Exploring the campus culture around Quizzo.
Landmark Americana’s Hawk Hill location opened just six years ago in 2012, but it’s hard to imagine campus life without it – especially on a Tuesday night.
Come 5 p.m. each Tuesday, students begin pouring into the restaurant, located on 54th Street between the Saint Joseph’s University Bookstore and Larry’s Steaks. On Tuesdays, Landmark offers 50 cent wings and $10 Blue Moon pitchers. These specials may help bring the students in, but Quizzo is the reason they stay.
“In a matter of about 30 minutes to an hour, we will start packing in and it will stay that way until halfway through trivia,” said Chris Silenzi, manager at City Line Landmark. “It’s like a night and day moment.”
Students often arrive hours early to ensure a good table for the 10 p.m. start of Quizzo. This crowd makes it one of the busiest nights of the week.
“I know St. Joe’s students have incorporated the trivia into their lifestyle, because come eight, nine o’clock, everyone starts coming in like clockwork,” Silenzi said. “I have a completely different battle plan on a Tuesday than I do on Monday and Wednesday.”
Quizzo is free to play for everyone and although students are the major pool for trivia, plenty of local residents come to Landmark for the event, as well.
Madeline Yeakey ’19, started going to Quizzo last semester and remembers being surprised by how popular it was.
“We got there around 9:15 and it was already full of people, maybe not all playing Quizzo, but I was surprised how crowded it was,” Yeakey said.
Quizzo consists of three rounds. The first half of each round has six questions – three multiple choice and three questions worth a fixed amount of points.
The second half of the round consists of one bonus question and two wager questions. At the end of the round, the top three teams send one player up to the DJ table for a quiz-off to win a $10 Landmark gift card. At the end of each round, one $10 gift card is awarded to a team, as well as a $25 gift card for the winning team following the three rounds.
Long-time Quizzo goers will recognize the voice of Mark Diedrichsen as one of the DJs at the event. He has been serving as DJ and hosting Quizzo at Landmark for a year and a half. He also works for Center Stage, an entertainment company based in Lindenwold, New Jersey, that provides entertainment for weddings and various clients such as SugarHouse Casino, The Borgata and all five locations of Landmark Americana.
“DJing is great because I am controlling the party,” Diedrichsen said. “Nobody is going to a bar to specifically see me, but they are relying on me to keep the party going and for having a good time. I like that responsibility.”
Quizzo is so popular that it continues through the summer, even as the majority of students leave campus. There are still regular teams who play each week with hopes of a big win.
Luis Nuñez ’21, started going to Landmark for Quizzo this past summer and plans to continue going throughout the semester.
“It shows you don’t need to drink at college to have fun,” he said. “There is good music, it is a fun time and you learn a lot too, which is really cool.”
One of Nuñez’s favorite parts about Quizzo is how communal it is.
“After we turn in our slips, I’ll go up to other tables and talk about the questions,” he said. “I think everyone should at least experience it once.”
Over the past six years, there has been growth in the relationship between Landmark and St. Joe’s.
“This is a great atmosphere that Landmark and St. Joe’s have,” Silenzi said. “We share a lot back and forth, hosting events for athletic teams, fundraisers.”
Silenzi said he hopes to continue building the relationship between the university and restaurant by reaching out to the student body to learn more about what they would be interested in seeing at Landmark – such as fundraisers or themed Quizzo nights.
“City Line Landmark has been able to grow and become what it is today,” he said. “We are still trying to evolve and make sure everyone finds a home.”
Yeakey is among those who have found a home at Landmark, at least on Tuesday nights.
“I didn’t really get the Quizzo vibe until the end of last semester, and now I want to go every week,” she said.
