https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/Berkeley-s-Bear-s-Lair-to-be-reborn-with-13186124.php?t=b940ce7a31

Why is there an update to this today? I thought Bear's Lair had been re-opened for quite some time now.

StillNoStanfurdium said:

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Why is there an update to this today? I thought Bear's Lair had been re-opened for quite some time now.

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The article is very confusing, but from what I can tell, it's now temporarily closed to be "re-worked." But the article doesn't mention the reopening 2 or 3 years ago...it makes it sound like the Bear's Lair has been closed since 2012.

HighlandDutch said:

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StillNoStanfurdium said:

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Why is there an update to this today? I thought Bear's Lair had been re-opened for quite some time now.

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The article is very confusing, but from what I can tell, it's now temporarily closed to be "re-worked." But the article doesn't mention the reopening 2 or 3 years ago...it makes it sound like the Bear's Lair has been closed since 2012.

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For all intents and purposes, the Bear's Lair has been closed since 2012.

The current Bears Lair is located on the ground floor of the newer building that replaced the old Eshelman. I don't know the plan for this "new' Bears Lair but perhaps it is going into the space vacated in 2012 by the former Bear's Lair.

Either way, I agree that the article was a bit confusing., at least to those of us who used to occasionally spend time in the old Bears Lair and have yet to step foot in the existing one.

Perhaps there is multiple Bear's Lairs like there was multiple Tony Cliftons.

Weird article, but yes, would appear that it's going to be more bar centric. That's good.

while the current bears lair is new with a decent (but basic) menu it lacks personality and a college atmosphere. way too sterile, and after going there once I really had no desire to return (although went there once more a year later due to location)

therefore a change is welcome

They poured a drinkable Manhattan which helped me gird my loins prior to attending each Bears' hoop loss.

bearister said:

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They poured a drinkable Manhattan which help me gird my loins prior to attending each Bears' hoop loss.

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What you do with your loins sir, doesn't belong on these pages..

HoopDreams said:

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while the current bears lair is new with a decent (but basic) menu it lacks personality and a college atmosphere. way too sterile, and after going there once I really had no desire to return (although went there once more a year later due to location)

therefore a change is welcome

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I went once after the remodel, and this is why it bombed:

1) There was a host
2) Cloth napkin
3) $20 for a burger fries and coke
4) One tv, no sports/cable

petalumabear said:

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bearister said:

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They poured a drinkable Manhattan which help me gird my loins prior to attending each Bears' hoop loss.

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What you do with your loins sir, doesn't belong on these pages..

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I got no objections on cyberbears.

socaliganbear said:

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HoopDreams said:

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while the current bears lair is new with a decent (but basic) menu it lacks personality and a college atmosphere. way too sterile, and after going there once I really had no desire to return (although went there once more a year later due to location)

therefore a change is welcome

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I went once after the remodel, and this is why it bombed:

1) There was a host
2) Cloth napkin
3) $20 for a burger fries and coke
4) One tv, no sports/cable

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Not really a student oriented pub at all due to price and atmosphere. Patio wasn't too inviting, was kinda small, and there were no pitchers iirc.

Not sure this new iteration will be any better but I'm sure I'll try it.

Now throw in some student oriented afternoon/happy hour specials, and it could be good. Nor sure the chefs/owners want to have their names associated with that kind of debauchery though. If one isn't willing to risk a couple of liquor license violations every now and then, is it really a student bar?

Also the Chronicle have a bunch of morons who are hard up for stories:

https://m.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Berkeley-Time-10-minutes-late-university-policy-13182558.php

Pretty sad write-up. Is that fact that classes are 50 minutes (just like everywhere else), but start at 10 after instead of ending 10 before that hard of a concept to grasp?

socaliganbear said:

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I went once after the remodel, and this is why it bombed:

1) There was a host
2) Cloth napkin
3) $20 for a burger fries and coke
4) One tv, no sports/cable

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On the other hand, I think the new Bears Lair has done a very credible recreation of a Chipotle, so you have to give the market research team credit for that.

northendbear said:

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socaliganbear said:

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I went once after the remodel, and this is why it bombed:

1) There was a host
2) Cloth napkin
3) $20 for a burger fries and coke
4) One tv, no sports/cable

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On the other hand, I think the new Bears Lair has done a very credible recreation of a Chipotle, so you have to give the market research team credit for that.

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Great thing about sterile places like Chipotle is that lack of communicable diseases.

bearister said:

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They poured a drinkable Manhattan which helped me gird my loins prior to attending each Bears' hoop loss.

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Try gilding.

northendbear said:

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socaliganbear said:

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I went once after the remodel, and this is why it bombed:

1) There was a host
2) Cloth napkin
3) $20 for a burger fries and coke
4) One tv, no sports/cable

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On the other hand, I think the new Bears Lair has done a very credible recreation of a Chipotle, so you have to give the market research team credit for that.

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It's the *finest* Whole Foods bar I've ever seen.

ColoradoBear said:

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Also the Chronicle have a bunch of morons who are hard up for stories:

https://m.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Berkeley-Time-10-minutes-late-university-policy-13182558.php

Pretty sad write-up. Is that fact that classes are 50 minutes (just like everywhere else), but start at 10 after instead of ending 10 before that hard of a concept to grasp?

