College towns are often associated with iconic festivals, coffee shops, food, pizza, culture and so much more. Well, what about the bars? College towns have some of the best and unique bars full of great energy and a fun environment. The following are just some of the top iconic college town bars throughout College Weekends destinations!
#1: The Midnight – University of Florida
University of Florida students swear by this bar! It has a cheap bar food menu, from homemade chili, sandwiches, hot dogs, appetizers, and more, the food options are vast! But, more importantly, they have twenty different beers to choose from, with twenty-five hours of happy hour per week to enjoy. Plus, they offer live entertainment and games.
#2: O’Bannon’s Taphouse – Texas A&M
O’Bannon’s Taphouse is Texas A&M University’s favorite bar for beer tours, drink specials (we’re talking $2.00 wells), and a $1.00 discount on all drafts every day of the week. They have a great selection of beers, whiskey, AND scotch. Happy hours consist of up to 36 hours a week and have 75 DIFFERENT BEERS to choose from! They have live music sometimes, but O’Bannon’s is also ideal for game day!
#3: Zeno’s Pup – Penn State
Zeno’s Pub is Penn State University’s favorite place for beers and music. Every week, this bar features live music to pair with their famous Guinness. They have up to twelve hours of happy hour per week, 24 different selections of beers to choose from, and TV/sports packages for those looking to catch the college basketball or football game. It’s a great bar for beer lovers, and those looking to pair it with a fantastic soft pretzel.
#4: Ken’s Tavern – Florida State
Ken’s Tavern is Florida State University’s favorite college bar with its drink specials that last all week, 18 different selections of beers to choose from, and live entertainment. Ken’s Tavern also hosts TV and sports packages for all the sports fans! Ken’s is known for its sake bombs, beer pitchers, and darts.
#5: Mountain Sun – University of Colorado
The University of Colorado is often associated with this local favorite, Mountain Sun Pub. Mountain Sun offers not only impressive drinks like the Blackberry Wheat beer or Colorado-famous ales, but it also has an extremely impressive food menu that is made from local farmer’s ingredients. There are soups and salads to choose from, as well as sandwiches and house specialties that are vegetarian-friendly. For meat-eaters, Mountain Sun has you covered with its wide selection of different types of burgers. Mountain Sun hosts has up to an impressive 60 different types of brews to choose from!
#6: The Baxter Arcade – NC State
The Baxter is an NC State favorite for its dive atmosphere, arcade, and vintage charm. For comic nerds, Baxter also has comic books and video games for its customers! For gaming nerds and fans alike, this bar spot is a MUST TRY! Even if you forget quarters, they can provide quarters from the register and add straight to your bar tab. The Baxter also has Surge for non-drinkers! They mix it up into a cocktail called “She-Hulk.” The Baxter has 25 different selections of brews to choose from. They also have live entertainment and games. Although they don’t have a large dinner menu, it’s a perfect, fun spot to catch football or basketball games too on one of their many TVs!
#7: The Whig – University of South Carolina
Iconic and The Whig go hand in hand! Columbia, South Carolina, home of USC, has one of the best college town go-to sports bar called The Whig. It’s known for its casual dive atmosphere, drink specials, and reasonably priced bar menu. They have taco Tuesdays, sweet potato fries, mac and cheese, and chicken and waffles. The Whig also offer a great selection of beers on tap (I’m talking 28 different kinds!) and also has live music, trivia night, games, and Karaoke for those looking for some PRIME entertainment. For those looking to catch up on their college basketball and football games, The Whig has you covered! The Whig also has great food with great Yelp reviews!
#8: Ashley’s – University of Michigan
The University of Michigan’s favorite spot to drink and hang with friends in Ann Arbor’s Ashley’s. Ashley’s has a great selection of hot sandwiches and wraps, fries, burgers, soups, salads, and specialty dishes like fish and chips, mac and cheese, chicken pasta, and fish tacos. For those looking to have the full-on three-course meal, Ashley’s makes it possible by also offering desserts like a root beer float, sundae, torte, stout beer float, and caramel apple “eggrolls.” Ashley’s has a wide selection of draft beers ranging up to 35 and including many local Michigan brews. Ashley’s has fun and interactive bar games, trivia, live entertainment, and a number of TV’s to catch the game!
#9: Schrier’s Sports Grill – University of Arizona
Schrier’s Sports Grill in Tucson, Arizona is a favorite joint among the University of Arizona crowd. It’s the kind of place that has all the fun in one place including bar games, Karaoke night, bar food, drinks specials, and sports. From its casual, fun atmosphere, a diverse range of appetizer foods (I’m talking poutine, spring rolls, pretzels, tacos, pork grilled cheese…), Schrier’s makes sure that they can satisfy any of your cravings. Schrier’s also has special cocktails for brunch mornings! Moreover, Schrier’s has a homemade prickly pear syrup for cocktails out of their fully stocked bar, 16 different selections of beer and package deals for sports nights.
#10: McNally’s – University of Missouri
For students at the University of Missouri, McNally’s Irish Pub is the standard place for sports events, football, darts, pool, and other games. This iconic bar has classic bar foods like nachos, Guinness cheese dip, onion rings, wings, and spinach-artichoke dip. McNally’s even offers incredible strip, ribeye, and sirloin steaks on the menu. Additionally, McNally’s has happy hour every day of the week between 4 PM and 7 PM and offers pitchers. For scotch and whiskey lovers, McNally’s has an impressive list of different types of single malts available on site.
For other bucket-list worthy iconic college town bars, check out this list from 247 Sports that ranks the Best College Bars for College Football in 30 different college towns.
Drinks On Us… We Wish
What are you waiting for? No matter what College Weekends destination you’re in, you can enjoy a nice cold beer with your friends and family. There’s a bar out there with your name on it! From delicious appetizers, incredible pints, and amazing atmospheres, college town bars are iconic in almost every way possible.