Shady McGrady’s

Went there on a Sunday. Met some friends. Normally I don’t go to smoking bars but the air was not too bad. Not a lot of smokers. Beer selection is fantastic as well as the six pack selection. Bar Tender was Jo who is always a treasure. Great sense of humor and is very knowledgeable about their beers. Haven’t had any food there yet. Maybe next time.

This place can be, well, shady. There are some characters that go here. I’ve had a lot of people try to bum money, cigarettes and part of my drink off me.
But it’s a decent place to hang out. The bartenders are excellent and I’ve never had a weak drink. Pricing is great as well. The best part is free popcorn.

So thirty people are allowed to chat smoke cigarettes all night but cigars are banned? Makes a lot of services sense. Never going back. My cigar costs as much as two packs of smokes and I can’t smoke it. Screw them.

So Shady’s used to be a place of lore, legend and infamy. It seriously was the BEST dive bar in all of Harrisburg. There were times when it rained so hard the roof would leak and you’d be a standing in an inch of water trying to play darts. They would have to unplug the sole TV for fear of patron’s safety. There was Sinn Feinn posters on the wall, that’s how Irish dive this spot was. I once remember they put a porno on the TV one wild Saturday night just to see how many people noticed/​complained. For a colorful account of this Shady’s please read B.D.‘s review.
Do I miss that place like an old friend that has passed? Hell Yes. In spite of all it’s quirks, it was your bar. However, it has changed and it took me years to get used to it. Now that I have, I accepted it for what it is. An excellent craft beer bar that still maintains it’s roots. It really is a fun spot with a diverse and friendly crowd. It’s certainly not as pretentious as the Federal Taphouse.
They allow smoking, so if that’s not your scene, be prepared. I smoke and find it refreshing it’s one of the last places around town you can partake in two great vices at once! The beer selection is great and the prices are fair, if not cheap. They always have a few craft beers priced at only $ 3 a pint that rotate on selection. They of course carry all the popular American adjunct crap too (Miller Lite, Pabst, Yuengling).
It seems within the past month they have been getting more and more harder to find brews on tap. I also like that the whiteboard breaks down their selection by style (dark/​fruity/​IPA/​ciders/​wheat, etc.). I think that would help someone who may be too intimidated to ask. And, if you do ask, the bartenders know their stuff. The one blonde bartender is especially knowledgable. I guess they are now selling top shelf bourbon and whisky too.
Oh, and you can bring your dog in! That’s always a treat. I’ve met some nice folks and pooches while sipping a beer. Wish more places in Harrisburg did that.
All in all, it’s a friendly place to enjoy yourself. Yeah, not the same, but certainly not for the worse either.

if you’re looking to get some drinks and not get stabbed in midtown, this is the place.
the staff is awesome. super friendly, attentive and knowledgeable. your glass never sits empty for more than a few seconds and you never have to stand at the bar attempting to make eye contact – even on a busiest friday or saturday nights. they have ton of beers on tap and do a really good happy hour special. you can smoke there. they have a good jukebox & a cigarette machine. and there’s usually free fresh popcorn in the old timey popcorn machine. they also just got bigger glassware, and for a stupid amount like one dollar you can upgrade from a pint to the tall glass.

Good beer selection but it seemed like every single smoker in the city converged on this one place. Couldn’t take it for more than an hour.
Oh and not one irish song…

Best bartender in Harrisburg in Scotty Witmer. That’s no small praise. Parking is a headache, but the beer selection is good. Like Kyle said, your classic dive bar with the usual suspects. It can become home if that’s your thing.
EDIT: RIP Scotty. A big loss for the area and for all his friends.

Can smoke cigars and drink craft beer. My favorite bar. Excellent ventilation system also. Friday evening happy hour is a great bargain.

Great beer selection and happy, but they need some ventilation. If you’re a non-​smoker (like me) you won’t enjoy being in there for more than a drink or two.

Shady’s is a great neighborhood bar. Good bartenders and friendly regulars. Great beer selection. Lots of different beers on tap and the rotation changes frequently. So there is always something new to try. Smoking is permitted and you can bring your dog in with you. Half price happy hour from 4:30 — 6:30. Free popcorn too.

In a vacuum, I would have to give this place four stars. But I feel the need to review it against the other great happy hour spots in the area which takes it down a star. I just don’t see the point in going here if I can go to Anthony’s Micro Pub on 2^nd, for a few reasons:
— Anthony’s serves free pizza, Shady’s doesn’t.
— Shady’s is extremely smoky, Anthony’s isn’t.
— Anthony’s has great bartenders, Shady’s doesn’t.
— Shady’s has restrictions on which beers are half priced during happy hour, Anthony’s doesn’t (Except for DFH 120).
I’ve enjoyed myself when I’ve been here, but I just don’t see going anymore when I can go to Anthony’s for the above reasons.

Great place to get a beer, if you like a variety of craft beers.
Pretty smokey, tho.

