Birth of the Che Cafe

I love learning about the origins of our old haunts — those rare places in the San Diego construction boom of the ’70s and ’80s that actually pre-dated us! Case in point: the Che Cafe itself, which is profiled starting on Page 16 of this virtual version of the latest UCSD alumni magazine.

N.b.: While I appreciate the attention, the article gives me disproportionate credit for bringing rock ‘n’ roll to this hippie haven. (Considering I first saw the Answers at the Che and Noise 292 made our debut there as the Answers’ guests, it’s hard to paint me or my band as lone pioneers!) And it doesn’t quote some people I hoped.

That said, I really enjoyed learning about how that rickety old place got its start: “The three wooden structures … that today house the Che Cafe were accumulating grunge long before UCSD was even founded.

“Constructed in 1922 on U.S. Army land … the buildings did not reach their current location until 1966, when the University carted them across campus and spent $15,000 … to establish the first student center. Originally named the Coffee Hut, this new University-operated dining facility … even featured a hamburger named after the renowned chemist and Nobel laureate Harold Urey, who was a regular patron.” (Editor’s note: I’m not sure I’d sample a Urey-burger!)

Read Kristen Tobiason’s Then and Now: The Che Cafe!

“But in the evenings, the Coffee Hut was attracting a different crowd. In 1970, the A.S. Council presented a night of ‘groovy x-rated trash flicks’ and 15-cent hot dogs. Similar events followed and, over time, undergraduates realized that the space was essentially theirs to use — if they knew the right people and pulled the right strings.”

Read more about the carnivorous lunar activities that kick-started the Che!