We’ve infiltrated the ranks of Stern before, and left feeling discouraged. Now, we seek redemption, co-opting the Sosnoff Café as site not only for Sternies, but all NYU students to study. Sternies, contrary to popular belief, partake not just in learning, but also in the mundane, the human, and the ordinary desires of other college students. Sosnoff Café provides their sustenance, along with ambiance.

As we stood in Stern plaza, gazing right-ward, we felt a bit like the Tin Man and the Scarecrow sheepishly peeping over a rock at the Wicked Witch’s castle. But rather than beating Public Safety officers and stealing their uniforms, we decided to just try swiping in and see how that went. According to NYU’s campus map, this building to your right as you stand in Stern plaza, is just an extension of the Tisch building. Or perhaps, as the Yelp entry indicates, it is technically housed in the Henry Kaufman Management Center. (Either way, Stern plaza, to your right!)

Walking into the unnamed building was like walking into a different world. Or rather, a different, elite school filled with flatscreen TVs, where people are wearing suits, pointing at graphs, and handing out pamphlets for something other than GreenPeace. We were surprised when our standard issue NYU ID cards actually granted us access. Wait, no password? Were the guards sure we weren’t trying to occupy something?

Once we found our way to the surprisingly comfortable Sosnoff Lounge, we saw that Stern wasn’t all about steely grey facades and important-looking name tags. The lounge offers a good deal of seating, including beanbag chair-couch hybrids and less exotic normal couches. Best of all, highly coveted tables with outlets were available for use.

Around the corner of a weirdly pointless partition, (Are they trying to shield their offerings from the outside NYU world?), there was a coffee bar with moderately priced lattes, soups, salads and sandwiches, along with the standard fare of energy drinks and granola bars.

The only thing that stood out as being stereotypically Stern (besides the general superiority of the whole place) were the signs. They are all about time efficiency, but come on, we’re all New Yorkers, aren’t we? We can certainly sympathize. And we don’t mind taking extra microwave passengers along for the ride.

Here is a confession. We felt wildly jealous, and these jabs at Sternies are just our defense mechanism. We are in need of caffeine as much as the next student, but we always thought we had to wait in line at Oren’s in the freezing cold (or not so freezing, thanks global warming!) or settle with Java City, at the risk of being confused for a freshman in Weinstein.

But you guys over at Stern, well, you have bean bags. And nice young ladies that work behind the counter that smile and genuinely ask, “Why are you taking pictures? Do you find our signs amusing?” And weird, contemporary light fixtures that look like the crystallized tears of CAS students waiting in line for the Silver elevator. And did we mention the beanbag chairs?

Now that we know our NYU ID’s let us in, there is only one more hoop to jump through–that is gaining acceptance. Can we share your beanbag chair?

The Sosnoff Café is open Monday – Thursday 8 am – 8 pm, Friday 8 am – 7 pm, and Saturday 8 am – 3:30 pm.

(Photos by Ashley D’Arcy)