Barcode

This bar is awful and disgusting. Underage children everywhere you look not to mention the slutty people who work there. Very unprofessional. If it wasn’t for the kids they let in this bar it would go under.

I came here once with some friends. They had a lot of specials and we’re giving away free stuff. The bartender was very nice and attentive. Crowded but that’s the way it goes.

Welp… I’ll throw in my two cents about this place.
I worked there in the early 2000’s for about 4 years. I went from working the door to bartending to managing.
To the one poster who says Barcode is only popular and cool because the neighboring bars keep it alive: False. Barcode was popular and fun before The Loft or Generals was even a twinkle in the current owners eyes. Then again, that was probably long before you all even knew downtown Athens existed. And I bet you couldn’t name what those bars used to be before Loft and Generals. But I digress…
A bar is as cool as the employees who work there make it. Turnover in college bars is high. So one year it’s cool, and the next it isn’t, and then the year after that it’s cool again.
The one consistent cool thing about Barcode that’s remained throughout the years is that it doesn’t stick with any one label. It’s not just a frat bar, or a townie bar, or a punk rock bar, or a hip hop club. The employees who work there make this place what it is, under the watchful eye of the owner (s). We had our run for a few years with the group I worked with and it was a blast. Now another group of college kids is running it. In a few years it will be different again.
And the bottom line is that this is a bar in Athens. Is one really that different than the other? They can all be gross hole in the walls patronized by drunk college kids. Every bar in Athens is fundamentally the same, give or take just a little bit. The upside is the you’ll get cheaper drinks than you would in say, a midtown Atlanta club or restaurant. The downside is that you’ll probably be bellied up to the bar next to a puking 19 year old and most likely be served by a novice bartender, as you would any nearly ANY Athens bar. Stick with beers and shots, and don’t leave it to a college bartender to whip you up a mojito or an old fashioned and expect it to be made correctly. So go in there, buy your cheap booze, get your buzz on, try not to go deaf, and quit complaining. It’s not THAT bad.

A bar can only survive and be cool for two reasons: awesome atmosphere and awesome drinks. Unfortunately, Barcode has neither and so, as another reviewer suggested, it ought to just disappear. The bartenders are friendly enough, but being nice can only get you so far. My friend and I decided to randomly drop in here after seeing their enticing «3 for $ 10 jäger bombs» haha what a mistake. I think the fun started and ended with those jäger bombs. The more I think about our 45 minute stay there, I’m certain that I’ve had one of the most nastiest drinks in my entire life here; I’m still making a face as I think about them. Ugh. Someone, please explain to me why this place was so crowded and is still existing!

This bar is horrible. The only thing keeping it going is a couple of popular bars that neighbor Barcode. I love the Athens bar scene, there is nothing like it, but I wish they would close this place down so Downtown Athens, GA could get rid of this blemish on its nearly flawless college town reputation.
Barcode reminds me of a boy band. It has no personality of its own.
Also, the first (and only) time I went to Barcode on my friend’s 21^st birthday (on a slow weekday) the bartender thought we were a lot more drunk than we were and tried to rip us off. He double charged us and refused to settle the bill when we called him out on it. He was also a generally horrible person and bartender (I should say pourer of drinks). I vowed to never return and I never have.
If you want to have a good time, choose any of the other legitimate bars in Athens, GA. You will not regret skipping this place. It only looks busy and cool because people are waiting in line to get in the bars next door.

Very trendy bar with excellent bar tenders. During my visit to Athens, I went to Barcode both Thursday and Friday nights. To my delight, Thursday night is the weekly «Jersey Shore» party. Dudes in collared shirts with blowouts and chicks with big hair, big shoes and short dresses. I’d only ever heard about «Jersey Shore» (still doing my best to avoid actually watching it), but I was just in love with the party idea.
Friday night was super low key until about 10:30PM, then it blew the hell up. I prefer low key dive bars where you don’t need to yell at your friends when talking to them, but I enjoyed the change of atmosphere at Barcode. Good for dancing and hooking up if you’re looking for that.

Barcode is pretty much the epitome of the crowded, drunken, rowdy Athens bar. Sometimes it’s not too crowded on week days, but it’s definitely packed out on weekends. Most bar staff is friendly and attentive enough, except, obviously, on weekends when such is impossible.
In case you couldn’t tell, I generally avoided this place on weekends unless I was meeting someone there. Don’t get me wrong, I still love that kind of party from time to time, but, as a general rule, not so much once I hit 20. I much preferred the weekday crowd, and even more so the specials! As with most bars, the weekday specials weren’t always the same, but there were always dollar koolaid shooters.
A note about the koolaid shooters… one of my EMT friends works at Barcode and he once told me how they make them. Apparently, a bunch of stray well liquor finds its way into a giant vat as the liquid component and the koolaid mix is simply dumped STRAIGHT INTO THE LIQUOR. This is both slightly disturbing and awesome. Who would have guessed that those «girly» kookaid shots were actually pretty much pure alcohol??!