For the majority of bar owners, the night before Thanksgiving has gained a reputation as one of the busiest bar nights of the year, even topping more visible holidays such as New Year's Eve or St. Patrick's Day.
For most students, Wednesday night is the first time they will see their hometown friends and family since the off-semester months.
Hordes of people will pour into their familiar hometown bars for what some say is one of the most eventful nights of the year.
"It's definitely one of our busiest nights of the week," said Kevin Morgan, general manager of the Buffalo Brew Pub in Williamsville. "It's not like a Wednesday at all, but more like a really busy Friday."
Morgan said he looks forward to the extra business that comes every year around Thanksgiving.
"It really started back when the drinking age was lower, like 18 or 19," he said. "Back then all the college students would be coming back from their first semester of college and want to meet up with all their friends from high school."
But Morgan said when the drinking age was changed to 21, business didn't sour on "Thanksgiving Eve."
"It really is a good night because no one has to work the next day and can sleep late," he said. "They can come out and have a good time."
UB students agreed that returning home has the added incentive once they've reached the legal drinking age.
"I am driving home Tuesday just so I can make it out that night," said Theresa Valella, a senior psychology major from Queens. "(My friends and I) are all 21 now so we can go out to this bar that everyone from my high school goes to. I got denied last year, so I can't wait."
According to Constantine James, a UB alumnus currently working in New York City, the holiday partying isn't just for the college crowd.
"Everybody at the office is going out that night, not just the young guys out of college," he said. "Going out downtown is almost always fun down here, but that Wednesday is just a madhouse."
As popular a bar night as Thanksgiving Eve might be, not all UB students plan on going out and drinking.
"I honestly never thought about going out the Wednesday before Thanksgiving," said Sena Ho, a senior biomedical sciences major from Spencerport. "I'll be working until 9 that night, so I'll probably just go to bed after, but now that I know about it, we'll see."
With a high number of college students planning to party before Thanksgiving, the National Safety Council has put out a recent warning that students should be careful that night, especially when driving.
Based on data from previous years, the council estimates that 532 people will die and almost 30,000 will be seriously injured in traffic accidents over the course of Thanksgiving weekend, largely due to drunk drivers.
"As road travel increases over the holiday, there will likely be more drunk drivers on the road than ever before, and it is time to stop those who injure and kill our loved ones," said Millie I. Webb, president of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers in a press release. "Drunk driving is 100 percent preventable and through increased enforcement and personal responsibility, lives will be saved."