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Agree the article is a total puff piece.
But Even after the logic of the 10 minute delayed start is explained the article tries to argue that the policy does not make sense.

As a freshman I had a class at Kroeber then back to back a class at Tolman.
It would take me at least 10-15 minutes to get my books and notes together after the class, get out of Kroeber, walk to Tolman, then get into the classroom and find my seat.
That assumed that I did not spend any time talking to friends.
No way could I have made it if I had had to go uphill to Kroger instead of downhill to Tolman.
The comment from the one student who said he had no trouble getting from North Gate to Haas is not a fair comparison done that distance is not all that far and it is mostly flat/same elevation (if he walked from North Gate, Behind the Engineering Bldg, past the Bechtel Building, past Hearst Mining Circle , then past Lewis Hall.

GivemTheAxe said:

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ColoradoBear said:

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Also the Chronicle have a bunch of morons who are hard up for stories:

https://m.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Berkeley-Time-10-minutes-late-university-policy-13182558.php

Pretty sad write-up. Is that fact that classes are 50 minutes (just like everywhere else), but start at 10 after instead of ending 10 before that hard of a concept to grasp?

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Agree the article is a total puff piece.
But Even after the logic of the 10 minute delayed start is explained the article tries to argue that the policy does not make sense.

As a freshman I had a class at Kroeber then back to back a class at Tolman.
It would take me at least 10-15 minutes to get my books and notes together after the class, get out of Kroeber, walk to Tolman, then get into the classroom and find my seat.
That assumed that I did not spend any time talking to friends.
No way could I have made it if I had had to go uphill to Kroger instead of downhill to Tolman.
The comment from the one student who said he had no trouble getting from North Gate to Haas is not a fair comparison done that distance is not all that far and it is mostly flat/same elevation (if he walked from North Gate, Behind the Engineering Bldg, past the Bechtel Building, past Hearst Mining Circle , then past Lewis Hall.

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Um, I think you may be on the wrong thread.

nm

No one mentioned that fantastic "new" Bears Lair service. I gave up on getting beers multiple times. Slowest bar tenders I have ever seen.

superbear99 said:

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No one mentioned that fantastic "new" Bears Lair service. I gave up on getting beers multiple times. Slowest bar tenders I have ever seen.

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The selection of watering holes on Southside is now really lousy, the new Bears' Lair sucks, new Raleighs is acceptable but doesn't have the same atmosphere, Pappys got its alcohol license suspended, at least Kips is still around which is not saying much.

Strykur said:

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superbear99 said:

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No one mentioned that fantastic "new" Bears Lair service. I gave up on getting beers multiple times. Slowest bar tenders I have ever seen.

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The selection of watering holes on Southside is now really lousy, the new Bears' Lair sucks, new Raleighs is acceptable but doesn't have the same atmosphere, Pappys got its alcohol license suspended, at least Kips is still around which is not saying much.

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Disagree, It's better than when I was at school in the mid2000s.

Taphaus is better than anything we had other than Raleigh's, Raleigh's is pretty damn good, Pappy's will be back if not already because that's how bars work, Henry's and Freehouse on game days are great.

No need to go to Kips which is just awful always.

This is potentially good news:

"BCooperative, the same design firm behind Drake's Dealership in Oakland, is behind the Lair's new look, which will be open and airy, with seating for more than 100 guests and walls covered with archived Berkeley images."

Also

"Hoppy" hour specials will be offered from 3 to 7 p.m. weekdays."

Sadly, I doubt we'll ever see Beat the Clock again.

Ohtothez said:

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Sadly, I doubt we'll ever see Beat the Clock again.

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Yeah can't believe I was one of the last classes to ever experience that.

socaliganbear said:

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Strykur said:

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superbear99 said:

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No one mentioned that fantastic "new" Bears Lair service. I gave up on getting beers multiple times. Slowest bar tenders I have ever seen.

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The selection of watering holes on Southside is now really lousy, the new Bears' Lair sucks, new Raleighs is acceptable but doesn't have the same atmosphere, Pappys got its alcohol license suspended, at least Kips is still around which is not saying much.

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Disagree, It's better than when I was at school in the mid2000s.

Taphaus is better than anything we had other than Raleigh's, Raleigh's is pretty damn good, Pappy's will be back if not already because that's how bars work, Henry's and Freehouse on game days are great.

No need to go to Kips which is just awful always.

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Taphaus was not around when I was there so can't really say much about it (used to be a ****ty buffet place so nice format change though), Raleigh's is fine but just doesn't have the atmosphere as it did before. Pappys is good while I just never had a preference for Henry's or Freehouse.

I may be really spoiled here since I live in SF next to Polk Street, imagine living in an area with 100 bars around it, everything else kind of pales by comparison.

Finally, an article that addresses the 2016 remodel:

https://sf.eater.com/2018/8/28/17792930/berkeley-campus-bears-lair-tavern-david-lawrence-red-door

"A new, sanitized Bear's Lair with no more "beat the clock" drinking games opened in 2015, run by food service company Chartwells. They bowed out over the summer, with Red Door stepping in."

Also: "The bar will televise student and professional sports games, and the format for food and drink service will be order at the counter and take a seat."