Princeton Terrace Club is one of eleven current eating clubs at Princeton University in

Princeton, New Jersey Princeton is a municipality with a borough form of government in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township, both of w ...

, United States. Terrace Club was founded in 1904 and is located at 62 Washington Road. It is the sole Princeton eating club located off Prospect Avenue.

Membership and culture

In 1967, Terrace became the first eating club to switch to a nonselective lottery "sign-in" system for membership, as opposed to the selective bicker system. Terrace was soon followed by

Campus A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a college campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls, student centers or dining halls, and park-li ...

Colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

, and

Cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against ...

. Today five of the 11 remaining operating clubs do not use the bicker system. Terrace was one of the earliest clubs to accept Jewish, African-American, and female members, and today is considered on campus to be the most "alternative," politically liberal eating club. Since 2000, Terrace has been a popular choice for sophomores, filling all of its membership slots either during first round sign-in or by the end of the second round. Terrace's motto has been "Food=Love" since the mid-eighties. The food is served cafeteria-style and is famous for being more vegetarian-friendly than other clubs. Members of Terrace often refer to the club as "Terrace F. Club" or "TFC". Other nicknames include "the mother," "mother Terrace," or "the womb," and members often refer to themselves as "Terrans". Weekend events at Terrace often include concerts of indie-scene bands from a variety of genres, including rock, hip-hop,

salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (Mexican cuisine), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: A ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, and

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to ...

. Many notable artists and groups, including former club member

Stanley Jordan Stanley Jordan (born July 31, 1959) is an American jazz guitarist noted for his playing technique, which involves tapping his fingers on the fretboard of the guitar with both hands. Music career Jordan was born in Chicago, Illinois, United St ...

, Flipper,

Phil Lesh Philip Chapman Lesh (born March 15, 1940) is an American musician and a founding member of the Grateful Dead, with whom he played bass guitar throughout their 30-year career. After the band's disbanding in 1995, Lesh continued the tradition of ...

Yo La Tengo Yo La Tengo (YLT; Spanish for "I have her") is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley (drums, piano, vocals), and James M ...

GWAR Gwar, often stylized as GWAR, is an American heavy metal band formed in Richmond, Virginia in 1984, composed of and operated by a frequently rotating line-up of musicians, artists and filmmakers collectively known as Slave Pit Inc. After th ...

Blues Traveler Blues Traveler (formerly known as "The Establishment" or "The Black Cat Jam" or "The Establishment Blues Band") is an American rock band that formed in Princeton, New Jersey in 1987. They are known for extensive use of segues in live performan ...

(Summer '87), ESG, Bim Skala Bim,

Elliott Smith Steven Paul Smith (August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003), known professionally as Elliott Smith, was an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and lived much of hi ...

Run DMC Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history ...

Modest Mouse Modest Mouse is an American rock band formed in 1992 in Issaquah, Washington, and currently based in Portland, Oregon. The founding members are lead singer/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. Strongly influence ...

The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, keyboards, bass, drums, vocals), Derek Brown (k ...

Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend is an American rock band from New York City, formed in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson ...

, Frightened Rabbit, Girl Talk, GZA,

Immortal Technique Felipe Andres Coronel (born February 19, 1978), better known by the stage name Immortal Technique, is an American rapper. Most of his lyrics focus on controversial issues in global politics, from a radical left-wing perspective. Immortal Techn ...

Stereolab Stereolab are an Anglo- French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's music combines influences from krautrock, lounge and 1960s pop music, often incorporating a repeti ...

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, and

Tortoise Tortoises () are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin: ''tortoise''). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like oth ...

have played at Terrace, some before they were nationally known. Terrace also hosts the Queer Radicals' Annual Drag Ball in October or November.

History

As was then common practice for newly founded eating clubs, when Terrace Club began in 1904, the members dined in a building on Olden Street known as "The Incubator." This small structure had previously been the original home of Cap & Gown, and had been relocated to Olden Street from Cap and Gown's current location. It served as a temporary home for many eating clubs while their own buildings were under construction or being renovated. In 1906, the club relocated to the current Washington Road location, which was occupied by a house in the

Colonial Revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archit ...

style which had formerly belonged to faculty member

John Grier Hibben John Grier Hibben (April 19, 1861 – May 16, 1933) was a Presbyterian minister, a philosopher, and educator. He served as president of Princeton University from 1912–1932, succeeding Woodrow Wilson and implementing many of the reforms ...

