All American Pub

The All American Pub really surprised me when I entered the newly opened space. The pub moved into an old rustic building that was built in the early 20th century. Previously, the space was used as club/ lounge, but now seats plenty of guests as a pub. What surprised me was their seating options for guests.

 

When you first walk in, you can sit at the bar on the right side, or you can turn left and sit in the main seating area. The bar ran along the entire wall of the building and gave guests plenty of space to order drinks. About 8ft from the bar were bar tables. Some people were choosing to sit at the bar tables to have more of a conversation with their friends instead of sitting shoulder to shoulder at the bar.

The main seating area is placed in front of multiple TVs and a large projection screen. There is no place you can’t see a TV. Guests have the option to sit at square tables or in booths, which are raised up from the floor level by one step. If you sit at a booth, then you are forced to watch your friend eat as opposed to sitting adjacent to them.

To the left of the main seating area, is a lounge that allows guests to sit on sofas and relax. The sofas are set up in 90 degree angles, which help increase interaction apposed to placing them face-to-face. The space also uses end tables and a rug to pull the room together. Behind both seating areas, are three large doors inviting guests to sit outside on a nice patio that overlooks the light rail. Sitting outside is a good option to escape the loud cheering over a game on TV.

Inside, the walls are old brick which connect to huge wooden beams on the ceiling. It creates a warm feeling that is inviting. I noticed towards the end of my visit, that I did not want to leave. We decided to leave our table and go sit in the lounge to finish watching the game.

The All American Pub can be found at 200 East Bland Street, Charlotte, NC 28203.

WFNZ Dog House

The dog house is an old car garage across from the Bank of America stadium that has been transformed into a sports radio station broadcast center and bar. It is the ultimate tailgate location in Charlotte. Inside of the garage, is an open space for drunk spectators to watch one of the 10 TVs mounted to the walls and is also home to the bar. From the garage, you can see into the broadcast room and actually see the radio hosts speaking as you hear them on the radio. Behind the garage is a connecting deck where tailgaters can over look the miniature turf  football field.

Every event at the Dog House is different and so are the layouts of the space. Today, the space was utilized to make tailgaters watch the game on the TVs. Next to the turf, was a huge mobil coffee RV that had a huge flat TV mounted in the side of the vehicle. Everyone who was not on the deck, surrounded the RV and watched the game on that. Adjacent to the RV was where DJ Incognito was set up and playing music. The entire crowd was tipsy and on the verge of intoxication. The space was very crowded. You only had three viewing areas (the bar, deck & RV). There was also a limited number of seats.

On the positive side, there were multiple mini bars set up all over the place! Woohoo! This allowed for people to stay in their viewing areas and only move when they wanted to use the restroom or find food. For the most part, people walked through the door that connects the inside bar and the deck. The second most traveled path was around the right side of the building. For security and alcohol reasons, WFNZ set up an orange parameter fence to keep everyone in with their drinks. They were also keeping people from bringing in their own drinks.

Towards the end of the event, children stormed the turf and began to play football. Most of the tents and mini bars were taken down and the music stopped to help encourage people to leave.  It didn’t work. Overall, the space was fun to interact in. It kept everyone close and felt like a party environment, even though it was family friendly. We should all go to the next tailgate party!