Learning about the history of a familiar place can be interesting. In my past articles, I have suggested some great places around the area that students should check out and explore. For this article, we will be diving into what it was like for Monmouth students back in the 80s and what was around for them to do. Just like today, students were going to restaurants, bars, clubs, and enjoying beach days, but with a little change of scenery than what we have today.
Today, students have various bars to spend time at like Johnny Mac’s, Porta, Jack’s, Bond Street, Donavan’s Reef, and so on. Back in the 80s, all these places were not around, and most of the student nightlife was in and around the borough of Long Branch with some places in Asbury Park. A popular nightlife destination for Monmouth students in the 80s was a bar called Chuckles on Broadway Street in Long Branch. Now currently an Italian restaurant called Johnny Piancone’s, Chuckles was a bar that hosted Monmouth fraternities at night during the week.
Another popular spot in the 80s was Chubbs Pub on Westwood Ave, which is currently a small apartment building. Chubbs Pub was another great night life scene where students could unwind and hang out with friends.
One of the more famous hangout spots at night was called the Brighton Bar. In the 80s, this bar hosted a lot of music shows as it was known for being a famous punk club that had a lot of popular artists perform. Today, the Brighton Bar still has its name but sadly closed permanently in 2021 and put a rest on its legacy in Long Branch.
Though we now know the sports bar Jack’s in Long Branch, in the 80s, it was still a popular bar destination but named Sirianni’s Friendly Café. Back then, it still had some live entertainment on weekend nights and was a hangout spot to watch some football and enjoy a beer.
Moving into what was around in Asbury Park during the 80s, it was still a hotspot for Monmouth students as well. Asbury Park has recently been coming back in popularity after its tough time in the previous two decades. The Stone Pony, the Convention Hall, The Wonder Bar, and the building that we call Porta today were still high attractions for Monmouth students as the music scene back then was creating a whole new generation of music. In the 80s, Porta was called the Student Prince, and here the Student Prince, Stone Pony, the Convention Hall, and The Wonder Bar all paved the way in creating a whole new musical style in Asbury Park. All of these places hosted new artists like Steve Vanzant, Bon Jovi, and Bruce Springsteen that Monmouth students had access to see.
Since Monmouth is one mile from the beach, there were a ton of students who took advantage of the warm weather early in the school year and enjoyed the nice warm sand and cooling water. During the 80s, the surfing industry was also on the rise in New Jersey. Since winter wetsuits were first brought into New Jersey in the 1970s, towns spreading across from Sandy Hook to Cape May were all filled with surfers in winter wetsuits enjoying the notorious waves we get here. In addition, I have personally met a few surfers in the water who went to Monmouth during the 80s.
Well, I hope you guys enjoyed a little history. For me being a little bit of a history buff, it was cool finding out what students did for fun around here in the 80s and seeing what places were still around and what was new.