. This building was remodeled by architect Frederick Stone in the 1920s to the current configuration with its Tudor-style exterior. A tea party at Terrace in 1936 is credited as the birthplace of the idea for the short-lived Veterans of Future Wars, an organization that satirized the acceleration of bonus payments to World War I veterans by demanding that its young members be similarly paid for the services they would render their country in conflicts to come. In 1967, Terrace became the first club to abandon the bicker process. Terrace Club and Colonial Club were the first clubs to accept women following the University's decision to admit women in 1969. In 2011, Terrace became the first club to offer membership to graduate students. From 1977 until 1984, many of the sign-in clubs faltered due to declining membership numbers, and the Graduate Board seriously considered closing Terrace in 1983. As an attempt to attract new members, chef Larry Frazer began cooking vegetarian meals, a new concept on campus at the time. Frazer was married in Terrace Club in 1982 with the officers acting as attendants and guitarist

as the musical performer. Frazer later moved on to become chef at

Campus Club Campus Club was one of the undergraduate eating clubs at Princeton University. Located on the corner of Washington Road and Prospect Avenue, Campus was founded in 1900. It was one of the eating clubs that abandoned the selective bicker process to ...

at the short-lived DEC, and served as the Executive Catering Chef for the University itself. Much of the reputation Terrace enjoys today grew with the leadership and love of the late Barton R. Rouse, the creative force behind Terrace's parties and excellent food. Frazer had hired Rouse originally to serve as sous chef in 1984 and Rouse later succeeded Frazer as head chef for the club. Rouse was the originator of the club's "Food=Love" motto and brought an imaginative flair to his job, including the creation of themed meals and parties, which soon became a hallmark of the club. Rouse served in this role until his death in 1994.

Notable alumni

Harold Medina Harold Raymond Medina (February 16, 1888 – March 14, 1990) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and previously was a United States district judge of the United States District Court fo ...

'09 - Lawyer and judge notable for hearing landmark cases of conspiracy and treason *William H. Scheide '36 - Musician, philanthropist, and humanitarian. Relocated the

Scheide Library The Scheide Library once a private library, is now a permanent part of the Department of Rare Books and Special Collections of the Princeton University Library. It is housed in the Harvey S. Firestone Memorial Library on the campus of Princeton Un ...

, "probably the finest private library in existence in the world," to Princeton's Firestone Library. A primary funder of ''

Brown vs. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segregat ...

''. *

Mel Ferrer Melchor Gastón Ferrer (August 25, 1917 – June 2, 2008) was an American actor, director, producer and screenwriter. He achieved prominence on Broadway before scoring notable film hits with ''Scaramouche'', ''Lili'' and ''Knights of the Round ...

'39 - Actor, film director and producer * Russell E. Train '41 - President of World Wildlife Fund, 1978-1985 * Warren Eginton '45 - Senior U.S. District judge for District of Connecticut *

Galway Kinnell Galway Mills Kinnell (February 1, 1927 – October 28, 2014) was an American poet. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for his 1982 collection, ''Selected Poems'' and split the National Book Award for Poetry with Charles Wright. From 1989 to 1 ...

'48 - Poet, translator, and author *

Jacques-André Istel Jacques-André Istel (born 1929 in Paris, France) is a French-American recreational parachutist and investment banker and later in life, historian, widely responsible for popularizing parachuting in the United States. He is considered "the fa ...

'49 -

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and "father of modern skydiving" *

Richard Riordan Richard Joseph Riordan (born May 1, 1930) is an American investment banker, businessman, lawyer, and former Republican politician who was the 39th Mayor of Los Angeles, from 1993 to 2001. Born in New York City and raised in New Rochelle, New Y ...

'52 - Former mayor of Los Angeles *

Alan Blinder Alan Stuart Blinder (, born October 14, 1945) is an American economics professor at Princeton University and is listed among the most influential economists in the world according to IDEAS/RePEc. He is a leading macroeconomist, politically liber ...

'67 - Former Vice Chairman of the U.S.

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and professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University *

Madison Smartt Bell Madison Smartt Bell (born August 1, 1957, in Nashville, Tennessee) is an American novelist. While established as a writer by several early novels, he is especially known for his trilogy of novels about Toussaint Louverture and the Haitian Revolu ...

