The Halftime Rec

Known for their Paddy Shack Burgers and a little bocce ball fun in the basement, this place was getting all kinds of hype for those burgers of theirs (the two they have on the menu). In 2015, they even added the title of top dog at the T.C. Burger Battle which kinda baffles me.
Okay, so I’ll have plenty of people that will refuse to agree with me and maybe others who will, but I just wasn’t blown away by their burgers. Were they good? Certainly! In fact, better than plenty of the competition around town, but the best in the Twin Cities? Not even close!
Maybe the competition in 2015 was a little lack luster or they all decided to prepare terrible burgers??? I think I have a pretty insane palette and a good judge of all things food over the general public which is why I’m so baffled. I will say, the steak fries are a great addition to the meal!
Okay, look… Certainly go check this place out and draw your own conclusions. But for this guy, living in Rosemount… I wouldn’t make a special trip like I would for others much farther away…
#knowbeforeyougo

I have spent many, many hours at this hole in the wall dive bar from high school (no one carded then), through college and post college years. I love that despite the music changes and new owners and upgraded food and lack of lingering smoke smell nothing has really changed here and that is good. Some Irish music mixed into a broader music program keeps things lively. The drinks are strong and relatively cheap. The bocce is still lake playing in your grandmas basement. Everything important is still the same. Now you add in a very nicely done menu for very little money and you have a winner. I loved my huge huge Paddy Melt with blue cheese and perfectly grilled bread. The Paddy Shack burger was up there with the best in town. The Fish and Chips ere lightly breaded and tasty with crispy fries. Everything we tried we liked. Nice job Scott and Steve on improving on a classic bar?

Great music, great generous drinks. Best dive bar I have in. Can’t wait to go back. Great for a first date, or just hanging out with the guys.

We returned to visit the Half Time Rec 15 years after leaving our old neighborhood. The food and service was awesome. Lost at pull tabs but the Bloody Mary made up for it. Great food and atmosphere. Kid friendly

Is the music always unbearably loud?
It’s was 8:30 on a Wednesday!
There was maybe 10 people in the bar. It was tough to have a conversation with my husband.
And I’m not some blue hair complaining because my hearing aid was turned up;)
It was just stupid loud so we left.

The ultimate in dive bars. Good beer list, decent menu, surly servers, and amazing people watching.
We liked the lobster grilled cheese and the fries with corned beef and coleslaw.
Free popcorn, too!

Very good meals!
We had
Irish Toasty with tomato and egg–
The Cork Rec Dog–
And a Paddy Melt.
All were very good– interesting and awesome flavor combos, and really great bread!
Our server, Colin, was friendly and attentive– and great at anticipating our needs. Also– the restaurant was very clean which is nice.
I’d recommend dinner here– worth the visit!

New menu and they just won the burger battle and live music with bocce in the basement!!! :-)

Food here is great. The Happy hour food specials are amazing. They need to improve on the service, but otherwise a great addition to the Como neighborhood.

I can’t decide between two and three stars for Paddy Shack, which is sort of the restaurant part of the Half Time Rec. Our waiter was a great fellow, so he gets a star. Of course, the black and tans were good, as they have been for decades, another star. But I was so very disappointed in the food.
My husband had the cod and chips. I tasted a bit of the cod, which looked delicious but tasted more like icky fish than yummy fish. I asked him if all the rest of the fish tasted like that and he said «yes.» He’s used to sushi so he was able to stomach the flavor, however I would have sent it back if I had gotten it. He said the fish breading was very good and he devoured the chips. He wouldn’t touch the shot glass full of smashed peas. I don’t blame him. They were minty and strange.
I ordered the shepard’s pie. It was lava-​like. Now, I usually have the opposite problem, but this little casserole was so hot that if I had dropped it in my lap I’d have had to do a Macdonald’s and sue them for burned skin. While it cooled, I ate the brown bread, which I had really looked forward to, as I ate loaves of it in Ireland years ago. Sadly, this had no relation to that rustic bread. This was flavorless, smooth and dense and tasted like it had a maple glaze on it. My husband had mostly consumed his fish before I could eat my «pie,» but after all that waiting, I was sad. The dish consisted of a big pile of mashed potatoes with barely an inch of mostly-​gravy stew down at the bottom. Either I had baked my taste buds, or it just had no taste. Regardless, it was pretty disappointing.
There were a lot of other things on the menu that looked interesting, and I wouldn’t mind trying them, if we ever go back to eat. Incidentally, my husband and I were regulars at the Rec back in the 80s and 90s, in the heyday of the Irish bands. The place hasn’t changed that much, except for a number of high tables and stools and a modified bar. It looks a little cleaner too, (although I never went in there during daylight anyway, so don’t know for certain). Apparently they don’t often have Irish music anymore, so our nostalgia trip was not fully realized.

