Next week, Eugene will be buzzing with students who are starting or returning to the ways of university life. Personal belongings will be organized in new living spaces, books will be bought and friends will be reunited. If in need of a break from moving in or to catch up with friends, nearby campus bars are a great place to go.
Campus bars include Taylor’s Bar & Grille, Rennie’s Landing and Fathoms Bar. They are located west of campus and are all within a block or two of each other. Among the three, every day of the week holds the opportunity for drink specials, entertainment and a fun atmosphere.
An abundance of different drinks are served from 7 a.m. to 2:30 a.m. at Taylor’s, located at 894 E. 13th Ave. Happy hour is Monday through Saturday from 4 to 7 p.m., and specials are also available all day Sunday. Customers are able to get 75 cents off any drink and $1.25 off pitchers, and select appetizers are half price during happy hour. Also on Sunday, Taylor’s offers free pool and shuffle board all day. At 6 p.m., Texas Hold ‘Em poker begins with a $20 buy-in. Monday is Hip-Hop Night with DJ Tekneek, and the drink specials are $1.75 wells from 9 p.m. until midnight. During Monday Night Football this fall, Taylor’s will offer $1 domestics until the first team scores and half-price appetizers will be available throughout the entire game.
Taylor’s features karaoke on Tuesday nights. If a drink or two is needed to get on the stage, the bar has $1 wells available from 9 to 11 p.m. Wednesday night features $1 beers from 9 to 10:30 p.m. After the beer special is over, $2 wells begin immediately and last until midnight. Starting this fall, live bands composed of college students will play Wednesday nights with no cover charge.
Thursday is Ladies’ Night, with live music by DJ Tekneek and special guests. Women get in for free and can buy domestic beer for $1, while men pay $1 cover charge. Beginning this fall, a $2-well-drink special will be available for everyone. Friday nights, customers can purchase 35-ounce domestics for $2 from 9 to 10:30 p.m. After 10:30 p.m., the price is $4 until midnight. The drink special for Saturday is Taylor’s Lemonade for $3.75, which is available until midnight.
During the school year, the patio and bar are typically packed on weekend nights. If the stage is not occupied by a disk jockey or band, two couches create a comfortable resting place in front of the big-screen television. Regardless of the form of music, from a compact disc or live, people migrate to the dance floor in the middle of the bar. The atmosphere is fun and high-energy, with friends gathering to dance, drink, play pool and talk over the music.
Fall brings new drink specials and events, and more changes are in store. According to general manager Justin Walker, Taylor’s will be expanding.
“We’re moving more towards a sports bar (feel),” Walker said. “We’re going to have all of the (television) sports packages.”
By Sept. 10, Taylor’s will also occupy the building next door, creating more booths to sit in, more space for the dance floor and more televisions and couches. Also, the counter will become a U-shaped bar to accommodate larger crowds. The patio will be expanding but won’t be complete until the end of December.
A block north of Taylor’s sits Rennie’s, at 1214 Kincaid St. Rennie’s doesn’t have a wide variety of specials like Taylor’s, but it has its own perks. Happy hour is from 5 to 7 p.m. every day except Saturday and offers $2.75 micros, $2 domestics and $2.25 wells. A lesser-known special at Rennie’s is available Sunday through Thursday; there is a second happy hour that lasts from 10 p.m. until midnight.
With a drink in hand, perhaps the signature Rennie’s Lemonade, customers can spread out between Rennie’s two levels. Downstairs has seating in front of the big-screen television and bar, at the counter and outside on the patio. More seating is available upstairs, both inside and outside. Another bar is conveniently located upstairs. Rennie’s has a great relaxed environment where friends can meet up to chat and play pool.
For a less-crowded bar scene, Fathoms “offers a small, quaint atmosphere,” said bartender Ty Burns. Located under Pegasus Pizza at 790 E. 14th Ave., Fathoms is not as well-known as Taylor’s and Rennie’s, and this creates a quiet and cozy environment. During the regular school year, Fathoms opens Monday through Saturday at 5 p.m. and closes whenever business slows down after midnight.
On Mondays, Fathoms offers free pool, while on Tuesdays, customers can buy a mini-pizza and a pint of domestic beer for $5 or get the mini-pizza and a microbrew pint for $6 until 10 p.m. Thursday nights Fathoms has a DJ starting at 10 p.m. and no cover charge. Every night, there is happy hour from 5 to 7 p.m. with $2.50 domestics and micros, and one of the bartenders will choose a well drink to have as a special until midnight. Occasionally, at the bartender’s discretion, a free pizza will come downstairs from Pegasus Pizza.
Even though the three bars have great drink specials and different events each night, one important detail must not be forgotten: the food.
Taylor’s menu is served all day until 2 a.m. From breakfast burritos to burgers, the bar offers an assortment of inexpensive choices. According to Walker, the breakfast pitas and burritos are popular in the morning while the nachos are the favorite at night.
A variety of inexpensive food is also served all day at Rennie’s.
“Our breakfast is almost like a secret,” manager Dan Geyer said. “For $2.95, you can get a couple of eggs, home fries and toast.” At night, a popular snack food choice is the bacon cheese fries.
Customers at Fathoms are able to order from the full menu at Pegasus Pizza until 10 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and until 11 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. Fathoms also has a bar food menu of sandwiches, salads and buffalo wings that are served all night long.
Those who are not yet 21, don’t worry about missing out on the food. Rennie’s allows minors until 3 p.m., and Taylor’s permits minors until 4 p.m. Fathoms doesn’t allow minors, but Pegasus Pizza is open to all seven days a week. According to its Web site, Pegasus Pizza opens at 4 p.m. on Mondays, at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday through Friday, and at noon on Saturday and Sunday. The pizza parlor closes at 10 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday and 11 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.