Help an Aggie out

[Here4Beer]

Sup cocks. Me and my buddies are making the trip to Columbia for the game and I was hoping y'all could give us some tips on a few things. We're flying in Tuesday night and leaving Friday. Keep in mind we're all recently graduated from A&M or still in school so we definitely are looking to party and have fun with the people of Columbia.
Hotel recommendations?
Food?
Bars/Night life?
Tailgating?

Appreciate the help!

[Lonnie]

Young adults will enjoy the atmosphere in 5 points...

http://fivepointscolumbia.com/

[kick_ball]

I personally like: Pawleys front porch for amazing burgers (my favorite is the pimento cheese buger on a ciabatta bun), grouchos for some hot sandwhiches, cookout for cheap late night fast food, yesterdays, california dreaming or blue marlin for a "nicer meal"

(many people have different and strong opinions which im sure they will express here about all of this)

five points is more the run down undergrad bars

vista is more young professionals lower key bars

[weatheredxtown]

Cookout. End of story.

[Cockypantherfan]

Hunter gather is a nice place to get some good food. Burger Tavern 77 have good burgers and is close to 5 pts. I would recommend going to the vista over five points. It is safer and the bars are nicer. Enjoy the trip! And, oh yeah Do NOT eat any "Mexican" food in Cola.. It is hot garbage. Just hold off a little longer so you can enjoy El Tiempo, Ninfas, Guadalajara, etc.

Be sure to stop by after your trip to let us know how it was.

[jellafever]

stay the hell outta 5 points. Go to the vista.

Oh and tell Eric Hymen good riddance.

[U-Dub Gamecock]

Pawley's Front Porch( 5 points) has real good burgers... Drive Inns, Diners and Dives did a show from there... As for bar scene... 5 points is more for 25 and under, the Vista is 25+... Yeah, the Mexican restaruants are more for cheap beer... The food is meh... Hell, y'all are from Texas, that is real Mex food there.

[ElectricCock]

Don't go to 5 Points. Go to the vista you'll have a lot of fun

[BlueHerons]

Originally Posted by Here4Beer

Sup cocks. Me and my buddies are making the trip to Columbia for the game and I was hoping y'all could give us some tips on a few things. We're flying in Tuesday night and leaving Friday. Keep in mind we're all recently graduated from A&M or still in school so we definitely are looking to party and have fun with the people of Columbia.
Hotel recommendations?
Food?
Bars/Night life?
Tailgating?

Appreciate the help!

Stay at the Hampton Inn in the Vista. That way you can party and stumble home.

Book something NOW. The city will sell out for the game. Lots of people will drive in and spend the night. First game, first SEC televised event on the SEC network, etc.

Motor Supply Company is one of my all time favorite restaurants.

Tailgating? Bojangles fried chicken or Publix. Plenty of places to park and you'll see tens of thousands tailgating. Just follow the traffic Thursday afternoon.

Have fun!

[Gamecocks1137]

Originally Posted by ElectricCock

Don't go to 5 Points. Go to the vista you'll have a lot of fun

Yes, you are less likely to get shot to death in the Vista.

[spareparts]

Two Notch area is really cool, lots to do there

Also Broad River - premium entertainment district. I know a few contacts if you guys are looking to get radical

If you go to Savannah's, ask for Barbie Cummings

[Here4Beer]

Originally Posted by spareparts

Two Notch area is really cool, lots to do there

Also Broad River - premium entertainment district. I know a few contacts if you guys are looking to get radical

If you go to Savannah's, ask for Barbie Cummings

If by radical you mean get hammered, wild, and find some Carolina strange....then yes we're looking to get radical.


Also thanks everyone for the tips. It sounds like we should stay away from 5 points if we value not being shot (which we do)!
I really like this thing

[yazoo]

When I was that young, I would try to sleep in the lobbies of dorms for the schools where I was partying. Also, would take free showers from students I met, and try for free or discounted cafeteria food. I definitely would not rely on a bunch of old people on message boards for where to party. However, I doubt you Texas guys are as radical as I was back in those days. Kids nowadays are wimps.

[Carolina4Life]

Originally Posted by Here4Beer

If by radical you mean get hammered, wild, and find some Carolina strange....then yes we're looking to get radical.





Also thanks everyone for the tips. It sounds like we should stay away from 5 points if we value not being shot (which we do)!

I really like this thing

Don't go to Two Notch or Broad River. That's the most horrible advice anybody in here could give you.

Get a hotel in the vista and party in the vista. No need to go anywhere else but thee and the stadium unless you want to go to strip clubs. Welcome to Columbia

[Cockypantherfan]

And if you want to go to a strip club go to Platinum Plus right off of 1-26 a few miles from downtown.

