The Fixin’ To

2.50 Rainier, rude service, good nachos. The food is alright heavy bar faire. I’ve always found the fixin to mediocre but if you’re not a regular, the bar staff is plain rude. They wouldn’t engage and answer any questions with more than a word. There are better restaurants and bars in walking distance.

I’ve only ever been in here for drinks but it’s probably my favorite bar in the neighborhood. The bartenders seem pretty cool and I really like the overall vibe/​aesthetic.

I have only been here a few times, but loved it every time! I need to get there more often!

Nice mellow time on a Friday night after a busy week. Food was tasty, service was good, and we got some pulled pork nachos to bring home to our 13-​year-​old (which he also loved and he is a tough critic!).

This is a must stop for me everytime im in town. Small intimate bar with great drinks and nice people. St. Johns sweet tea and pulled pork nachos are a killer combo!

Having moved close to The Fixin To is both a blessing and a curse. I know when hunger strikes it is only a couple of short blocks away serving my favorite vegetarian Frito pie ($ 5 HH). It’s pretty tough to resist it’s wiles. Fritos covered in a tasty vegetarian bean chili topped by house made queso, lettuce, tomatoes, and a dollop of sour cream. Not health food, but who doesn’t need a little stick-​to-​your-​ribs comfort food from time to time? Amirite?
I’ve read some of the reviews saying they had issues with the service, but I have had perfectly fine if not great service every time. No hipster attitude. The food comes out quickly, and all of it has been very good. My nephew loved his chili bowl, I’ve also tried the nachos and chicken and dumplings. The Frito pie just happens to be my favorite. The prices for food and drinks are very reasonable, especially during happy hour.
They have two patios. The one in the front faces Lombard, the one in the back is a little more secluded. You are welcome to bring well behaved dogs, and smoke if you wish. I know not everyone desires to be on a patio where it’s allowed, but it seems to be popular with most patrons. The inside of the bar has several booths and plenty of stools, so you aren’t forced to be around it if it’s not your thing. They had Bingo one night when I was there, and it looked like they were having plenty of fun.
The only thing I would suggest would be air conditioning. It has been a hot summer, and holy smokes does it get hot in there! You feel like you’re in a bar down south! It’s not fancy or pretentious. It’s wonderful as is.

Terrible experience. Was there for my 21^st Birthday and yes, I was very inebriated but that doesn’t excuse how rude the bartender and their friends were. We ended up getting kicked out and was very upset about that. My girlfriends and myself went to the bathroom together and there was a women pounding on the door screaming «HOW LONG DOES IS TAKE TO CHANGE A TAMPON». Then a MALE bartender came and SCREAMED while my friends and I are trying to use the restroom. I’ve never been more embarrassed about going to the bathroom in my life. They thought we were doing drugs. I AM VERY OFFENDED. I felt discriminated for being a younger person surrounded by 40 year olds.

I’ve lived in saint johns for 3 years and I think it’s an awesome neighborhood bar. I have two kids so I dont get out much, and boy did i feel out of the loop there. i’ve been there several times and two of the male bartenders were very sweet, remembered my drinks and made sure i was taken care of, I wish that could outweigh the dirty looks i received from the young female bartender with super short bangs. she ignored me when I came to the bar even. But I loved the food choices, drinks are strong. As long as i bring a friend i have a lot of fun, doesn’t highlight that i’m not in the IN crowd at the fixin’ too.

I went to this place when they first opened. I’m an Arkansas transplant so I was into the Razorbacks/​Clinton décor. Thats as far as it goes…
The drinks are watered down. Bartender said only 3 words to us «is that it?». Since they’ve opened it looks like it’s become a local hangout for the bartender’s buddies. They were laughing it up at the other end of the bar, talking about a previous night’s events. Then he came down to us to fill our glasses and looked like his effing dog just died. Dont go here for the service. It sucks. Don’t go here for the food. Also sucks. The carts out front are great, but who wants to market a bar with the slogan «Dont Buy the Food Here, It’s Better in the Parking Lot»??
Boo. and double Boo…

Marla makes a mean Margarita. Haven’t had the food yet due to time constraints but it always smells amazing. There are carts right outside the door too if that’s your thing. Nice little selection of beers and sprits. The southern beers and cocktails are spot on with the vibe. Great patio scene. Some incredible retro gaming system thing built into a giant gameboy replica. Idk man, honestly I don’t want to tell you about this place because it’s awesome. Don’t screw it up, support the owners, I’ll be drinking the Saint John’s Sweet Tea at the bar. Cheers

Great local dive bar. They allow cart food inside but there is outdoor seating. Its just the type of bar you look for when you dont want to be bothered. The bartenders aren’t mean but they aren’t friendly either. .they are just there doing their thing, I can respect that.

I’m more homebody than social butterfly, but when I do go out, this is the only place I’ll go. For being a newish bar (5 years going), there’s a very homey, comfortable vibe, accompanied by stiff drinks and home style food. Their patio (s) are massive, one with a fire place, the other with ample seating and a stage for music. Both have gas heaters which I appreciate since I’m constantly freezing.
Reading prior reviews, most people seemed irked that the bartenders are «mean» and «cater to hipsters». I’m no hipster, and I get great service from friendly people. I think people are upset that they aren’t being catered to, or that the bartenders won’t chat them up. Here’s a tip: figure out what you want to order before you waste someone’s time who is busy, and don’t expect to have an in-​depth conversation when there’s only one person working the bar. Once you understand that, everything will be juuuust fiiiine.

