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Entertainment in St. Cloud
 Media Credit: Ryan Henry Crossroads Cinema behind Crossroads mall in Waite Park. All seats are $1.50.
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 Media Credit: Ryan Henry Jenna Fuchs, assistant manager of Java Joint on St. Germain St., in downtown St. Cloud. Java Joint features live music every week and open mic Thursdays.
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 Media Credit: Ryan Henry Sixth-year student Eric Ralkhof tees off during a round of Frisbee golf Wednesday afternoon at Riverside Park. Many students find frisbee golf to be an inexpensive way to spend a couple of hours.
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Howie's Bar
"So this is Howie's?" I asked a friend of mine (who had already downed a few) when I arrived at the sports bar on a relatively quiet evening.
I wasn't sure about the place; however, my skepticism faded shortly. Since it was relatively early in the evening, the bar was calm and copasetic, a nice place to meet after work for some beer and conversation. However, after a few hours, I was amazed as the bar transformed from a mere restaurant to a bar where one's mother may become embarrassed (I believe one regular's nickname is Porno).
Howie's bar offers a slightly different atmosphere than those of the Big 4, The Press, The Red Carpet, D.B. Searle's and McRudy's). It is more relaxed and with better hot wings. Nestled next to the courthouse and the jail, the bar has its share of interesting occupants including, ex-convicts, correctional officers, police officers, deputies and various attorneys. You can imagine the stories.
While Howie's does offer this strange mix of individuals, it also has something to offer to the college students. No cover charge and no age restrictions. If you want to buy a beer, they check your I.D., but you can sing your little heart out to karaoke whether you're a freshman or a senior.
Pool tables and dart boards are available and seating options include the bar or many of the small tables in a comfortable atmosphere suitable for an interesting night on the town.
- Paul Solsrud
The Red Carpet
The Red Carpet Nightclub can be summed up in four simple words: fun house with booze. For those of you who haven't been there, this analogy can be explained. I've been of drinking age for several years now, and I don't think I've ever been to another bar quite like the Red Carpet. It's not just one bar; it's three bars, each on different floors. The place has a unique look to it, with carpet that looks like something my grandma would choose, and lighting that varies in softness from room to room, magnifying the effects of whatever one chooses to imbibe.
The Carpet also has a music hall, with a stage that can be seen from two different floors, making it easy to get a good seat to see whoever is playing. The performers range from local talent, such as McKinley Place, to Twin Cities talent, such as Mark Mallman, to national talent, like the band Flipp.
Drink prices are reasonable - specials vary from night to night. In a college town like St. Cloud, drink prices are like gas prices. They are pretty much the same wherever you "fill up." Oh, one more thing. Free pool on Monday nights.
- Joe Palmersheim
Meeting Grounds
The Meeting Grounds Downtown has the same flair of a Starbucks or a Caribou Coffee only without the soulless corporate backing.� It is a family-owned business.� The shop is pleasing to the eye, with charming wood floors and well-lit areas where one can study, or even better, curl up with a drink and a good book and forget the outside world for a few hours.�
While the Meeting Grounds on Campus is frequented mostly by students, people of all ages can be found in the downtown shop.��
The non-smoking environment also means that most of the poets and journal slaves don't hang out there.� So, in addition to not breathing in second-hand smoke, you also avoid second-hand pretension.� And no one needs that.� There are many tables and booths in the store, and the side facing the street is basically one giant window, so one can peoplewatch if they so desire.� Prices are reasonable, the staff is excellent, and the drinks are well-made.� The cookies and desert bars are also very good.� The Meeting Grounds is also a good place to take a date, because it makes one look well-mannered and civilized (which we know you aren't).� Seriously though, the environment lends itself to good conversation, and hence, good times.
-Joe Palmersheim
Java Joint
No, it isn't the box office for a Linkin Park concert. It's the best venue for live music in town. With its herd of adolescent stand-arounds - always near but usually not inside - the Java Joint must have the best sidewalk in St. Cloud... maybe in all of Central Minnesota. But if you're a little bit older, you'll step inside.
Sipping coffee, while chatting over loud music at the bar is an option. Sitting at a broken upright piano or in a hair stylist's chair is another. But the dimly-lit stage at the far end of the room is something else entirely. From last year's "best hip-hop show in St. Cloud of the millennium," - a bill that included Heiruspecs, Oddjobs and St. Cloud's own Hydrophonics - to rock shows from the likes of Twin Cities bands Trend 86 and Clair De Lune to hometown heroes Room 101 and Second Hand Halo, the Java Joint is the place for live shows in St. Cloud, period. They also hold open mic nights on Thursdays. And you can smoke, if that matters.
Java Joint is located in downtown St. Cloud on St. Germain.
-John Behling
Munsinger/Clemens Garden
Looking for a cheap date? The Munsinger/Clemens Gardens is a great, free, choice for guys looking to impress a lady friend with his more "sensitive" side. The ladies will love walking down the winding pathways beneath a green canopy and stopping to "smell the roses" in one of the largest public rose gardens in the state - it has over 1,100 rose bushes! Sorry boys, these roses aren't for picking. Whether you are enjoying a moonlit stroll along the Mississippi or sharing dreams as you toss coins into the garden's wishing well, Munsinger promises to be a cheap and romantic place to take a date, and it's conveniently located just across the river.
