Going out on Marshall Street isn’t the most luxurious experience, but one campus bar is providing students with VIP service.

Velvet ropes, mood lighting and a new couch are only a few of the elements of the new VIP section at DJ’s on the Hill on Marshall Street.

For the first time, the popular bar has created a secluded room in an elevated, stage-like area that customers can now rent out for an evening.

Mike Cauchon, the manager of DJ’s, said Syracuse University students kept asking him for a VIP area with bottle service, so he gave in and decided to give it a try.

“They wanted a space where they could have their own friends, and they could do their own drinking,” Cauchon said.

Cauchon said the new addition, which can seat 25 people comfortably, is sponsored by vodka brands Ciroc and Grey Goose. After going through the process of getting the brands’ approvals, Cauchon said renters can choose which of the two they want to receive through bottle service.

The price to rent the private room is $300, which covers the two bottles of the renter’s choice, a private bartender and a private bouncer. In determining the price, Cauchon said they looked at other bars with private rooms, most of them in New York City, and went from there.

“In New York City, sometimes a VIP room would be three grand and would include only one bottle,” Cauchon said. “Obviously this isn’t New York City, so we wanted to make it a price that kids could afford.”

Cauchon advertised the VIP section on Facebook and Instagram about a month ago to get the word out about the new space. Three SU students reserved the space even before classes started, one of which used the area on the first day that the bar opened.

“I’m sure it will emerge into other things, but as of right now, we’re just testing out the waters to see how it goes,” Cauchon said. “It all depends on how people rent it out. It’s up to the kids.”

Allie Rose, an undeclared freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, thinks that the VIP section is a great addition to DJ’s on the Hill.

“The VIP section is definitely a positive change to the bar, and I think it’s a really cool idea,” Rose said. “I might invite some of my friends to join me in the VIP area on my birthday.”

Sophomore marketing and entrepreneurship major Gabby Del Vecchio has been a regular customer at DJ’s since her freshman year. She believes the VIP room is a cool concept, but doesn’t think that a lot of people would be willing to pay the money to rent it.

“We’re in Syracuse, not New York City or Boston, where everyone is classy and cool,” Del Vecchio said. “The VIP section is probably where people will pass out on the couches and get too drunk.”

—Asst. Feature Editor Clare Ramirez contributed reporting to this article.

Published on September 17, 2014 at 12:01 am

contact Phoebe: phsmith@syr.edu