[ipull4usc]

If you are in college or recently graduated, then check out 5 Points, just be on your guard while you do (potential safety concerns, although they're overblown). For the in-college crowd I'd recommend Salty Nut and Pavlov's it's where the best looking sorority girls will be and it'll be open til the wee hours of the morning. You won't have to worry about any serious altercations, just an occasional drunken fraternity skirmish, nothing atypical. For the end of college or just-out-of-college crowd I'd recommend Jake's. That place avoids the riff-raff that plagues some locations in 5 Points.

Avoid a bar called The Library, it's where the thugs and hoodlums congregate. I'd also stay away from ConCocktions, Parrot Heads, and whatever else is located in/near the old run-down China Garden, loitering wannabe gangsters occasionally stand outside these places and start trouble.

If you're looking for a mid-20s and older crowd late night, head up to Nightcaps on Devine (it'll be open til sunrise). Bar None is also a great late night spot.

Otherwise, if you're looking to avoid the college-feel and looking for a mid-to-late 20s vibe and older, go to the Vista. Tin Roof in the Vista should have a good mix including some college-aged folks and 20-something year olds. That's probably the best place to go in the Vista for a college-aged person looking to have fun and (presumably) chase women. You could also hit up Flying Saucer and/or World of Beer for a more laid-back good beer atmosphere. Aside from that, there are some classy bars (Pearlz, Liberty, Thirsty Fellow, any restaurant/bar) that are nice but too much hell-raising would likely be frowned upon.

Go to Publick House on Devine St for wings or Pawleys Front Porch on Harden St for burgers. Try The Gourmet Shop for a great lunch.

Unfortunately I can't help you out on hotels because I haven't stayed in a hotel in Columbia since I was a kid in the 90s.

On game day, if you and your pals are trying to get wild, go to Morrison Memorial Lot on Andrews Road, it will be bonkers. For big games it will be out of control, I've had buddies from UGA who've traveled to all the conference schools say it was the greatest tailgate experience they've ever seen. Sadly I've aged out of Memorial, but I'll still wander over there for the big games just to blend in to the madhouse.

If you're looking for a more relaxed vibe, I'd suggest wandering through the Farmer's Market and chatting with tailgaters there. Carolina fans will be more than willing to welcome you to our tailgates.

Hope yall have a blast.

[yazoo]

Originally Posted by Carolina4Life

Don't go to Two Notch or Broad River. That's the most horrible advice anybody in here could give you.

Get a hotel in the vista and party in the vista. No need to go anywhere else but thee and the stadium unless you want to go to strip clubs. Welcome to Columbia

Yeah, do this like the rest of us old fogeys.

[ipull4usc]

Originally Posted by Here4Beer

If by radical you mean get hammered, wild, and find some Carolina strange....then yes we're looking to get radical.


Also thanks everyone for the tips. It sounds like we should stay away from 5 points if we value not being shot (which we do)!
I really like this thing

As I said in a previous post, if you're in college or just out of college you should go to 5 Points (unless you're looking for a laid-back, classier vibe). Just be careful when you do go there. I'm 27, and I know when I was in college I had infinitely more fun at Salty Nut, Pavlov's and Jake's in 5 Points than I had in the Vista (aside from Tin Roof, which wasn't open when I was in college). Of course my priorities at the time were getting drunk and chasing women. If those are yall's priorities, go to 5 Points. Just use your best judgment, it should be obvious which areas/bars to avoid because the clientele at those places will be obviously sketchy before you walk through the door.

[spareparts]

The guy wants a good time, and you can have WAY more fun in Columbia than if you go to the Vista with a bunch of yuppie douchebags and chodes.

I'm telling you man, head to Two Notch. Place is wild.

You don't want to stand in a Buffalo Wild Wings drinking a fcking Blue Moon listening to Zac Brown Band, that shit is boring.

[Cock Kool-Aid]

Honestly, from what you're describing you want, I would go to 5 points. The issues with gun violence in 5 points are extremely overblown and you really are not in much danger. If you are wanting to party your balls off with young college chicks then you need to go to 5 points. It is a spot for undergrads or even recent grads too. There are a ton of bars packed into 5 points so you can hop from bar to bar until you find a scene you like. It is a shit show.

If you want to have some drinks with a bunch of "young professionals" in nicer bars in a nicer area, then go to the Vista. There is a club called Social in The Vista that has live music sometimes and is pretty popular right now. Also, the Tin Roof has some fun live music acts and is usually pretty packed as well. Liberty Taproom usually has a DJ and a good crowd. World of Beer is nice environment with a huge selection of beers and live music sometimes. Oyster Bar has live music sometimes and a nice raw bar in the back- if you like oysters, you should stop in for an oyster shot. Uncle Louie's is the only "5 points-ish" bar in the Vista... meaning its a cheap dive bar. There are other options as well, but those are my favorites.... minus Uncle Louie's.