterday afternoon packed a section of 33 Dunster Street for a happy hour that the Student Assembly organized.

The restaurant spent about $150 for publicity and hors d'oeuvres for the party, James R. Greacen '79, 33 Dunster Street's promotion and advertising director, said this week.

"It's really much more than we expected," Leslie A. Cornfeld '81, assembly president, said yesterday, adding that she would determine a final turnout by counting the number of half-priced drink tickets students had redeemed.

Archie C. Epps III, dean of students, said this week the assembly should pay for functions it organizes, adding he had not approved assembly happy hours on a regular basis. Epps and Cornfeld met yesterday and agreed to discuss the project further next week.

The assembly hopes a successful series of happy hours at 33 Dunster Street will improve administrative support for a student center on campus, Michael J.W. Rennock '81, chairman of the assembly's college life committee, said yesterday.

"This is certainly going to help us get a student center. The toughest thing is finding a place," he added.

The assembly will hold a College-wide referendum on the issue next week. "If we had a real student center, we wouldn't need a happy hour at 33 D," Rennock said.

Pat Rorex, manager at 33 Dunster Street, said yesterday the large turnout "is a very good thing" for both groups.

The restaurant provided free cocktail frankfurters, meatballs, chicken wings and cheese and crackers for Harvard students. Regular staff came in early to serve the extra crowd, Rorex added.

33 Dunster Street had designated about half the restaurant to the assembly group, Rorex said, although most students stood gathered in one-half of that area.

But some students said yesterday slow service annoyed them. "It takes a long time to get a drink at the bar. You have to fight your way up there," James Carey '80 said at the party.

Several under-age students at the happy hour said yesterday they were not allowed to buy liquor at the bar, but had no trouble ordering it at their tables. "We're definitely being very strict about carding people," Rorex said.

Cornfeld said the assembly will try to improve benefits to students because of the extra business the assembly is giving the restaurant, possibly suggesting they offer two drinks for the price of one.

"We'd rather they discount drinks that give the Student Assembly a share of the profit," she added.