Going back to Athens town
There are plenty of good times to be had in Athens. (University of Georgia)
Come September, thousands will be making the trek to Athens for home games at Sanford Stadium. Many come in a day or two early; others linger through the weekend, enjoying the other attractions of a city widely acknowledged as one of the best college towns around.
Of course, you don’t have to wait for football season to enjoy the offerings of Athens, some of which are hailed in the current issue of Garden & Gun magazine, which calls Athens a place where “music, food and football” come together.
Besides hundreds of places to drink beer (as you’d expect in a college town), there are rich cultural offerings thanks to UGA and some great restaurants. (Last year, I ran down some favorite places to eat in the Classic City, and to that list I’d add the Royal Peasant Pub in Five Points, a tiny spot offering some of the best fish and chips around.)
But the thing Athens is best known for besides UGA and football is its internationally renowned music scene, which takes center stage at the annual AthFest festival of bands, movies and offerings for kids this weekend.
Any time is a good time to sample music in Athens, however. The best known venue in town is the 40 Watt Club, which books a mix of big names and local acts drawing both townies and the college crowd. And this time next year hopefully the rebuilt Georgia Theatre will be back in business, too.
Downtown Athens offers lots of places to eat and drink. (Downtown Athens Development Authority)
In the meantime, the Melting Point, located in what once was an old foundry (and which oldtimers might remember as the Athens Steam Company nightclub), is probably the listening spot most alums would like since it draws a somewhat older crowd with its mix of singer-songwriters, country, jazz and bluegrass.
As for what places besides the 40 Watt and Melting Point are worth checking out, I threw that to my 25-year-old son, who got two degrees at UGA, and he said it depends on your taste in music.
Reports young Bill:
“Caledonia Lounge is a pretty initmate spot with some really good indie rock, though it’s not always everyone’s cup of tea, as it can also be really weird indie rock.
“I actually like the outdoor area at Farm 255, which has a stage with those white Christmas lights and outdoor seating. That can be really nice on a pleasant evening and they do jazz, etc. in addition to rock. (A lot of these bars do different genres of music actually.)
“Flicker Theatre & Bar is another pretty small space and can get into pretty obscure local indie stuff, but it’s not all bad. They also have a popcorn machine with free popcorn. I’ve never been to New Earth Music Hall, but it draws a pretty decent lineup, especially in the post-Georgia Theatre days. Little Kings Shuffle Club has bands and it has a large outdoor area with seating and cornhole (the game where you toss beanbags. Beloved by tailgaters.)”
Bill warns that those of us who get goosebumps when we hear the trumpeter in the southwest corner of Sanford Stadium “might not be so into places like Flicker and Caledonia, as those are the domain of the indie/artsy crowd of Athens. If they really want to see the Athens music scene, those are places to go,” but his experience is that many fans in Athens for a football game “want to get drunk in a bar that plays Journey at obnoxious levels and hit on some of the lovely co-eds. (Fortunately, there are about 40 of those bars downtown.)”
Bill says that’s why “I was able to sit at a table and have a conversation at Manhattan Cafe (westside of downtown indie bar where I’ve seen Mike Mills of R.E.M. multiple times) and could barely move in the Allgood Lounge (large undergrad bar with loud music and virtually no decor or charm to speak of) on the Saturday night after the South Carolina game.”
One thing’s for sure, whether the loud bar scene is your thing or you’d rather sip a quiet one at Trappeze or the Globe, Athens is a great place to hang out, even when the Dawgs aren’t playing. And, hey, if you drop by Bailey’s American Tavern, you might even run into Boss or Champ!
After a game or anytime, what are your favorite Athens nightspots?
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161 comments Add your comment
JB
June 25th, 2010
2:47 pm
Guy thinks Tech and Grant Field screams college football……pretty weak experience except for the pocket protector crowd.
