Bye Bye Bay State Underground

BU’s late night dining hall options have come to a close

By Olivia McKenley

Photo by Emma Almaraz

Imagine a place where midnight cramming sessions transpire, where friends finally reunite over late-night dinner, and where students unwind after long night shifts. The typical atmosphere of Bay State Underground—and BU’s other late-night dining options—meant a guaranteed meal and space to decompress long after dark.

But imagine that resource changing abruptly over email.

Boston University (BU) Dining Services has officially closed various late-night dining hall options, including Bay State Underground and Late Night at West Campus.

On Aug. 28, BU students received an email from ReusePass, the reusable container program on campus partnering with Dining Services. The email stated that Bay State Underground, Late Night at West Campus, and the Law School Cafe would all be closed for the semester. There has been no communication directly from BU Dining Services about the closures since.

Bay State Underground was established in 2018. The late-night dining option, located at 100 Bay State Rd., stayed open as late as 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. Bay State Underground, along with the other closing spaces, was created as a response to student feedback. However, this decision by the university has come as a surprise to the current students who rely on the facilities.  

“I was super disappointed,” said Julia Lacasse (Pardee '28). “Late Night [at West] was sometimes the only reason I was able to eat dinner.”

With the abruptness of the email release, it’s been challenging for students to see the intention behind the closures or what BU Dining Services hopes to achieve.

“This closure feels like the admin doesn’t care about the well-being of students,” said Kathy Doan (COM ‘28).

According to students, late-night dining was never about trivial menu alternatives. But rather, they served as a space for productivity, health, and making memories.

“I specifically would go to Bay State Underground with my Model United Nations (MUN) club, which had meetings that would end at 10:00 p.m.,” said Lacasse. “Now that tradition is gone.”

Furthermore, Doan reflects the many students on campus balancing both academics and employment. “Bay State Underground was my lifesaver,” she said. “I work evening shifts and get out of work a little before midnight, sometimes after, and so I relied on late-night dining for dinner.”

While BU has tried to compensate by implementing accessible food and drink kiosks across campus, there are still gaps in accessibility. Many of the kiosks don’t accept dining points, the calling card of the former late-night facilities.

Moving forward, students are hopeful, and slightly frantic, about the possibility of reopening at least some of the late-night options. 

“Reopening Late Night is the only way,” Doan said.  

“I normally don’t speak up about many issues on campus, but I was particularly impacted by this and hope that other BU students relate,” she said. “Together we can make sure that the admin understands where we’re coming from.”