The Half Barrel Pub & Cafe

August 3, 2007 [ Updated December 18, 2007 ]
Stop by when it’s not so crowded and the juke box isn’t blaring. Good selection of beer for a campus oriented place. Update 12/07. The menu has changed. -1 for the food score this time.

July 8, 2007
In the facility where Beer Sellar used to be. Decent place with a long bar and some games in the back room. Respectable selection of beers, especially for campus. Since it’s on the strip, it gets large college crowds late at night sometimes, so time visits accordingly. Reasonable prices. I try to stop by periodically.

August 27, 2006
Service definately depends on who is behind the bar. Overall the service is fairly good. This place does have an awesome selection of great beers. For a bar located near campus it doesn’t get too rowdy, but it also depends on what night/time you are there. Definately worth checking out.

April 2, 2006
I rated the ambiance a little low because it was a wednesday night and there wern’t that many people there. The service was also a little weak. I sat in a booth for 15-20 minutes, and finally had to go to the bar to order food. This was not good at all. Granted the place wasn’t staffed to capacity, but there were very few people there and the bartender made eye contact with me a number of times. Once I ordered at the bar, things went up. The food was wonderful, for a pub. chicken kabobs were more asian than the decor suggested, and the fried cheese was good as well. As far as selection it was great for a bar so close to campus. About 50 or so and quite a few on tap. I’ll have to re-rate when it;s more crowded, but this place might have some potential.

January 16, 2006
Good place to grab a brew. It’s a nice simple set up with a large floor space and a lengthy bar. They have an adequate selection for most anyone’s beer taste with a pleasing selection of regional bres. The happy hour is great, in that there are two of them: one during normal happy hour time and another later on. Easily the best place to get a beer down near the campus/ Cumberland area. I didn’t eat on my visit.

January 15, 2006
Stopped in for a few after dinner. A large very open bar. I counted 33 taps on the wall, 17 bottles and 2 cans up on a shelf. They carry many locals like New Knoxville, Olde Hickory, and Cottonwood. Very clean and fresh place. We were there early (9 or 10 PM) on a Saturday night before the big collage crowd took over so we had exceptional service from the barkeep. I liked the fact that if I had a question on a beers style or if I wanted a taste without buying a pint they would give you a shot glass sized sample on the house. Got to talk with riverken for a few. A great guy with big expectations for this place. We did not get any food on this visit but we’ll be back!

November 23, 2005
Ok, I manage this place and I am biased. Perhaps my ratings reflect what we strive for. I will assure you that you won’t find a better maintained tap system or fresher beer in Knoxville. We don’t have the most taps, but all of our taps sell and we won’t add taps until it’s justified. We are new, but I’ve managed numerous multitaps in Ktown and I believe this is the best. If we can improve your experience, please let me know!