‘Always something to do’: Exploring the Triangle's trivia tradition

The lighthearted competitiveness and collaborative atmosphere of trivia nights make them a staple in the Triangle community. With a variety of venues, there is a place for every crowd to enjoy a night of fun facts. 

At Linda’s Bar and Grill, trivia is a tradition — the establishment has run Tuesday and Wednesday night trivia for as long as owner and chef Christopher Carini, who took over in 2011, can remember. 

“There's usually, depending on the week, it feels like there’s one happening every day somewhere, so it’s like always something to do,” Gaby Iori, the events coordinator for Epilogue Books Chocolate Brews, said. 

Epilogue has trivia on Thursday nights, as does Lanza’s Cafe in Carrboro. 

Epilogue started hosting trivia nights in April 2022, and Lanza’s Cafe began in September 2021. 

“We actually had a grad student named Wesley who came in and asked if we would let her call trivia here, and we said absolutely, so she started calling it, and it just built each week,” Christina Vad, co-owner and operator of Lanza’s, said.

Though the student has moved, trivia has continued through other regulars who have taken over hosting. As well as showing up week-to-week, trivia regulars also contribute to the trivia topics. 

Epilogue barista and bookseller Laney Sheehan hosts trivia every week, and she said some of her topics come from audience input.

“Two weeks ago, we were talking about astrology, and the people who were here were so interested in it that I said, ‘What if we did an astrology zodiac trivia night?’” Sheehan said. “And the response was so overwhelming that now I definitely have to get it.”

Tom Melton, a regular at Lanza’s and a trivia caller at Craftboro Brewing Depot, said having experience as a host helps him appreciate the different ways each host crafts their questions.

When he is writing questions, his aim is to make sure people have fun, whether or not they’re getting the answers right, he said. 

At Epilogue, Sheehan said she has found a way to keep people informed on what’s happening in the community in an entertaining way. 

One avenue is through partnerships with Chapel Hill and UNC organizations. Sheehan said she previously ran a trivia night about sexual health and safety with the Violence Prevention and Advocacy Services at UNC.

“That’s another one of my favorite nights, because not only did we partner with a UNC-led organization, but it’s a very important topic,” Sheehan said. “We got to talk about education and safety and resources, so our regulars and the community got those resources, but we also made it really fun and healthy.” 

Despite the differences in topics and hosts, trivia nights in Chapel Hill and Carrboro are all weekly opportunities to have fun.

Iori said that when she was a student, the appeal of trivia was in doing something with her friends that was outside of one of their houses. Now, she is still looking for that community. 

“I think it’s also kind of cool to have your weekly standing thing,” Iori said. “I recently moved, and I’m trying to find a trivia group here, and it’s just cool to be able to have one event that you go to every week, and have that be your thing that you look forward to.”

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