Jan Kemp
June 25th, 2010
2:49 pm
Athens blows…
JB
June 25th, 2010
2:50 pm
There are a few Major college programs you can walk up the gate to 30 minutes before kick off and buy a ticket…..Duke, Vandy, Wake Forrest…………..and of course Ga. Tech…………Nuff said.
guy
June 25th, 2010
2:50 pm
i acknowledged that i liked athens as a town (with the exception of the uga fans). and for sure racist redneck crap permeates the south (and elsewhere). i was pointing out that having an entire bar dedicated to and celebrating this crap in athens is a little disappointing.
Dirty Dawg
June 25th, 2010
2:52 pm
Hold on here…what about Uppy’s, or Zippy’s, or The Old South, or the MBI Club, or 29/78, or even that new place – Allen’s Basement? Man you guys just don’t get out much.
JB
June 25th, 2010
2:52 pm
Jan, Tell us about tailgating on Techwood Ave…………………………this will be good.
GeezusDawg
June 25th, 2010
2:55 pm
Nowhere Bar
JB
June 25th, 2010
2:58 pm
guy……believe it or not, I had a TV when Boston, Ma. integrated the Boston public schools……………………nothing racist going on there………..
GeezusDawg
June 25th, 2010
3:00 pm
Guy,
It’s called a theme – most restaurants have them. When I go in a place and don’t like the theme, I leave as there are MANY other options in town.
guy
June 25th, 2010
3:03 pm
the difference there JB is that in the ensuing 50+ years since then, most people have moved on.
the plus side of being that old is that you were actually alive when uga won a national title, so at least you’ve got that going for you.
which is nice.
Old Dawg
June 25th, 2010
3:05 pm
Bob Dylan: You obviously haven’t seen a copy of Garden & Gun. It’s a slick, cool review of all aspects of the South, with outstanding photography and copy.
I think you were actually referring to Trailer Trash Living … and you’re its personal research editor!
guy
June 25th, 2010
3:06 pm
i fully understand the concept of a theme. but that particular one is pretty crass and offensive this day in age. it reflects poorly on the town in my opinion. obviously i wont be going back, and didnt stay for very long in the first place. if that’s your attitude, why not just open up a nazi themed bar across the street? its just a theme right? all in good fun?
JB
June 25th, 2010
3:08 pm
missed the one in the 40’s, but 1980 was a good one……..people have moved on up North….really? guy, bottom line, enjoy your time at the Tech games…….we will enjoy our time in Athens…….4 tickets, 4 pizza’s, 4 cokes…………..hard to beat……..
FBR
June 25th, 2010
3:11 pm
The greatest five years of my life—-I hated to graduate and leave it—You have to experience it to really understand what a joy it is.
guy
June 25th, 2010
3:12 pm
i enjoy my time at both tech and UF games. the tailgating is just fine thanks, esp in jacksonville. the post game celebrations are a blast too, though you may not have the same opinion.
GeezusDawg
June 25th, 2010
3:12 pm
To each their own.
JB, In 1991 I walked from endzone to endzone across the football field at Duke on my way to the Duke v Carolina basketball game at Cameron. No fences or anything. I was amazed.
bbdawg
June 25th, 2010
3:12 pm
I’m so old I remember the Sugar Shack where the Ramada now standds. Also, who remember’s Effie’s? Effie had some sweet “young thangs” wayward boys could visit. Some guys got bricks when Effie’s closed. Charlie Williams was always my favorite party place. Mauricre Williams and the Zodiacs was my favorite band. And yes I’ll soon be eligible for Medicare.
Spike
June 25th, 2010
3:13 pm
Guy, you have run out of things to complain about. Do you know that the “i” should be a capital letter? You seem to be so much smarter than the rest of us.
guy
June 25th, 2010
3:17 pm
and JB, i never said everyone up north has moved on from racism. i said that there is still stupid racist crap going on everywhere, but probably moreso in the south. i’ve never lived further north than south carolina, but i somehow doubt that youre going to find a bar such as beauregard’s up north.
EAZY E
June 25th, 2010
3:18 pm
The Armadillo, Boar’s Head, the Fifth Quarter, Firehouse, and Classic City Saloon all were the place to go back in the late 90’s! Awesome times and hot babes!
