As a onetime PhD student at Rice (long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away), I enjoyed reading this feature story about its notorious grad student pub Valhalla. It's pretty much like the piece describes, and unless you drink there very frequently, you probably won't truly get its charm. I'll say this - the one good thing about Rice's draconian parking restrictions is that the place can now handle this kind of publicity without fear of getting overrun by riffraff.

Back in the ancient days of Bush 41 when I was doing my indentured servitude in the math department, a cup of Shiner would set you back 35 cents. That went up to 50 cents in the early 90s, just before they switched from Shiner to Lone Star Bock after the Spoetzl Brewery decided its flagship offering was a premium beer and set its price accordingly. I don't know what they serve now - it's been too long since I last visited - but it's good to know that it's still the best bargain in town. Well, modulo Rice's parking fees, anyway.

So here's to you, Valhalla. I was told once that Rice used to be the third largest consumer of keg beer in Houston, after the Astrodome and the venue formerly known as the Summit. Some names may have changed since then, but the spirit of Valhalla remains as ever. Down the hatch, y'all.