We can sit here and justly argue which flavor of cheap beer is less terrible or which happy hour is most worth leaving work early for, but we are going to drop some irrefutable bar knowledge on you right now: pinball is better than Big Buck Hunter, always. The folks behind the Bar Great Harry/Mission Dolores empire know this, which is why all of their bars are stuffed with silver-ball machines, including the brand-spankin’ new Owl Farm Bar that just opened last month at Fifth Avenue and 9th Street in Park Slope. And unlike Big Buck Hunter, you can actually win something for your skills. All three bars offer a free draft beer if you can beat the high score on any machine. Sound easy? These bars are stadiums for the local pinball league, so this is a serious challenge.
“Luckily it doesn’t happen too often!” co-owner Mike Wiley told us.
Owl Farm opened in the old Harry Boland’s space at 297 9th St. on June 15 with the usual large amount of taps and excellent selection of beer you expect from these guys. The bar rocks three classic machines: Whitewater, Indiana Jones (original trilogy version) and Jurassic Park. Oh, and the name “Owl Farm” is a tribute to Hunter S. Thompson’s farm.
Mission Dolores offers Spider-Man and Attack From Mars (better known as the BEST PINBALL GAME OF ALL TIMES). Bar Great Harry has Medieval Madness, Twilight zone and Lord of the Rings.
Games are all 75 cents each, or three games for $2.
Summer means Springsteen, and Springsteen means the Jersey coast, and the Jersey coast means pinball, so you better believe we’ll be out there banging those pleasure machines trying to win that free beer, even if costs us a few quarters.