Carmichael’s Bella Bru café (5038 Fair Oaks Blvd.) has many more customers on Sunday evenings because of its new family-fun tradition—Quiz Night. 

 Despite its already substantial business, this restaurant has figured out how to attract even more customers on Sunday at 7 p.m.

The tradition, which began in December 2007, now has a “loyal following,” according to organizer and moderator Aaron Deter. 

Over the course of each week, Deter brainstorms 33 new questions.

Come Quiz Night, Deter’s job entails  going back and forth between the lounge and dining room of the restaurant, asking questions, and eventually tallying the results. 

At Quiz Night senior Michael Lewis and sophomores Lauren Taylor, Paul Kessler and I found a number of questions out of our generation’s knowledge, such as “Which company invented the first electric razor in 1931?” (No one knew) and “What does ‘M*A*S*H*’ stand for?” (Surprisingly, I knew). 

However, the quiz also included current-events questions ranging from simple to esoteric, such as “Who was Natasha Richardson married to?” (We all knew); “Which U.S. state grows the most peanuts?” (Michael knew); and “Effective April 1, what will the Sacramento County tax be raised to?” (Michael thought he knew). 

The answers are at the end of the story.

Deter claims only one aspect of his job gives him difficulties.  “It’s hard to write 25 questions that target everyone’s knowledge base.”

He says that he sometimes finds himself driving or walking around with a notepad jotting down possible things to ask.

For long-time regulars, the only way to assure answering at least one question correctly is Deter’s “Legacy Questions.” During every round, one question is given that Quiz Night’s founder, Bill Silvera, has asked in the past. 

However, even the repeated questions prove to sometimes be challenging. Deter claims that one Sunday, Silvera came in and got his own question wrong. 

Silvera began the game, which he ran for one year before retiring.

Deter says he is familiar with nearly all the teams. “Usually, I know everyone in the dining room, with the exception of maybe two teams.”

After going to Quiz Night three times, I also recognized some of the faces in the crowd, proving Deter’s point. 

As families or groups of couples arrive, they are given sheets of paper consisting of blank space for 25 questions, five music identification questions, and one tie-breaker question.

Deter travels between rooms to announce the questions. Several minutes are given for answers before the next question is announced.

During tallying, a total of 33 possible points can be awarded. Deter, has seen only one perfect score, he said, in addition to one 32.

The prize for the top three teams is money subtracted from their bills: $30, $20, and $10.

Though our team didn’t place in the upper tier, we were more than content with our ninth-place finish (of 12 teams). 

Deter said that these prizes are enough to draw in cheaters. 

Although some may be sly about it, Deter says he often catches cheaters or remembers who they are so they don’t receive credit, and doesn’t tell them they’ve been caught.

The wait staff also has their eyes peeled, mainly for cell phones (texting and Internet sources).

This is why if you play the game, your phone must be away if you want a chance of winning.

“Cheating teams usually don’t win,” Deter said. “In fact they really aren’t that smart. Some of them get so few answers right that it wasn’t even worth the attempt.”

Though cheaters are about, in general, Bella Bru’s Quiz Night is home to many enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and fun-seeking people.

And there is another Quiz Night that takes place at Bella Bru’s Natomas location (4680 Natomas Blvd.) every Monday at 7 pm. 

I plan to continue attending the café’s Quiz Night and hope to make it a tradition with my friends.

The answers are Schick, Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, Liam Neeson, Georgia and 8.75 percent.