Jeremy Forrest Emerald
Ryan O'Connor constructs a pizza at Bene! Gourmet Pizza
Bene! uses fresh, tasty ingredients
to dish out pizza par excellence
Restaurant review
Aaron Shakra
Pulse Reporter
I spent last Thursday’s lunch hour
at Bene! Gourmet Pizza and ate a
meal with two friends. The restau
rant may be unfamiliar to many col
lege students because its two loca
tions — 225 W. Broadway St. and 4
Oakway Center — are a little way
from campus.
Along with Cozmic Pizza at 1432
Willamette St., Bene! is the best in
town (with Pizza Research Institute
at 1328 Lawrence St. coming in a
close second). The pizza is stacked
with enough ingredients to eat like a
hearty meal; the crust is not-too
thick, not-too-thin, tasty and coated
with olive oil and garlic. It only took
about two slices to fill my stomach
for multiple hours. Other eaters’ re
sults may vary.
But before I even tried the pizza,
I ate an “Insalate Greca”— a Greek
salad. This was close to a meal in it
self, and great attention to detail
Turn to Bene!, page 8
Gaming
continued from page 5
2 is already online and Xbox will be
connected Nov. 5.
“The online stuff is definitely the
future of gaming,” Mack said. “It’s so
fun being able to play with someone
from another state or country.”
The store hosts online games
every week, with “SOCOM: U.S.
Navy Seals” on Tuesdays and “Halo”
on Thursdays.
Big City Gamin’ also offers birth
day parties and game tournaments.
According to Field, competitive
tournaments have been hugely
popular.
“I think there are going to be pro
fessional video game leagues within
10 years,” he said.
Field opened the Eugene shop in
Deeember and a second store in Cor
vallis in September. The Corvallis lo
cation is even better-equipped for
tournament play, boasting an eight
screen, 22-seat game “stadium.”
“We’re trying to lead the industry
into competitive gaming,” Field said.
“The truth of the matter is that kids
are playing games now more than
ever. ... They might as well have a
place to showcase that skill.”
You won’t find fancy seating or
tournaments at Gek’s Game Grotto
on Olive Street. However, owners
Tim and Eva Jordan are also striving
to be an integral part of Eugene’s
gaming community.
The bright colored, concrete
walled shop deals mostly in PC
games, but also sells console games.
Tim Jordan said the store also car
ries a few used systems and occa
sionally stocks new ones.
Jordan’s involvement with cus
tomers is up-close and personal,
given that he and his wife are the
store’s only employees.
“We think of ourselves as a local
general store that deals in games,”
he said.
The Grotto also helps customers
locate hard-to-find games, and the
Jordans offer free game hints and
assistance to players.
“If someone is stuck in a game,
we will gladly help them out,”
Jordan said.
They provide resources, such as
Internet addresses, to players
needing “cheats” or help passing
certain levels.
"The truth of the matter
is that kids are playing
games now more than
ever.... They might as
well have a place to
showcase that skill."
Justin Field
owner of Big City Gamin'
The shop also has a referral sys
tem, where customers and the
friends they refer receive a $2
store credit.
Though Grek’s Game Grotto and
Big City Gamin’ operate differently,
both dealers say the most popular
game on the horizon is “Grand
Theft Auto: Vice City.”
“That will probably be the highest
selling game of all time,” Mack said.
Mack and Field also listed “Tony
Hawk’s Proskater 4,” “Hitman 2:
Silent Assassin” and “Lord of the
Rings” as releases that will likely
sell out quickly. Jordan said “Nev
erwinter Nights” is his fastest-sell
ing PC game.
New technology and additions to
game libraries may be transforming
the game world in drastic ways, but
Field said people still play for a sin
gle, good old-fashioned reason.
“Simply put, it’s fun,” he said.
Contact the Pulse editor
atjacquelynlewis@dailyemerald.com.
Book
continued from page 5
into Fort Knox. Other chapters ex
plain how to go over Niagara Falls in
a barrel, borrow the “Mona Lisa” and
meet aliens at Area 51.
Each chapter is broken down into
four sections. The first section lists
what materials will be needed. For
destroying a nuclear missile silo,
you’ll need things like a missile
transporter-erector vehicle, one
missile security team consisting of
15 to 17 armed “Security Police,”
two-way radios, Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, and Firearms permit num
ber 33 and duct tape. The next sec
tion gives the time required (eight
weeks for silo destruction). Then
there’s background information and
step-by-step instructions.
Despite the extensive instructions
given in the book, unless the reader
happens to be a millionaire or have
an aunt or uncle with advanced
weapons training, the feats are still
impossible. “Don’t Try This at
Home” is best suited for occupying
space on the coffee table or the back
of the toilet than anything else. At
least there the book will be able to
entertain your guests—and without
the use of any Kevlar vests.
Contact the Pulse reporter at
helenschumacher@dailyemerald.com.
The snow
is lightweight.
The mountain isn’t.
Unrestricted
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Just$179.
Express Pass also
(On sale two days
Ski Shop, October
Limit one per
When an endless series of winter storms from the Pacific collides with Central
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3,7oo exhilarating acres of the lightest, driest powder on the
You’ll call it the best winter getaway of the season.
For information, call 800.829.2442 or visit our Web site at mtbachelor.com.
Samurai
Duck
Tuesday, Oct. 22nd
• Gift Machine
Wednesday, Oct. 23rd
• Dub Reggae
• Community Sands
Thursday, Oct. 24th
• Alan Hertz
Friday, Oct. 25th
• Digital Nomads
Saturday, Oct. 26th
• Motherfunction
345-6577
990 Oak Street
Today's crossword solution