'79 - Novelist *

'81 - Jazz guitarist * Dana L. Harrison '81 - Finance then core organizer of

Burning Man Burning Man is an event focused on community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance held annually in the western United States. The name of the event comes from its culminating ceremony: the symbolic burning of a large wooden effigy, referred ...

festival. Worked with numerous spiritual and creative organizations around the Bay Area. ( Terrace President ) *

Douglas Rushkoff Douglas Mark Rushkoff (born February 18, 1961) is an American media theorist, writer, columnist, lecturer, graphic novelist, and documentarian. He is best known for his association with the early cyberpunk culture and his advocacy of open sour ...

'83 - Author and media theorist * Walter Kirn '83 - Novelist and Literary Critic *

Howard Gordon Howard Gordon (born March 31, 1961) is an American television writer and producer. He is well known for his work on the Fox action series '' 24'' alongside the Showtime thriller ''Homeland'', which he co-developed with Alex Gansa and Gideon ...

'84 - TV writer, producer, and showrunner *David Laur '84 - Winner of Sci-Tech Academy Award (Oscar) for work done at Pixar *

Jonathan Ames Jonathan Ames (; born March 23, 1964) is an American author who has written a number of novels and comic memoirs, and is the creator of two television series, ''Bored to Death'' (HBO) and '' Blunt Talk'' (STARZ). In the late '90s and early 2000s, ...

'86/'87 - Writer,

raconteur A humorist (American) or humourist ( British spelling) is an intellectual who uses humor, or wit, in writing or public speaking, but is not an artist who seeks only to elicit laughs. Humorists are distinct from comedians, who are show business ...

and

performance artist Performance art is an artwork or art exhibition created through actions executed by the artist or other participants. It may be witnessed live or through documentation, spontaneously developed or written, and is traditionally presented to a pu ...

, creator of HBO's ''

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'' *

Kate Betts Katherine Hadley Betts (born March 8, 1964) is an American fashion journalist. Currently she is a contributing editor at ''Time'' and ''The Daily Beast'', among other freelance writing positions, and reporting on fashion for CNN. She lives in New ...

'86 - American fashion journalist - senior editor at ''

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'', editor of ''

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. It was first published in New York City on November 2, 1867, as the weekly ''Harper's Bazar''. ''Harper's Bazaar'' is published by Hearst and considers itself to be the ...

'' *Albert Kim '86 - writer and producer, known for Avatar: The Last Airbender, Sleepy Hollow (2013), Nikita (2010), and Leverage (2008). Prior to his TV writing career, Kim was an award-winning journalist who worked as a writer and editor for Sports Illustrated, Entertainment Weekly, Details, and People. *

Nils Muižnieks Nils Muižnieks (born 31 January 1964 in the United States) is a Latvian-American human rights activist and political scientist. He had served as the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights between 2012 and 2018, succeeding Thomas Ham ...

'86 - Human rights activist and political scientist, Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights since 2012 * Todd Wider '86 - Plastic surgeon and Emmy Award-winning film producer *

Jack Weiss Jack Stephen Weiss (born August 21, 1964) is an American entrepreneur and former politician. He is co-founder of BlueLine Grid, Inc., formerly known as Bratton Technologies, Inc. Weiss is also a former member of the Los Angeles City Council repre ...

'86 - Former Los Angeles City Council member *Jonathan Weiss '86 - Filmmaker & Founder of Oswalds Mill Audio (OMA) high end audio equipment design & manufacturing company *

Sina Najafi Sina Najafi ( fa, سینا نجفی) is the founder and editor-in-chief of New York-based Cabinet magazine. Najafi has also curated a number of art-related exhibitions, including "Philosophical Toys," "Odd Lots: Revisiting Gordon Matta-Clark's Fak ...

'86/'87 - founder and editor-in-chief of New York-based

Cabinet Magazine ''Cabinet Magazine'' is a quarterly, Brooklyn, New York-based, non-profit art and culture magazine established in 2000. ''Cabinet Magazine'' also operates an event and exhibition space in Brooklyn. In 2022, ''Cabinet'' transitioned its magazine t ...

* Jennifer S. Hirsch '88 - Researcher, professor at Columbia University, social justice advocate, and author *

Ron Norsworthy Ron Norsworthy is an American visual artist and designer. His work employs notions of spaces and decoration of space as narratives about his lived experience as a queer person of color as well as that of his community/communities. His interdiscip ...

