Adams Community Dinners To Launch

Adams House will bar non-residents from its dining hall Wednesday nights in an effort to reduce crowding and build community, the House announced last week.

The Wednesday “community nights,” which begin today, come in response to dinner-time congestion that frequently plagues Adams. The dining hall—built to accommodate 220—consistently draws swarms of non-residents due to the House’s convenient location.

“We’re in the eye of the storm,” said David A. Seley, the Adams dining hall manager.

The move drew praise from Adams residents and criticism from regulars of the dining hall from other Houses.

“Adams loves having guests from other houses,” said Adams tutor Matthew J. Corriel ’05, “but we long to get to know each other.”

Lowell resident Alex L. Hugon ’11 lamented the switch, citing his own frequent use of the dining hall, saying he “always” eats there.

But approval from Adams dwellers was not universal. Max A. Binder ’10 said the House Committee should have been less exclusive in restricting Wednesday diners.

“I think everybody should be allowed to bring one guest to community night,” Binder said.

Unfortunately for Binder, the Adams dining hall staff will enforce the inter-house restrictions strictly, according to Adams dining hall worker and card swiper Lucy F. Medeiros.

“No inter-house, no guests. Just Adams House people,” she said.

As part of the effort to foster a sense of community, the first Adams-only dinner tonight will include a reintroduction of the House tutors, Corriel said.

The Adams community nights mimic similar restrictions in place at Quincy House, which has long held Quincy-only community nights every Thursday.

The House chose Wednesday for the Adams-only dinners to coincide with weekly “Carvery Nights,” which feature a carving station in addition to normal HUDS offerings.

The Wednesday restrictions come on top of long-standing limits on freshman diners in Adams, which draws many first-years because of its proximity to the Yard.

Currently, Freshmen can only dine in Adams as guests of House residents.