Bars, pubs, watering holes. Call them what you will, they’ve all got one thing in common. Alcohol.

What makes Campustown taverns unique from one another, though, are their traditions and gimmicks to hook festive-hungry students and reel them in. And, according to bar owners, cheap is the name of the game on Welch Avenue.

“We are the dance bar,” J.R. Sheffer, co-owner of Winstons/Tazzles said. “And, our Thursday night dollar pitchers are a great, cheap night out.”

Sheffer said the Thursday special even draws crowds from Des Moines. But it’s the Wednesday “look like a lady night” that remains a crowd pleaser. In order to reap the rewards of the coverless, free beer or wells from 8-11p.m. is no easy task for men.

“If he’s just wearing a skirt of a bra, that’s not going to cut it,” Sheffer said of past attempts. “They’ve got to make an effort. They’ve basically got to dress in drag.”

Needless to say, the guys usually end up doling out the green.

Green is likewise the color many patrons turn after Wednesday “mug night” at People’s Bar and Grill. A long-time tradition, whose origins could not be recalled, this gimmick also conjures up that five-letter word, cheap.

“The whole thing started….we wanted to do…. it’s been so long, I don’t remember,” People’s owner Tom Zmolek said. “A cheap thing; we wanted to do a cheap thing. Just a cheap college night.”

That, of course, depends on one’s consumption. The liter mugs can be purchased for $1.50 and refilled with certain brands of beer for the same amount. This fall will also be the first time since 1993 that the mugs sport a new design. But don’t chalk it up to a burst of creativity on Zmolek’s part.

“We used to change the design every year,” he said. “But about three years ago the company we order from doubled our order. We got stuck with 7,000 mugs and it’s taken us this long to go through them.”

Probably the only thing students long for more than to retain the almighty buck is to create life-long memories. “Picture night” at Cy’s Roost has been doing that for more than 15 years.

Cy’s Roost manager, Paul DeVries, said it’s not uncommon for him to go through seven to nine roles of film on the Wednesday night clickfest. In his years as resident photographer there isn’t much he hasn’t seen.

“I’ve seen just about every naked body part there is,” he said with a laugh. “I’ve seen men dressed as women, a pyramid of eight people high and every year we take a picture of all the employees peeing at Tazzles.”

DeVries said after he takes the old photos down to replace them with new ones, he just gives them away. Also, a year of new traditions can be started with “picture taking in the beer garden” he said.

Whatever the bar, whatever the catch, Campustown nightlife has more to offer than just a pint of ale. What the bars won’t give you, though, is a break. All Campustown bars are 21 and over. Welcome to Iowa State.