Matthew Hagan is a fourth-year political science major who is passionate about the Getaway Cafe. He will be graduating this academic year. You can reach him at mhaga004@ucr.edu.
Dear UCR community,
One of the best things about my experience here in Riverside was the time I spent at the Getaway Cafe, a restaurant and bar across campus beloved by a large portion of the student body. Now, it is at risk of being closed.
The first time I went to the Getaway Cafe was my freshman year. I was walking down the street when I heard music coming from inside. Curious, I went in to see what was going on and I found a full-blown party with music, drinks and pool. I did not have many friends in my freshman year, and due to various personal difficulties, I was somewhat isolated from the rest of the students I lived with in the hall at Aberdeen-Inverness.
But I found a community at Getaway Cafe that I could consistently count on. Just about every Wednesday, there would be a DJ, and just about every Wednesday, I would be there. Many of my closest friends today are people whom I met at Getaway Cafe through my regular attendance, and I do not believe I am the only one who can say that.
The University of California, Riverside (UCR) is a big school with a lot of different people, but Getaway Cafe was a place where everyone: regardless of their year, age, major, ethnic background or association or disassociation with greek life, could come together — on a Wednesday of all times — and enjoy a break from being concerned about upcoming tests or due dates. It is a place where someone like me, an autistic person who had long struggled socially, could make friends and connections with others.
Unfortunately, these DJ nights don’t take place anymore, which is a big reason why the cafe is now facing the financial crisis it is going through, and why it can’t pay the rent increase the school is trying to enforce upon it. This was because of rumors involving a patron being hit in the head. The owner of the restaurant, Mr. Shawn Sabbagh, claims the patron walked into the bottle drunkenly, while the patron claimed someone threw it at him.
Even ignoring the fact that, according to Mr. Sabbagh and the UCR Police Department (UCPD), there is no evidence to prove this person was hit in the head with a bottle, the entire community should not have been punished for a single action by one person. If we were to follow that logic consistently, where any institution can be ended by a single instance of violence, most bars would be forced to close down.
If the school fears for the safety of the students, UCPD, which is located across the street from Getaway Cafe, could station an officer or two during DJ nights to ensure people act orderly. They do that every Wednesday when the various school clubs hold their events and during the pro-Palestine encampment on campus, so why can’t they do the same here?
Some may object by saying that Getaway Cafe has become a hub for underage drinking. If this is such a problem, then just ID people at the door. DJ Nights used to cost five dollars per person, and they would give out wristbands. One solution would be to give a certain colored wristband to signal which people are allowed to drink.
Others may say that we need to get rid of Getaway to make room for new housing for students. Putting aside the fact that the building near the Getaway Cafe already houses students, UCR has plenty of places in which it could build new dorms. For that matter, they could modernize certain dormitories, like Aberdeen-Inverness, and make them so that they are halfway liveable for arriving freshmen.
Whatever the solution is, it certainly isn’t tearing down a beloved UCR institution that has been at this school since the days of George H.W. Bush, and whose continued existence is supported by the vast number of UCR students, myself included.
UCR prides itself on being a place where low-income students, many of whom come from Latino or Asian immigrant backgrounds, can climb up the social ladder. The owner of the Getaway Cafe, Mr. Sabbagh, is a living example of this. Born in Iran, he was forced to flee his home country in the wake of the Iranian Revolution. In spite of these odds, he managed to open a successful restaurant here in Riverside, one that has brought joy to thousands of people in the community. He is, by all intents and purposes, an example of the American Dream in action — a dream that Riverside purports to help people achieve.
If UCR has any regard for the will of its students or the community at large, it will not allow for the closing of the Getaway Cafe. It will allow them to resume DJ Nights as they did before early 2024, so they might be able to maintain a steady income.
I might not be here for long enough to see that happen, but I care about my friends and the people who have done good by me — Mr. Sabbagh and his business have done both. So, for the sake of his business and the future generations of UCR students who might not otherwise get the opportunity to experience what Getaway Cafe has to offer, I urge the UCR community to support keeping this restaurant open!
Op-Eds are not edited by The Highlander, excluding those related to grammatical errors and AP requirements. Op-Eds do not reflect the opinion of the Editorial Board and are not written by Highlander contracted writers.
