Food for thought with a local flavor

Trivia contests bring neighbors together

Joe Fenton, general manager of the Green Briar in Brighton, says he'll be hosting local trivia nights every six weeks or so. (Wendy Maeda/Globe Staff)

Just when it seemed like no one could remember Buddy Merrill's real name, Bill Donovan leaped to his feet.

"Lyman," the 60-year-old real estate agent yelled through cupped hands, identifying the familiar face who, before his death early this decade, had become legendary in Brighton as an honorary firefighter and a devoted fan of high school sports.

Donovan didn't have all the answers, but at Brighton Trivia Night last month, this lifelong resident of the neighborhood seems to have the upper hand. He was one of more than two dozen trivia buffs, ranging from 20-somethings to retirees, who gathered at the Green Briar Restaurant & Pub for a contest that organizers see as a symbol of renewed pride and area interest.

"I wish we could throw our own questions out there," Donovan said between rounds, trailing off for a few minutes to reminisce about when Jim Morrison and the Doors played a late-night concert across the street more than a quarter-century ago. "I bet I could stump a few people."

Even without strolling too far down memory lane, everyone was at a loss at some point during the two-hour game, in which teams compete through four rounds consisting of four questions each.

The key is to keep it local, says Joe Fenton, who manages the Green Briar and is president of Brighton Main Streets, a volunteer organization that has worked to revitalize the neighborhood's commercial district for more than a decade. "We try to add a Brighton flavor to it."

The neighborhood trivia night debuted in March and is set to continue about every six weeks, Fenton said. "For someone who was born and raised here, it brings a smile to their face. General knowledge is key, but the Brighton knowledge is what comes in handy."

It's adding that local twist to a universally popular barroom activity that gives residents a chance to learn "what our past was, where we are today and where we are going as a community," says Rosie Hanlon, executive director of the local Main Streets chapter.

"Last time we played, I put some questions together that I thought they would never get," she said. "But every one of them was answered correctly."

Almost a year after moving to the neighborhood, 24-year-old Lisa Hastings was able to recall certain attributes of photographs depicting local landmarks that were distributed among the teams. Contestants earned points by naming the landmarks, in either their past or present form.

Hastings didn't know the name of the business owner featured on a mural outside a shop, but she knew right away that the place was Imperial Pizza on Washington Street.

"This is great," she said as she went over her scorecard. "I love that the question was about a pizza place that we walk by every day."

Sitting across from her, John Fabiano, 25, found the local blend more challenging than the typical pop-culture questions he was used to answering when he plays team trivia every week in Charlestown, where he lives.

"I honestly don't know what's in Brighton and what's in Allston," said Fabiano, who stopped in for a beer with a group of friends and was pulled into the casual competition.

"When I was in high school, people just called it Allston-Brighton."