Why did I ever leave! Athens rocks.
those were the days
June 25th, 2010
3:18 pm
Herbie’s was always fun after an evening on the town
Cobia2000
June 25th, 2010
3:19 pm
Drink and Drown at the B&L Warehouse! Oh, what drunkeness
How2fish
June 25th, 2010
3:20 pm
guy its America if a bar etc is not your cup of tea don’t go there..I promise you there are a LOT of theme bars in the ATL I won’t go to..however unlike you I don’t think they should be shutdown simply because I don’t like them. And I just got back from Cleveland and if you thinks rednecks and racists are only a Southern problem forget about it. Hell my Yankee in-laws (New Yorkers) make more racist comments in a day they I hear in ATL in a month..and they are completely unaware its even offensive.
JB
June 25th, 2010
3:21 pm
If I were a Tech fan…..I would latch on to UF also…………….They do something regularly that Tech has done once in 9 years………and we shouldn’t of lost that one……3 points with a total defensive let down…..Tech act’s like they won by 30………… But I guess we would to after that many years……Johnson has made then better, but lack of depth and defense and no passing game will keep them average,
How2fish
June 25th, 2010
3:24 pm
bbdawg I was trying to tell a friend from Alabama about Effie’s the other day and could not for the life of me remember the name..I was in High School when they shut it down.
DIT
June 25th, 2010
3:25 pm
Talk about feeling old. I remember seeing R.E.M. at the Windup Club there in Athens back in 1980 before they were popular.
Moosh
June 25th, 2010
3:26 pm
EAZY E – We must have been rolling through athens around the same time, that was practically the list I had in mind. Good times…
The Real SugarHillDawg
June 25th, 2010
3:27 pm
Did anybody ever find who killed T. K. Hardy. There was a bar named after him when I went there.
JB
June 25th, 2010
3:28 pm
guy, you nor I or UGA or Tech or Obama will ever change that. I don’t like it, but you and I friend can’t change the world……..By the way, I was pulling for Tech against Iowa……I don’t know many Tech alum who EVER pull for Georgia…..I ‘ve never seen such hate.
those were the days
June 25th, 2010
3:30 pm
Papa Joe’s
O’Malley’s $1 Pitcher night and Jay Memory
TK Harty’s Zoo night
Lowery’s nickle night
Sugar Bowl
Sky’s Place
Half Moon Pub
Taco Stand
City Bar
92 UGA Grad
June 25th, 2010
3:31 pm
JB, you’re a better man than I am…I wouldn’t cheer for Tech if they played the Taliban.
DIT
June 25th, 2010
3:33 pm
I remember O’Malley’s (well sort of. ha ha)
Spike
June 25th, 2010
3:33 pm
Don’t forget the Waffle House at Five Points. Good grease at three a.m.!!
Spike
June 25th, 2010
3:34 pm
The Shrimp Boat.
Pago Pago Dawg
June 25th, 2010
3:35 pm
Man, you guys are lucky you weren’t in Athens 1958-1960..wasn’t much going on then.
UGA '79
June 25th, 2010
3:36 pm
Message to friends of Athens: Ignore the cretin who has infested the comments with his illiterate remarks.
guy
June 25th, 2010
3:36 pm
how2: fair enough point. i never said the bar should be shut down, just that i find it disheartening that such a place a) exists, and b) was overflowing crowded on a friday night in between semesters in athens. and again, i realize there are racists everywhere, im just more familiar with the southern variety as ive lived here my entire life.
jb: no latching here. im a fan of both because i have degrees from both schools. i wont pretend like tech is at the same level football-wise as uga, but we have a decent program with good tradition that wins more than we lose. thats good enough for me, and if we can beat the mutts, then all the better. just icing on the cake. as for tech acting like we won by 30, i could say the same about uga’s few wins of florida lately, or even your win last year over tech. that game was much closer than most uga fans would like to admit. and i’ll agree on our lack of passing game holding us back right now.
and my caps lock key might be broken, but your period key definitely is.
