Trivia is everywhere nowadays. TikTok, Twitter and Wikipedia deep dives fill our minds with plenty of trivial knowledge to stump our friends with, from what year a certain movie came out to who made the winning catch in a Super Bowl from more than 30 years ago.
For the most part, this is just something to impress your peers with at parties. But for a duo of trivia companies in Baton Rouge, trivia is more than an element of social gatherings; it is the gathering itself.
Let’s Get Quizzical, founded by Michael Hatfield in 2008, hosts events at around a dozen restaurants around town, including Overpass Merchant, City Slice, Curbside and more. Venues bring Hatfield and his team in as entertainment similar to how they would with a band, but with a fun twist.
|
|
|
“(Bar trivia) offers a solution to that loss of social connection, bringing people to that threshold of social interaction, providing the opportunity, even just an excuse, to have that in-person interaction in a controlled and structured environment but with prizes and beer,” Hatfield said in a 2015 TEDxLSU speech.
But Hatfield isn’t the only game in town.
Enter Suspense Games. Founded in 2020 by Spenser Hunt and two others, Suspense brings trivia nights to Burgersmith and the Smiling Dog, with more restaurants on the way.
“People need things to look forward to. Trivia nights are just a bright spot and a way to upgrade a weeknight,” Hunt says. “So much of what we see at our trivia nights are a group of friends that get together once a week to come to trivia that weren’t seeing each other regularly before.”
Across Baton Rouge, trivia is a weekly experience for plenty, visiting sports bars, restaurants, pubs and pizzerias to test their seemingly benign knowledge for a few prizes and some bragging rights. Here are some of Baton Rouge’s trivia-hosting establishments with options almost every night of the week.
Overpass Merchant
2904 Perkins Road
Monday at 6 p.m.
Offering various themed nights, like cult classic movies and 90s pop culture through Let’s Get Quizzical, the Overpass Merchant’s bar and kitchen bring specials like $5 frozen Irish Mules, $6 Gail’s spicy chicken sandwiches and red beans and rice offered only on trivia night.
MID TAP BR
660 Arlington Creek Centre Blvd.
Monday at 7:30
Happy hour runs all day on Mondays for trivia, with themes rotating regularly. Previous themes include Disney night and mustache night, complete with faux mustaches and questions about mustachioed heroes. Also available, on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., is Bullshit Bingo with a slew of prizes and 10 rounds of bingo. Get there early for Happy Hour that runs till 7 p.m.
The Smiling Dog
4215 S. Sherwood Forest Blvd.
Monday at 8 p.m.
Changing themes weekly, with past themes including Harry Potter, Marvel and 90s pop culture, Suspense Games hosts events at this pub with regular gift card prizes handed out to winners.
City Slice
124 W. Chimes St.
Tuesday at 6 p.m.
This pizza parlor offers weekly general trivia with upcoming themes that include Friday the 13th and Cinco de Mayo, as well as prizes including $50 and $25 gift cards for first and second place, respectively.
Burgersmith
18303 Perkins Road E. Bldg. 1, Ste. 100
Tuesday at 6 p.m.
Rotating themes, with a Disney-themed evening being a crowd favorite, this burger joint runs happy hour from 4 to 6 p.m. before trivia kicks off, with half off most drinks, Different prizes each week include cards for free food, as well as gift cards to local shops, like the nearby Bengals & Bandits.
Rally Cap Brewing Company
11212 Pennywood Ave.
Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
Trivia at this brewery generally offers a little bit of everything. Every six weeks is a themed night, the next being a sports-themed trivia night on May 10.
Pluckers
4225 Nicholson Drive, #101
Tuesday and Wednesday at 8 p.m.
Test your knowledge about sports on Tuesday and a menagerie of pop culture topics on Wednesday for prizes, ranging from $5 to $150 gift cards, along with raffles for free beer in between rounds and $6 mugs of domestic beers. Once or twice a month, the wing joint hosts themed trivia specific topics like anime, Disney or Nickelodeon.
|
|
|
Tiger Tavern Daiquiris
14505 LA-44 #101
Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
Hosting trivia rain or shine, this daiquiri spot offers two for one double wells, as well as $40, $25 and $15 bar tabs for first, second and third place, respectively.
Suspense Games and Let’s Get Quizzical offer updates, including themes and schedules, for the events they offer on their website and Facebook pages!