The Daily O’Collegian

It’s no wonder the amount of stressed out, caffeinated students is ever increasing.

The Student Union Atrium is always overflowing and sometimes the silence in the library is deafening.

Plenty of places exist off campus to sit with friends, get some coffee, talk and maybe study a little.

Here are the O’Colly’s top six off-campus places to study:

Aspen Coffee

Two locations: 111 W. 7th Ave. and 1323 S. Western Road.

With two convenient locations and all you can drink coffee for an affordable price, Aspen Coffee has become a welcoming environment for students to study or just hang out.

Katie McCafferty, a senior psychology major, said the atmosphere sets the mood for a great study session.

“We have great lighting and a good amount of space where people can come and just chill with friends or work on projects,” McCafferty said.

Daily Grind

230 S. Knoblock St.

The Daily Grind, open for the past 14 years, is conveniently located across from campus inside of Hideaway Pizza.

Danette Clarke, Daily Grind manager, said the coffee shop specifically caters to students.

“There’s plenty of space to study and we have free Wi-Fi,” Clarke said.

Most snacks and homemade desserts are less than $2, Clarke said.

Students can also make reservations to rent out study space at Daily Grind, which will stay open later for students needing to work on a group project.

Reservations should be made about three or four days in advance, Clarke said.

Hastings

316 N. Main St.

Books, magazines, music, videos and a little café make Hastings a popular place for students.

The café has tables and comfy chairs tucked away in quiet corners throughout the store.

“It’s usually never really busy at one time so it’s pretty quiet in here,” said Danielle Shields, a political science senior.

IHOP

611 N. Main St.

With a staff of many OSU students, IHOP offers one of the best study places off campus based on hours alone.

IHOP is one of the only places in Stillwater open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Melissa Wills, a psychology freshman, said IHOP has great deals for students.

“Students and faculty get 10 percent off their meal, and when they come in for lunch from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m, they get 15 percent off,” Wills said.

Panera Bread

113 W. Hall of Fame Ave.

Panera Bread is not only a popular place to eat off campus, but it’s also a good place to study, said Belinda Compton, general manager.

“We have a lot of students come here and bring in laptops as well as business people on their lunch breaks,” Compton said.

“We see a lot of students here, especially during finals.”

Free Wi-Fi is available all the time, except from noon to 1 p.m., Panera’s busiest time.

Therefore, people can only get on the Internet in 30 minute intervals.

Most Paneras only stay open until 9 p.m., but Compton said they stay open an hour later for the OSU community.

A wide variety of nutritious foods also makes studying at Panera a great escape from fast food.

Starbucks

300 E. Hall of Fame Ave.

With many coffee drinks to choose from and a staff that’s sure to wake you up in the morning or night, Starbucks is a top place to study.

The available seating inside and outside Starbucks gives students a lot of room to study.

Although they do not have Wi-Fi, Anna Vancleave, a hotel and restaurant junior, said they are working on that.

“We were supposed to have it when we opened in January, but it’s not available yet,” she said.

Starbucks opens at 5:30 a.m. throughout the week, which is why Vancleave said the staff tries to be so friendly.

“We’re here so early in the morning so we try to be as cheery as possible,” she said.