by Debbi | Apr 12, 2010 | Ottawa, Specials
The Sandbar in Ottawa came up with a fantastic idea for sharing their monthly food, drink, and event specials. We liked it so much that we're going to steal their idea and use it in Lawrence, too.
They recruited Ottawa graphic designer Katy Boothe of Clover Hill Originals to create a monthly calendar that they can hang in the shop, pass copies of to customers, or hang around town. It's such a great idea- I'm a little embarrassed that we haven't thought of it ourselves!
Honestly, every day at the Sandbar in Ottawa features a great special. But here's a couple we want to highlight:
- Tuesdays: Every Tuesday is Ottawa University night. Show your valid student ID from Ottawa University, and enjoy a $1 discount on your food order.
- Fridays: 2 for 1 burgers! It's a great time to try one of their fantastic burgers, and the special is valid all day long.
Click the image below for a larger view of the calendar, so you can see their other great specials and even some events they have planned.
And soon, we'll have a calendar like this for Lawrence! Along with a fantastic new Wednesday special that we're dying to tell you about…
by Debbi | Mar 5, 2010 | Specials, Tropical Drinks
Our ever-changing rotation of tropical drinks has changed again.
Dave got the new drink machine working again (borrowed from The Wheel- not exactly a tropical drink mecca), and he's been experimenting with some new recipes and moving things around.
Zombie
This cocktail isn't scary at all. It features Malibu and melon flavors, with a mix of sour and seven. We'll have to find some zombie drink toys to hang on your straws.
Wiki Waki Woo
This drink isn't new- it's been around here for awhile. (Read about where this drink came from.) But Dave hasn't been happy with the recipe so he tweaked it just a little. It's a bunch of secret fruit juices and vodka.
Pink Flamingo
Not a new drink, but it's bounced around a few homes behind the bar lately. When the drink machine broke, Dave and Pat hooked up another tap next to the Shark Attacks, and the Pink Flamingo moved in. Now that the machine works again, though, Dave decided the Pink Flamingo looks prettiest in the machine, so it moved back to it's original spot…making way for the…
Hurricane
We love hurricanes! But you knew that already. We've never offered hurricane drinks on a regular basis, but that might change. Hurricanes have now moved into the second tap location, right next to the Shark Attacks. Any bar that gives out beads with drinks needs to have hurricanes on the menu.
And of course, we still have the Bahama Mama and Shark Attack– those aren't going anywhere!
Stop by and try a new tropical drink!
by Debbi | Mar 2, 2010 | KU Basketball, Specials
The end of January brought the first part of the Sunflower Showdown, the multiple-times-per-year sports clash between in-state rivals KU and K-State. KU won that game in Manhattan, but just barely, and in overtime.
The rematch is tomorrow night at 7 p.m. in Allen Fieldhouse. And this time, both teams are ranked in the top 5 in both major polls. Has that ever happened before? Sports trivia buffs?
Even though we're mostly die-hard KU fans at The Sandbar (Dave played for KU, after all!), it's great to see even more basketball attention turned towards our state.
We're not much of a sports bar, but we do have a couple of TV's. And very recently we even got some compliments on those TV's from someone who clearly expected a dive like ours to have a lesser-quality viewing experience.
All TV's will be tuned to the game tomorrow night, and Dave's working on hooking up a radio connection so we can listen to the senior speeches & ceremony afterward. Assuming it's broadcast on the radio, that is.
And, FREE TACOS! That's right. If you were around for our inaugural free taco bar night a week ago, you know how good they are. We'll have the taco bar set up again tomorrow night for the game, along with our usual $2 well drink special. The lovely Hayley will be behind the bar, and she's hoping for a great turnout of spirited fans!
RSVP and see who else is going if you're on Facebook.
