Athens Update

Kat Yancey Gilmore
Staff Writer

Copper Creek Brewing Co.

Address: 140 East Washington St., Athens

Phone: 706-546-1102

Hours: M-Sa 4 p.m.-2 a.m., closed Sundays; food served M-Th 5 p.m.-11 p.m., Fr-Sa 5 p.m.–12 a.m.

Taps: 4

Bottles: 24

Copper Creek Brewing Co., the Classic City’s only brewpub, features four house selections on tap and typically 24 bottled guest beers. Brewer Matt Buley, formerly of Burntstone Brewhouse, usually keeps an oatmeal stout or porter on tap, along with three lighter-styled beers. One new beer goes online every few weeks. House beers are $3.25 each; bottled beers are $3.50, with some exceptions.

Menu items run from $3 to $9 each. Standouts include: Cheddar Ale Soup; a half rack of baby back ribs with honey bourbon BBQ sauce, served with red beans-N-rice; and the pork chop – stout and molasses marinated, served with roasted red potatoes. The menu has some vegetarian items as well.

There are standing bar and/or menu specials Sunday through Thursday. The Steak-N-Ale dinner on Mondays will set you back $12.95, but includes your first pint. Prefer the ribs? You can get those on Wednesdays for $10, including a pint.

Copper Creek is a classy little joint. It’s a good conversational hangout for professionals and students. The crowd tends to be laid back, rather than rambunctious and rowdy. The bar is nestled in the heart of downtown Athens, in the same spot that housed the former Burntstone Brewhouse. Copper Creek is brought to you by the owners of two of Athens’ finer restaurants, Basil Press and Porterhouse Grill. It opened March 25, 2002.

Taco Mac – Athens

Address: 558 West Broad Street

Phone: 706-354-0007

Hours: M-Sa 11 a.m.-2 a.m.; Su 11 a.m.-12 a.m. (drinks served after 12:30 p.m.)

Web site: www.tacomac.com

Taps: 58

Bottles: about 100

This long-standing Atlanta favorite opened its doors in Athens on August 31, 2002. Its atmosphere is fairly typical of most Taco Macs – a sports-bar feel complete with 40 televisions. It also has more than 100 beers to choose from between bottles and taps and excellent burgers and wings. You’ll find this a good dinner spot during the those hours, but it turns into a good collegiate party spot as the night wears on.

Most menu items will set you back about $7. Beer ranges from $2.25 to $4.25 for pints and $2.25 to $8 for bottles. You’ll find lunch specials Monday through Friday, and menu and/or beer specials nearly every night of the week. (If you’re a wing fan, they’re .35 each on Mondays from 5p-close.)

Regardless of whether you’re a Bulldog fan, if you’re a beer fan who lives in the Athens area, definitely consider joining the Bulldog Mug Club. All need to do is drink 125 different beers from their bottle and draft selection, and you’ll get a special 20-ounce mug that will forever more be filled with your Taco Mac favorites at the 16-ounce price.

Taco Mac is expanding its patio dining for spring 2003.

Wild Wing Cafe – Athens

Address: 312 East Washington Street

Phone: 706-227-WING

Hours: M-Sa 11:30 am-2 a.m.; Su 12 pm-12 am (drinks served after 12:30 pm)

Web sites: www.wildwingcafe.com; www.wildwingga.com

Taps: 24

Bottles: consistently between 50 and 60

If wings are your thing, but you’re tired of the standard “Buffalo” fare, try the wild fare at Wild Wing Cafe – where you’ll find about as many varieties of wings as you’ll find beers on tap. Can’t decide between the wings and the ribs? Get the combo: a half rack and 10 wings served with fries, for $14.99 (an excellent treat). You can also choose from several hearty salads, and a build-your-own burger or chicken sandwich.

Food runs between $5 and $15 per item. Taps are typically $2.75 to $3.75, with some 20- and 22-ounce glasses priced from $4.25 to $4.50. Bottled beers are $2.50 to $3.50. There are drink specials every day of the week.

The Wild Wing folks say theirs is a “fun dining” environment. The cafe is located across from the Athens-Clarke County Courthouse, and around the corner from The Classic Center. You’ll find a lot of shirts and ties dining by day and early evening, and a lot of students partying late into the night.

The Athens location is the largest of all the Wild Wing Cafes. There is a large room upstairs that hosts live music several nights a week, and a large trivia gathering every Sunday evening. Specials and musical bookings are noted on the cafe’s calendar on the www.wildwingga.com Website.

The Globe

Location: Downtown Athens, on the corner of Clayton and Lumpkin

Phone: 706-353-4721

Hours: Monday – Saturday:  11 a.m. – 2 a.m.; closed Sunday

Taps: 14  (occasionally rotated to include seasonal brews)

Bottles: 19 domestic; 45 imports

Website/E-mail: http://www.negia.net/~brew/globe.html; globe2000@msn.com

Atmosphere: A very rustic, laid-back corner bar in an old building, with high ceilings and lots of windows. This is a great spot for those who want to pass the time people-watching in the afternoons and early evenings. Outdoor seating is available.

Clientele: A Classic City professionals’ haunt since 1989.  University professors; graduate students; lots of locals.

Food:  Ranges from $2.75 to $10.  Standouts include the Tandoori Chicken Salad, Blackened Steak Salad or sandwich, and the Steak Frites – an 8-ounce sirloin served with fries.