JB
June 25th, 2010
3:39 pm
It’s in our best interest that Tech be decent, beating them 9 of ten years helps strength of Schedule and as with this year, ACC champs and all, it was very gratifying.
GeezusDawg
June 25th, 2010
3:40 pm
You would think a Tech guy could re-wire his keyboard – or that he would at least have about 3 or 4 spares.
guy
June 25th, 2010
3:42 pm
jb: as for rooting for uga, just flip your perspective. would you ever root for UF? probably not.
Abe
June 25th, 2010
3:43 pm
Guy, you really like the forest but can’t stand the all the trees. Right? A little cheese with your whine? Regardless of what you think you not the smartest ‘guy’ in the room. Since you think you know it all go start your own blog.
DIT
June 25th, 2010
3:45 pm
People when you respond to Guy your just feeding him. Ignore him. He has a hate for people that went or are fans of UGA. Leave him be. We all know that UGAer’s are “Cream of The Crop” Go Dawgs! Anyone remember Tyrones?
JB
June 25th, 2010
3:48 pm
guy, born and raised in Atlanta and around Tech football a lot….ended up at UGA for obvious reasons ( not Tech Material) and hat’s off to you for 2 degree’s. So, I ‘m a Georgia ( the state) first, Tech is a School in Georgia, and Florida is the enemy. I got to know George Morris ( Tech hero) very well, and loved the man…….This blog is high school banter as you know.
92 UGA Grad
June 25th, 2010
3:56 pm
Abe, you’re barking up the wrong tree when trying to get a gnat to go back to their blog…they don’t really care about their program or school…it just makes them feel giddy to find anything about Athens or UGA to complain about. It makes them feel the same way we feel when we’re out on a date with our beautiful wife/girlfriend…they don’t understand that feeling as it has never happened to them, so they go back to what is to the nerds, the next best thing.
guy
June 25th, 2010
3:58 pm
the state pride thing doenst work the same way for tech. it’s pretty much big brother syndrome. tech fans get sick of getting beat by georgia, and hearing it from uga fans, just as uga fans get sick of the florida beatings and subsequent trash talk.
destin dawg
June 25th, 2010
4:07 pm
what about the Frog Pond lounge in the Ramada Inn downtown ?????? am I old or what ????
Contractor
June 25th, 2010
4:10 pm
guy,
You’re a typical Liberal piece of garbage. Sit there and run your mouth about the Old South all you want, but it will not change the fact that it happened. There was a whole other element to the south besides slavery, but I figured someone as small winded as yourself can’t read that far into something. There are most racist people living up North than here in the South whether they want to admit it or not, so no, they haven’t moved on. That’s not the point. Everyone in this country raves about southern hospitality, the food, and the overall beauty of the people, history, and landscape. If more people grew up with the upraising and manners of southern folks, maybe this country wouldn’t have half the trouble it does with the declining well being of today’s youth and lack of education. We definitely could do without and want to do without your kind. Run your mouth all you want, but the pride of the south will not go away, even for someone as yourself. So go choke on a bone chump, and that’s from the bottom of my southern heart, jack off.
92 UGA Grad
June 25th, 2010
4:16 pm
guy, so many people have shared their memories of Athens in this blog, why don’t you regale us with the story about the time you were mugged walking back to the dorm from the Varsity. And remember not to leave out the details about how the mugger took your Frosted Orange and dumped it on your head after he copped your wallet and scientific calculator….what a tool.
ugaclassof2004
June 25th, 2010
4:17 pm
Fun town! Gonna give major shout outs to the 40 Watt, Tasty World, Loco’s, Gutherie’s, Little Italy, Boar’s Head, Flanagan’s, the Village Idiot, and El Centro! Saw George Clinton at the 40 Watt and Ludacris/Outkast on the Herty Field lawn!
And let’s have a moment of silence for Georgia Theatre, Wild Wing Cafe, and Gator Haters!
Cobia2000
June 25th, 2010
4:19 pm
Downtown Varsiy
The Mayflower
Athens Fair when it was across from the YMCA
Effies on Elm