The Chicken ‘n Dumplings and the Pulled Pork Nachos were not impressive and my friends did not finish them. The place was overall dirty. The drinks were passable at best. Forget about getting of the vegan food, it’s a joke and they are vegan clueless.

This place has a spunky and fun atmosphere with nice staff. I love the outdoor seating and the possible food cart Options out front. The drinks are tasty and reasonable and the do have some gay nights. When I am in St. John’s I like to hit this spot for at least a drink.

Reading the reviews to The Fixin’ To, I find most of them to be mixed at best. I’ve decided that the conclusion I’ve come up with is, try not to treat this place as anything but a dive with charm. I haven’t had issues with the staff, they all seem pleasant enough, then again all I order is a beer and on occasion a shot. They certainly have one of the best outdoor seating areas in the neighborhood and are close enough to plenty of restaurants. The prices are good, great happy hour, and I haven’t encounter so much «indifference» as other folks seem to have.

I like the porch and the fact that I can eat from a nearby food cart.
Cocktails good
Bartender gruff but friendly.
Did not enjoy the smoking on the patio.

I was not a fan of this place when it first opened. Since then I’ve become cool enough to get service quickly. No, just kidding. They’ve actually just become more responsive to their customers and friendlier in general. The first time I came here, I couldn’t even get a drink or food so I left. Since Leisure dropped lower on my list (due to all the annoying Mary J. Blige music among other issues), I gave this place another shot (Bulleit, neat) and haven’t looked back.
The days of shuffleboard are long gone, but they have an arcade game setup to look like a gigantic GameBoy and the patio is oh so expansive, you might just slip away from your posse to indulge in a makeout session with ya boo. Sounds entertaining enough right?
There are two food carts for those who aren’t keen on Frito pie or pulled pork nachos with Rotel dip from the kitchen (umm what is wrong with you?). You’ll certainly want to bring cash for Pizza Contadino and expect Southern Belle to tell you that their Square card reader is not working. I wish they could just add your food to your tab — that would probably help business for all establishments. I assume this food cart situation means that you could just bring food from another nearby place. What I am trying to say is that I *assumed* that last week and brought a chicken burrito from Tienda Santa Cruz then ate it there while knocking down a beer.
The beers on tap usually consist of Double Mountain’s Vaporizer, some lager, and some other stuff… usually nothing dark enough, but you can get a can of Guinness. In the past they had a great oatmeal stout from Everybody’s Brewing. I miss it. However, I’m also a fan of the reasonably priced cocktails. Nothing fancy, just refreshing and dangerously easy to drink on a hot night.
One star knocked off because only one bathroom… and it isn’t the prettiest. Sometimes they have a porta-​potty outside, for the dudes. Unfortunately that doesn’t help me.

It took me a few minutes to decide between two and three stars. I’ll break it down for you here:
The bar was recommended by the nice servers at Thai Cottage. My people and I decided to walk on down and have some beers, nothing crazy. Upon entering, the dude behind the counter barely even acknowledged our existence. No big deal, maybe he was busy with a complicated drink order or putting together some nachos. I was scanning over the beer selection and my sipping companions were deciding which cocktail to get, when the bartender came over and placed beverage napkins down… still without saying a word. Well, maybe he’s just shy. I decided to pipe up and say «Hey man, how’s it going?».
I need to pause here for a sec. As I have mentioned before, I am in the restaurant industry and I get it when people are busy, but there were two other people off in the corner when we arrived. It felt like we weren’t part of the club or something…
Anyhow, we finally got things going when I inquired about the local beers and/​or dark beers. That is kind of the end of the rant, because the rest of the time spent there was great (because my friends and I were enjoying each others company).
I get it, the hipsters of this town are a tight knit group and everyone knows who has paid their club dues and who has not. I will look into finding a temporary pass so as to join in on the fun too!

Ugh, the drinks here are soooo gross. Even the ultimate girly «Dirty Shirley» makes me want to barf. Not exactly a place I frequent given the location and some of the crowd it draws in. However, they have adopted a sweet cat that comes around the bar and I absolutely respect them for taking care of a stray animal regardless of the nature of their business.

Really — it’s somewhere between a «meh, I’ve seen better» and an «A-​OK» — so a 2 ½ stars. Have been here a couple times now — once when first they opened. I was excited to have a hip place with comfort food and lots of heated outdoor seating.
I really like the St Johns Sweat tea. The feel of the place is dark and divey and hipster, for sure. I may have had 10 years on everyone there. I didn’t feel out of place — although it’s clear the place isn’t meant for me. And I would happily stop in for a bite if the food wasn’t so mediocre.
The menu sounds cool, but is very limited. Between the nachos and frito pie, my friend and I were not impressed at all. The sweet bbq sauce on the nachos was out of place. And there’s no cheese on either, (frito pie being vegan). But still — such basic comfort food shouldn’t be difficult to make.
I may stop in come summer for an cold beverage. but that’s probably it.