The Rack

Love the crowd and the vibe… but damn… my drink prices every time i come are more expensive. This isnt downtown guys… get it together. We are a regulars bar… keep it that way!

my husband and I had an awful experience here. apparently one of their regular bar fly’s lives above the establishment. she is just terrifying to be honest. she came down from her slummy apartment and started making such a huge commotion with her impossibly loud, ugly mouth that she literally cleared the bar out, at least 4 paying customers left on account of her mouth. and the worst part is, the bartenders/​management did NOTHING about it! they let her stay (!) and made no attempt to tell her to be quiet. unbelievable. and really bad for business.

What an interesting little place.
The Rack is an unassuming and somewhat hidden bar. It’s so close to bf’s house I always wondered, ‘why don’t we go there’? I think he was a little nervous to take me at first because you never really know what you’re going to get. I’ve been about half a dozen times by now (the fear of me running and screaming down 5^th Ave is now behind him) and each time I’ve been here it’s been a different scene.
It’s been totally dead, save for a few rough looking regulars who just wanted to drink and be left alone. It’s been crazy and busy and fun with lots of 20-​somethings belting out karaōke. It’s been chill, when only a few groups of people were enjoying their nights playing pool. It’s been weird when the bartender is reading a book behind the bar and looks annoyed when I asked for a drink. I DID take advantage of karaōke once, but again — weird night.
I’ve never gotten anything other than cheap light beer here (and maybe a few unwanted shots from bf’s oh-​so-​generous friend). I have pretty much reserved The Rack for my end of the night bar and therefore have little to say about the place itself. I mean, I don’t think I’ve even been in their bathroom.
Needless to say, I like it for what it is — the outsider not caring to fit in with ‘popular’ Grandview bars. Great for the end of the night and A-​OK for me.

I went to The Rack recently to see a band play. I wasn’t sure what to expect as I’ve driven by at least a hundred times and always thought it was just a crappy dive bar. Upon entering, I felt like my friends and I got stared at for obviously not being «regulars», but after the initial looks everyone went back to their own business. It is a dive… but not as bad as I expected. It’s actually pretty clean. It wasn’t too crowded, which I like because I hate being elbow to elbow with people at bars. (My group of friends there to see the band probably amounted for half of the crowd.)
The sound system for the bands wasn’t the greatest and it was kind of awkward how the bands were stuck in the back behind the four pool tables while people played in front of them, but I guess they made do with the space they had available.
Overall, not a terrible little place. Oh, and they have free popcorn, so you can’t beat that!

Just discovered this little gem even though I live only about a half mile away. This bar is a nice little divey bar with the usual diverse clientel. The drinks are super cheap and the night I went there, there was live entertainment. If you’re looking for a place that’s not too super crowded on a low-​key evening with friends and are hoping to indulge in some $ 2 beers, this is the place.

I’ve driven past this place so many times, and only recently stopped in on a Saturday night to play pool with friends and watch some karaōke. I had no idea what to expect, but it’s actually just a pretty normal, low-​key bar. Karaōke was fun, beers were cheap. My only issues:
1. The table we sat at was so broken that we couldn’t even set our glasses on it without it starting to tip over. Not sure how that happens, but it was kind of inconvenient.
2. At one point, the only bartender got up to sing karaōke and nobody was behind the bar for the duration of his song. Also kind of inconvenient.
Other than that, not a bad little place.

Great local bar for cheap no frills drinks. I live about a block away and can walk there easily so I frequent normally once a week. Normally there is only a handful of people there, mostly people who live in the area but it can get packed on a weekend night, normally later in the evening. When its busy it cab be a hassle to get a drink with only one bartender, Zach, but never unbearable. Perfect dive bar to play pool, listen to music and free popcorn. Wish they had never let Sam the bartender leave.

I’m sad I’ve only just now decided to tryout The Rack. I’ve lived in the area for how long now and just assumed this bar was dirty, disgustingly divey (I like dive bars), and full of old, pervy bikers — although I’m not sure why I thought the last one, I’ve never even seen a bike in the parking lot.
On my trip last Saturday for karaōke night none of the above was true. What I did find was quite the eclectic mix of karaōke fans and singers alike, a small, but satisfying mix of draft beers (including two of my favorite Bells brews), two pool tables, and a really efficient bartender who managed to get everyone their drinks AND scour the bar for empty glasses in five minutes flat (it seemed.)
I’m going to assume that not all nights are like Saturday night karaōke nights, but then again what bar is the same on a Monday as it was on Saturday?
All the bases are covered for a laid back neighborhood bar.
My two small caveats: There’s a $ 10 tab minimum. And the all-​too-​efficient bartender was one of the worst tap pourers I’ve ever seen. I went through at least 30 cocktail napkins cleaning up the overflow when he put each beer down. And I thought I was bad…

I’m not a bar goer, or a drinker, so I’m not sure I have much to compare to. I showed up here with my friend after the Elite Event at Sugardaddy’s, so we were still dressed up. We came for the karaōke after party. When we walked in, Karaōke Dave wasn’t there yet, and everyone was looking at us like in Animal House when they go see Otis Day at the bar. «You mind if we dance wif yo’ dates». I’m not saying that’s what the guys looked like, just the feeling I got. When we came back about 30 minutes later, and in different clothes, and karaōke was about to start, it was a completely different vibe. We had so much fun, and the bartender is quick, and on top of things. You will probably never see me near this place on any other night, but I will come for karaōke Saturday’s whenever possible.

I agree with Heather about the confusion surrounding this mysterious Grandview dive– what kind of person calls a bar simply known as «The Rack» their home away from home? 3^rd shift delivery guys? Bikers? Other bartenders?
After stopping by at the unassuming hour of 3pm on a nondescript weekday, I still have no clue who the patron of this place is. Likewise, this is a great place to get off your rocker while the sun is still shining. I did draw a few idel stares from what must have been regulars after I made a ruckus with my bike outside, but the swift consumption of a shot of whiskey chased with a Budwieser did the trick of shakin off the haters. I almost felt cool on a lone drifter sort of way afterwards, which made me slowly realize that that’s almost exactly the idea behind this place. Show up, prove your worth, and don’t take no shit.
On a lighter note, this is Grandview after all. While the atmosphere at The Rack may come off as roughneck at first, you have to take it all with a grain of salt. Yuppies with Volvos surround the tiny plaza that this bar bookends, which means two things: 1) The locals can’t actually be locals– I don’t want to know where they come from, truth be told– and; 2) This isn’t Roadhouse. No one is gonna rough you up for looking at them the wrong way. The drunk guy talking to himself in the corner has his own story, and you’ve got yours, so it’s best to just keep it that way. Drink some beers, play some pool, and have a good old time here at The Rack.

For the life of me I cannot figure this place out. I have been to this place a few times during prime going-​out hours and it has never had more than a handful of people there. Is this more of an after-​work drinks establishment? I don’t know. On the upside, it does seem fairly clean (probably because no one is ever there) and there are a few pool tables, tv’s, and the bathrooms are decent. Parking is never an issue though it is a teeny tiny lot. I think that this place is sustained by many regulars who keep it afloat. I also have a sneaking suspicion that the regulars can smell a newbie a mile away and will stare you down upon entering. I don’t think they want it to become ‘the hangout’. I can’t blame them… I would want to keep my quiet, local watering hole to myself, too.