When students have trouble looking for fun things to do during the school year, they have the option to turn to local Charleston hotspots for entertainment.

Standing toward the end of Jackson Avenue in downtown Charleston is the Jackson Avenue Coffee, a little coffee shop tucked in between two other buildings.

As small as it may be, the café offers more than just a cup of coffee.

Its walls are covered with paintings from various local artists, and the artists change from month to month.

Dan Reible, the owner of the JAC, said that every weekend he books an artist to come in and perform for customers.

A.J. Shubert, a pop artist from Nashville who grew up in Charleston, will perform on Saturday.

Reible said they host an open mic night every Thursday night, where anyone can get up and perform anything they want, while on Friday nights they host a jam circle.

When students who do not normally frequent the square step into the coffee house, Reible said they are usually shocked to find out it even exists.

“Sometimes, we even have students who don’t come here until their junior year, and they are usually shocked about it,” Reible said.

Downtown on Seventh Street, Indio Cigar Factory offers a hookah lounge decked out like a tropical hut.

Marvin Mirick, the owner of the Indio Cigar Factory, said they also offer different flavors of tobacco.

For students looking for a trendy music outlet, there is Positively Fourth Street Records.

The store sells Vinyl records, colorful Eastern clothing, candles and posters ranging from Marilyn Monroe to pictures of cats.

Savannah Johnson, a cashier at the store, said students usually come in to buy their pipes, posters and Eastern clothing.

“We offer more colors, more varieties of cloths,” Johnson said.

Adam Krischel, also a cashier at the store, said they try to let customers browse through the store and do their own shopping.

When a customer does not find what they are looking for, they try to accommodate them and order it.

Jaime Lopez can be reached at 581-2812 or jlopez2@eiu.edu