There was a time when I love Shady McGrady’s. Two slightly elevated platforms lined the right and left walls as you entered, each featuring three 4-​tops. And although they were rarely sat with people, the notion that you could actually sit there if you so desired was a nice touch. As you walked further in, you eventually reached the bar itself. To the right of the bar were two pool tables and barely enough room to move.
And that was it. That was Shady McGrady’s. It was a smoke-​infested shithole reeking of stale beer and staler people. The beer selection was basic, and the clientele even more so. Other than the slow, methodical bartender, Scotty, whose limp was more pronounced than his slurred speech, it was downright awful.
And goddamn if it wasn’t my favorite bar in all of Harrisburg.
Now? Well, now it still stinks of stale beer and smoke, only the beer is all high-​end imports and microbrews, and none go for less than about $ 5 a beer. The tables up front are gone, and the pool table (yes, pool TABLE, since there is now only one) sits in its place. To the right of the bar now sits several high-​top tables with bar stools, and even though the majority of the clientele now has a bit more money to spend, they’re even staler than the old breed.
Oh, and let’s not forget the prize of a guy who runs the place. He’s downright awful (unless, of course, you enjoy Frankenstein-​like monologues spewed at no end).
Sure, the beer selection nowadays is both diverse and borderline impressive, particularly in a town like Harrisburg where the beer typically consists of Yuengling Lager, Miller Light, and some other unimpressive brand of suck. But therein lies the problem. Shady McGrady’s is a dump! Lining the taps with high-​end beer is like costuming a five-​dollar whore in Cartier jewelry.
I’ve been to plenty of dives in my day, and not out of necessity; rather, I love dive bars. Shitholes are supposed to be smoke-​infested and smell bad. They’re supposed to have low-​end — LOW-​END — beer. They’re supposed to be comofortable and real. Shady McGrady’s, unfortunately, is no longer that thing. Now it’s just a faux-​dump that the hipsters have claimed as their own.
So, if it’s an $ 9 snifter of a 9.3% Double-​Bock served at a snail’s pace while a combination of hip-​dicks and meatheads play Golden Tee in the background as flatscreens blare sports that no one’s interested in, head on down to Shady McGrady’s!
Shady McGrady’s: Where nostalgia goes to die!

Only stopped in here briefly one night, so I’ll have to go back for a full experience. The good thing about the bar was how hidden it was. It was just off the main «scene» of Harrisburg downtown. Though, not so far off that it was random and empty. The selection of beer to take home was amazing. Even Four Loko! haha. The beer on tap also look plentiful and the prices were nice. It was a little smoky in there, but seemed like a nice place to hang out with plenty of huge TVs.

Ok. I don’t like smokey bars. I avoid them like the plague.
BUT, I will go to Shady McGrady’s and sit in the stinky smoke to enjoy the amazing beers they have on tap. I love that they let you take your dog into the bar with you. How awesome is that? They always have a fantastic rotation of beers on tap, stuff you aren’t going to find anywhere else in Central PA. They consistently carry rare 6 packs as well. A big plus. My favorite beer is Anchor Steam and Scotty makes a point to keep it in his rotation. If you want something, he will find it for you.
Good beer, amazing bartenders.
Try Friday Happy Hour. They have popcorn, burgers and a beer wheel to spin. Food is free if your drinking!

Recent visit was enjoyable. Unfortunately the Shady on 2^nd Street is no longer a Shady. There is rumor of a new Shady opening on the West Shore which would be a good chalenge to Als and ABC. Shady used to serve wings and pizza, but not more, just complimentary popcorn. So don’t go hungry, it would be nice if they made it BYOF (bring your own food). Still has no cask beer so no 4^th star until they sell the reall thing.

Once you get past the stench (old beer, smoke, and chicken grease) that will stay in you clothes for about 3 febreezeing this place is THE place if you love beer.
48 beers… awesome beers, that is really all i should have to say… best taps in the 717 area code
So do what i do, have a set of dirty clothes that you don’t care if they stink like shadys and get good and plastered off the dopeness that is Shady’s!
and… Scotty is the best bartender in all of the burg!

I have been here a couple of times before: Once with my brother and once by myslelf. I consider the place a dive bar with the fringe benefit of craft beer. It smells musty and smokey when you walk in which can be good or bad depending on your perspective.
I will say they have about doubled the taps since I was in last, but also many of the west coast bottles like Lost Abbey are replaced with coors and bud light in the coolers. They still have Rochefort, Chimay and Dogfish head and a surprising couple of Sculpin from Ballast Point. I find the place ok for a beer, but don’t enjoy the atmosphere enough for much more than that.

Great beer selection. The inside is, as many others have noted, a dive, but the beer is tasty and the crowd is fun.
If you are looking to check out the menu go to —

I love Shady’s, it’s really a hidden jewel in Harrisburg. Although it’s small and dingy, it has by far the most extensive beer list on tap and in bottles anywhere in the area. I mean they have serious selection.
The crowd at this pub is pretty diverse but in my own experience pretty friendly as well, I definitely recommend checking the place out.