'88 - Visual artist, product and production designer (TV Shows, Specials & Music Videos) * Sophia Rosenfeld '88 - Historian, professor, and author *

E. Randol Schoenberg Eric Randol Schoenberg (born September 12, 1966) is an American lawyer and genealogist, based in Los Angeles, California, specializing in legal cases related to the recovery of looted or stolen artworks, particularly those by the Nazi regime durin ...

'88 - U.S. attorney, based in Los Angeles, California. Successful case in

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. Federal tribunals in the United States, federal court cases, and over Stat ...

Republic of Austria v. Altmann ''Republic of Austria v. Altmann'', 541 U.S. 677 (2004), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, or FSIA, applies retroactively. It is one of the most recent cases that deals wi ...

in 2004. President of the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust. *

Theodore Zoli Theodore P. Zoli, III is an American structural engineer, and a leading designer of cable-stayed bridges. He is currently the National Bridge Chief Engineer at HNTB Corporation and is a 2009 MacArthur Fellow. Career Zoli graduated from Princeton ...

'88 - American structural engineer, and a leading designer of cable-stayed bridges. 2009

MacArthur Fellows Program The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and commonly but unofficially known as the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation typically to between 20 and 30 indi ...

Vanessa Friedman Vanessa Victoria Friedman (born December 4, 1967) is Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic at ''The New York Times''. Previously, Friedman has worked at numerous other publications including the Financial Times, the New Yorker, American Vogue, ...

'89 - Fashion director and chief fashion critic at ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. *

Clifford J. Levy Clifford J. Levy (born June 15, 1967 in New Rochelle, New York) is deputy publisher of two Times company publications, the Wirecutter and The Athletic. He is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and considered one of the main architects of the digital ...

'89 - Two-time winner of the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...

, in 2003 and 2011, for the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', *

Josh Marshall Joshua Micah Jesajan-Dorja Marshall (born February 15, 1969) is an American journalist and blogger who founded ''Talking Points Memo'', which in 2004 a writer for ''The New York Times Magazine'' called "one of the most popular and most respected ...

'91 - American Polk Award-winning journalist and blogger who founded Talking Points Memo *

Mark Feuerstein Mark Feuerstein (; born June 8, 1971) is an American actor, writer, producer and director. He had an early, recurring role in several episodes of '' Caroline in the City'', playing the title character's new boyfriend, and later gained notice in a ...

'93 - Actor * Mohsin Hamid '93 - Author * Peter Moskos '94 - Author *

Jordan Roth Jordan Roth (born November 13, 1975) is an American theater producer. He is the president and majority owner of Jujamcyn Theaters in New York City. Roth oversees five Broadway theatres including the St. James, Al Hirschfeld, August Wilson, Eugen ...

'97 - President and majority owner of Jujamcyn Theaters *

Tim Ferriss Timothy Ferriss (born July 20, 1977) is an American entrepreneur, investor, author, podcaster, and lifestyle guru. He became well-known through his ''4-Hour'' self-help book series—including ''The 4-Hour Work Week'', ''The 4-Hour Body'', and '' ...

'00 - Entrepreneur, investor, and author *

Jonathan Safran Foer Jonathan Safran Foer (; born February 21, 1977) is an American novelist. He is known for his novels '' Everything Is Illuminated'' (2002), '' Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close'' (2005), '' Here I Am'' (2016), and for his non-fiction works ''Eati ...

'00 - Author *

Julia Ioffe Julia Ioffe (; russian: Юлия Иоффе, Yuliya Ioffe; born 18 October 1982) is a Russian-born American journalist. Her articles have appeared in ''The Washington Post'', ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', ''Foreign Policy'', ''Forbe ...

'05 - Journalist who covers national security and foreign policy topics *

Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Branden Jacobs-Jenkins is an American playwright. He won the 2014 Obie Award for Best New American Play for his plays '' Appropriate'' and '' An Octoroon''. His plays ''Gloria'' and '' Everybody'' were finalists for the 2016 and 2018 Pulitzer Pr ...

'06 - Playwright

References

External links

Official Terrace Club WebsiteList of shows at Terrace
of the clubs, at Princeton's official site. {{Princeton Eating clubs at Princeton University Historic district contributing properties in Mercer County, New Jersey