(Just in case you missed it before, read about Dave's experience playing basketball at K-State many years ago.)
by Debbi | Feb 5, 2010 | Ottawa, Specials
Fan of our Ottawa location? If you haven't checked it out yet, you should! They have some great specials going on for the month of February. And they have food- which we don't have in Lawrence, unless popcorn is your idea of a meal. (And there's nothing wrong with that. I've enjoyed popcorn for plenty of meals.)
Monday: Pitcher of beer & wings for $10
Tuesday: 99 cent draws
Wednesday: $1 tacos and $2.50 double margaritas
Thursday: 2 for 1 Bahama Mama's
Friday: 2 for 1 Burgers
Saturday: Double burgers for $6.95
Sunday: $2.50 Bloody Mary's
I think I need to head down there on Wednesdays…that taco & margarita special is calling my name! Who wants to go with me?
by Debbi | Jan 30, 2010 | KU Basketball, People, Specials, Stories
Once upon a time, long before he mixed fruity concoctions or danced on bars or poured towering glasses of shots, Dave played basketball. His long, winding road through the land of college basketball eventually brought him to Lawrence and the Kansas Jayhawks.
(If you missed the fantastic story this fall about his path from backboards to surfboards, you can find it here.)
Anyway.
The KU-KSU Sunflower Showdown is always a heated rivalry, and Dave's playing years were no exception.
When his team traveled west to beat down the purple kitty-cats one year, Dave came home with more than a win. I've heard that Greg Gurley was talking about this on the radio yesterday, and it's been mentioned on the KUsports.com message boards, but I'm the only one with the exclusive story from Dave himself!
"I can't remember if it was '91 or '92, but I think it was my junior year ('91). We won the game, and afterwards the students started throwing crap at the court. I got hit on the forehead with something- to this day I don't know what it was. Maybe a quarter, a piece of ice…who knows.
Anyway, my forehead had a bleeding gash on it, and Coach Williams actually told the trainer not to fix it up right away. He wanted the media and everyone else to see the blood on my face so they wouldn't minimize the whole incident.
Of course the trainer fixed it before too long, but at least there were a few pictures of it, to prove I really did get hit. There's still a small scar on my forehead from it.
I think someone else, maybe Rex Walters, got hit with something the next year."
This picture was taken shortly after the game before Dave's head was fixed. Doesn't he look young? (And skinny?!?)
The adorable little girl? His cousin Mariya, who has since graduated from KSU, is working on her master's degree and teaching, and recently got married. That makes Dave (and me) feel really old.
The KSU fans are still throwing things from the stands. Recently, their projectile of choice has been rubber chickens, which is particularly amusing to us at the Sandbar. If you've seen our hurricane videos, you know that rubber chickens play a prominent part.
Let's hope that everyone can stay classy today and that no one gets hurt.
If you're looking for a place to watch the game, we're giving away free chili dogs at both Sandbar Lawrence & Ottawa locations during the game. We may not have big-screen TV's, but our chili dogs can't be beat!
Rock Chalk Jayhawk!
by Debbi | Jan 29, 2010 | Events, KU Basketball, Ottawa, Random Holidays, Specials
Our great state turns 149 years young today! Kansas became a state on this day way back in 1861. (And the coolest university in the country was created four years later, to borrow a line from KU Info.)
One of our Twitter followers wondered aloud if we would have any drinks in honor of Kansas Day. To be honest, this had not yet occurred to us, but we love any reason to celebrate- so yes, we will!
All day today, you can enjoy a Sunflower Shandy for $3.50. It's Boulevard Wheat and lemonade. And yes, we realize that Boulevard is actually made in the state that sits directly east of Kansas, but pretend it's made somewhere else for today. Focus instead on the fact that Kansas usually leads the nation in wheat production.
And looking ahead…
Is it ironic that the big in-state rivalry basketball game is the day after Kansas' birthday?
I know we aren't really a sports bar and don't have huge, fill-the-whole-wall sized TV's, but if you're looking for a place to watch the game tomorrow, stop by our Lawrence or Ottawa location. Both places will have free chili dogs during the game!