- Kristen Kubisiak
Biking
So it's a sunny Friday afternoon, you're done with class, ready to put off homework for at least two days and your friends aren't hitting the bars 'til late. You could take the bike out to cruise around town...but is there really anywhere to bike? You bet. The St. Cloud area has some great biking; some of it is even right out SCSU's back door.
The Beaver Islands Trail
The Beaver Islands Trail follows the Mississippi River south of campus. It starts near Shoemaker Hall, right next to the St. Cloud Dam power plant. It follows an old railroad grade south to the St. Cloud Country Club, where it turns north and runs along County Road 75 back up to 10th Street. Walkers, runners, bikers, dog-exercisers and roller bladers all frequent the trail, which offers gorgeous views of the Mississippi and Beaver Islands (for which the trail was named). It's generally flat and straight, with a long, gradual climb as you pass the country club's golf course. Treat yourself to a speedy descent back by turning around at Clearwater Road and heading back to campus, about a five mile round-trip ride.
Lake Wobegon Trail
If you want a longer, straighter and flatter workout, try the Lake Wobegon Trail in western Stearns county. This is another old railroad bed that's been paved from Avon to Sauk Centre, and will soon be paved from St. Joseph to Avon (about a 20 minute drive from campus). You'll be able to crank it into a high gear and motor down this strip of tar, which is as flat as a week-old can of pop. Beyond Albany, however, the trail follows I-94 closely and loses scenic appeal.
Quarry Park
Is pavement for pansies? Dirt, mud, logs, gravel and anything else nature can throw at you more your style? If you'd rather mountain bike, check out Quarry Park, southwest of Waite Park. Quarry's $4 day permit fee may seem steep at first, but getting out on the trail will put things in perspective. The park has miles of trails that curve and loop in such a tangle that it's quite possible to find yourself quasi-lost in almost no time.
You'll pass water-filled quarries and mountainous rock piles, bike through forests, meadows, swamps and over outcrops of pink granite that gives "mountain biking in central Minnesota" a whole new meaning.
The park has several "technical sections," at least one of which is surprisingly challenging. It features terrain so rugged that it gives even the savviest of bikers a run for their money. Best of all, if you're hot after a hard ride, you can plunge into the park's icy swimming quarry for a refreshing cool-down.
- Eric O'Link
Frisbee Golf
Frisbee golf was specifically designed with college students in mind. It's an inexpensive low-impact game that is often affiliated with stoners. However, Frisbee golf is actually an extremely entertaining game meant for people of all types and skill levels.
Frisbee golf is golf minus the arrogance, country club atmosphere and preppy attire. Instead of using golf clubs to hit a ball in a hole, you use your hands to throw a Frisbee in a basket. Lowest score wins.
St. Cloud is the ideal place to engage in Frisbee golf addiction. Two courses are near campus.
Riverside Park is across the 10th Street bridge from campus. It is a scenic, spacious and moderately challenging 18-hole course.
Calvary is across Highway 15, on the other side of town. The course is difficult, requiring many narrow shots through the woods. Frisbee Golf is cheap. One disc costs between $8 and $12 (less than a case of beer) and the courses are free to use.
Beginners should not feel threatened by people carrying bags overflowing with 20 different types of discs. Half the time those people are just as bad as you.
- Nick Hanson
Godfather's Buffet
If you are a fan of the buffet, Godfather's lunch buffet is the place to go. After several nights of deep contemplation, I have come to the conclusion that Godfather's is the best buffet in town.
First off, the variety is unparalleled. I hate the Old Country Buffet commercial when they show towering mounds of a hundred different types of food. When I go to OCB, all I see is a mediocre salad bar and a couple types of chicken. I do not see the pasta linguini, deep-fried walleye and fillet mignon portrayed in the commercial.
Godfather's has an excellent salad bar and every type of pizza known to man. I don't know another place in town where you can get taco pizza, bacon cheeseburger pizza and desert pizza in the same meal.
The price is also great. A lunch buffet costs about five dollars. OCB and KFC charge between eight and 10 - way too much for a poor college student.
The pizza isn't as good as Green Mill deep dish, but really who can afford Green Mill pizza except on special occasions.
Rock City Pizza is a couple dollars cheaper, but the pizza makes a cold Jack's seem like a heavenly treat.
I think my favorite adage can explain why a pizza buffet like Godfather's is such a great place to eat. Pizza is like sex, when it's good, it's great. When it's bad, it's still pretty good.
- Nick Hanson
Park Diner
Feelin' retro? Park Diner is the place to go. Located in Waite Park right in front of the Parkwood 18 Theater, Park Diner is great for an after-movie malt or a delicious meal with 1950s flavor. Thanks to the building's bright metallic finish, you can't possibly miss it. But plan on driving, because the Park Diner isn't exactly close to campus.
Don't worry about that though, because the malts alone are worth the trip. Offering every flavor one could want, these are the best malts I've ever tasted. And being the ice cream lover I am, this is no small feat. If ice cream isn't enough to fill you up, the meals are just as good. With burgers named after classic cars and other entrees named after the cast of Happy Days, you can't go wrong.
And it you want to keep your friends quiet while waiting for the main course, get Wolfman Jack's Sampler Platter. Containing plenty of the Diner's best appetizers, the platter will easily keep a group of five satisfied until dinner arrives. And although it's a little creepy knowing that Ike Eisenhower is watching you go to the bathroom, the Life Magazines, '50s car ads and golden records make the pleasantly corny atmosphere of Park Diner really shine.
- Cory Fechtelkotter
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