# Trivia Night Etiquette **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 22, 2019, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465 "2019-07-22T17:55:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/1 "2019-07-22T17:55:52Z")
A local bar is having a trivia night. I love trivia but do not drink at all. Would it be against trivia night etiquette to go to it and not drink? Would I have an unfair advantage over the people who do drink? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/2 "2019-07-22T18:15:46Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > I love trivia but do not drink at all. How do you maintain hydration?šŸ˜• ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/3 "2019-07-22T18:21:07Z")
Iā€™ve been going to trivia every Monday night for a year. I go up and get Diet Pepsi. Sometimes I get food. Since Iā€™m not buying high-priced drinks and refills are free, I give the server a $5 tip, which is sometimes a 150% tip (if Iā€™m just getting a $3 pop). She appreciates and notices the tip, as she zips right to me with a full glass of Diet Pepsi as soon as I sit down. As for an advantage over othersā€¦eh, no. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/4 "2019-07-22T18:30:48Z")
If you order a soft drink or a snack I donā€™t think there would be any problems at all. If you order nothing, the bartenders and waitresses might be slightly annoyed, but thatā€™s probably it. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/5 "2019-07-22T18:30:57Z")
Remember that youā€™re ā€œcampingā€, occupying a seat far longer than you would on a normal night (and spending less on soft drinks than you would on beer), so tip accordingly. The bar is hoping for increased sales that would more than cover its increased costs, but that isnā€™t your problem. ---
**Author:** ![puddleglum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puddleglum/32/137_2.png) [@puddleglum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puddleglum)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/6 "2019-07-22T18:39:17Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > How do you maintain hydration?šŸ˜• Osmosis ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/7 "2019-07-22T19:24:22Z")
Yeah, have a soda or a shirley temple or something, and a snak. ---
**Author:** ![ThisSpaceForRent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thisspaceforrent/32/345_2.png) [@ThisSpaceForRent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisSpaceForRent)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/8 "2019-07-22T20:10:44Z")
An unfair advantage?? LOLā€¦ Why, do you think you are smarter than everyone else? I would LOVE to play trivia against youā€¦with both beers tied behind my back. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/9 "2019-07-22T22:20:16Z")
I donā€™t always get alcohol, but I always get a meal and a drink of some sort (lemonade) Brian ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/10 "2019-07-23T03:42:40Z")
> [@ThisSpaceForRent](#): > > An unfair advantage?? LOLā€¦ Because everyone knows that the first sip of alcohol your brain turns to mush. Seriously, I have known people who have never touched alcohol who believe that after half a beer they would have an unfair advantage because the ā€œdrinkerā€ could not possibly be thinking clearly. Iā€™m more like Dr. Johnny Fever and I do better after a couple of beersā€¦ especially in shooting pool. To the OPā€¦ go, have fun, nobody is paying attention to what you or anyone else is drinking nor do they care. Tip nicely and good luck keeping up with the regulars. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/11 "2019-07-23T04:10:22Z")
My experience of trivia nights in pubs - which is extensive - is that the participants are mostly not drinking as much as they would otherwise. They ā€œnurseā€ a drink or two over the course of the event, and this is quite likely to be a non-alcoholic drink. Many do not drink at all, or will have one drink after the event is finished. The benefit to the pub is not the margin on alcohol sales on the night concerned; itā€™s brand reinforcement - brings in people who wouldnā€™t normally go to that pub, establishes the pub as a focus of the community, that kind of thing. If you want to, you can stick to mineral water, and your conscience can be easy. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/12 "2019-07-23T04:33:09Z")
> [@Spud](#): > > ā€¦ > > Iā€™m more like Dr. Johnny Fever and I do better after a couple of beersā€¦ especially in shooting pool. > > ā€¦ Exactly! You gotta be in the window. After 3 or 4 beers but before 7 or 8, and Iā€™m an ace! At pool AND trivia. I stop over thinking the questions/shot. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/13 "2019-07-23T08:39:02Z")
Yep. The Two Beer Advantage. Iā€™ve got dart trophies all over my garage behind a couple beers. Fun story: I used to play trivia at TGIFridayā€™s and would routinely CRUSH the competition. After one game, some lady sitting next to me says, _ā€œWho is this Gatopescado Asshole?ā€_ I looked at her and said, _ā€œI know, Right? They always win when Iā€™m here!ā€_ ---
**Author:** ![BobBitchin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ea924/32.png) [@BobBitchin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobBitchin)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/14 "2019-07-23T09:04:42Z")
> [@snfaulkner](#): > > Exactly! You gotta be in the window. After 3 or 4 beers but before 7 or 8, and Iā€™m an ace! At pool AND trivia. I stop over thinking the questions/shot. Darts requires a few for me. ---
**Author:** ![Ronald\_Raygun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c67d28/32.png) [@Ronald\_Raygun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ronald_Raygun)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/15 "2019-07-24T08:10:17Z")
I host a trivia event at a local bar. People typically do not drink to the point where their question-answering abilities are impaired. Aside from that, I have no idea how much people consume. I do know that one of the members of our perennial winning team only drinks a Diet Coke, and the bartender doesnā€™t seem to mind. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/16 "2019-07-24T21:33:15Z")
Bars donā€™t care if you donā€™t buy alcohol; bars care if you donā€™t buy drinks at all. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-night-etiquette/837465/17 "2019-07-24T22:05:05Z")
There are several local pubs close to me that hold weekly poker tournaments. I go but rarely buy alcohol. This is not because I object to drinking, but because pub prices are too expensive, about three to four times as much as the shops. I buy a cola, or a coffee to drink. Sometimes I buy a meal there. Iā€™ve never had any complaints from the staff. Plus I pay an entrance fee for the tournament. They make some money out of that.