It may be a dive bar, but you’d never know it from the food. For lunch, we tried the Reuben Stuffed Jalapeños, the Paddy Shack Burger and the Dublin Lawyer Roll. Everything was outstanding. The jalapeños were large and flavorful. The burger was perfectly prepared. The lobster roll was substantial and tasty. The real standout of our order, however were the chips, served on the side of both the burger and lobster roll. Often, thick-​cut fries are simply too potatoey. They’re dense and soft and not nearly as good as thin-​cut fries. Not the case here. They are perfectly prepared – crispy, fresh and delicious.
We ate at the bar and had the pleasure of being served by Nick the bartender. He was friendly, helpful and prompt, making an already nice lunch even better.
I’ll be returning often.

Went for the first time last night to watch the Wild game, really enjoyed it. I had a rec dog, which is a dome dog (which I seriously miss having no more metrodome!) wrapped in bacon and, per the waiter’s suggestion, got the version that had beer mac and cheese, mustard, and popcorn on it. I was super skeptical about the popcorn, but oh wow was it amazing! My friend had the bangers and mash and absolutely loved it as well.
Our server, Colin, was incredibly friendly and helpful since it was both mine and my friend’s first time going to the bar. Overall, we had a really fun night, the food was awesome, and we’ll be going back again!

Great place to hear some Irish music! Food is pretty good. Our server was not super friendly.

Keep your credit card receipt. Stealing extra tips from customers will turn a loyal patron into a poor review. I am more disappointed that I recommended this place to so many people, only to get robbed. Here’s a tip, don’t steal from a customer who had one Guinness.

Ehhhh… Not so good!!!
I was very disappointed with my experience here. Met my niece for lunch which I think was our first mistake. I think the food would have been better, hotter, fresher, had we came on Saturday night.
She had the Beer Mac and Cheese with chicken and naturally, my fork veered over to try it, and it was mehhh… nothing great. It honestly looked left over from the night before and they threw in boiled chicken. Yes, the chicken is boiled. It almost looked canned to me but I really doubt it was. The temperature was not hot enough for me and the sauce was not saucy. It just did not look fresh to me nor did it taste fresh.
I had the walleye which was excellent.
My first time having mushy peas and I don’t like peas but these were A’ight…Too peppery for me though… They were also runny… I am not sure they are supposed to be runny? I swapped out Champ which is basically mashed potatoes with onions. I love me sum spuds so something would have had to be horribly wrong for me not to like these taters. They were good but not great because they were luke warm. All of this adds to my suspicion that everything was a reheat except my fish. That would be WAY too noticeable. Ohhhhh I loved loved the tartar sauce!!! Definitely homemade!
I really wish that this establishment would spend a little money and at least get some new bar stools. Every single one was cracked and old. Its sad when a place like this which has been around FOREVER doesn’t care to put any money back into the business. I highly doubt this new food menu will be successful because the place is such a dump.
The only reason I am giving three stars is my fish and the service. Our server was pretty good and she had the whole place.
I will not go back but I am glad I tried it.

Went here today for lunch and was sadly disappointed after all the reviews and I had the beer Mac and cheese nothing really that special… got a side of mushy peas (that needed to be more mushy and less peppery)…my aunt got fish and chip which was very good with the tartar sauce killer!
Not really Id be back!

It still seems odd that a couple heavy hitters in the food scene chose a neighborhood bar to launch an Irish menu, but hey, it works. Came here on a Friday night for dinner.
We had the stuffed jalapeños (small but crispy and gooey), lobster roll (rich and buttery) and fish n chips (soft and flaky, not overly battered and fried). This is NOT your standard bar food. It is delicious and well-​crafted. A little pricier, sure, but such a treat for the midway area.
Service was spot on. Biggest downside is the noise and some loud, tipsy types. Hopefully the Paddy Shack survives.

I’ve been back a few times, and nothing on the menu disappoints. My son played there with his band «Davina and the Vagabonds», and when we went it was packed solid. One waitress said she sold almost $ 2k of food that night.
Finally had the Walleye & Chips, and definitely get that instead of the cod (which is also amazing). The Shepard’s Pie, Curry Pie, Bangers & Mash, Corned Beef sandwich, are all also home-​runs.
Got a chance to talk with Chef Riebel today. I urged him to add a Full Breakfast on the weekends. If he does, my life will be complete.

Read the reviews, this place is an amazing dive bar! We moved to the Como neighborhood two years ago and still love showing up here. The new Paddy Shack opened up recently which added an amazing Irish menu to this once «only frozen pizza» place. Not your boring bar menu mind you, expect a delightful change to your pallet.
They offer live music, bocce ball, pulltabs (with regular hours) meat raffle, and enough large t.v.‘s to watch your favorite game!

If you’re looking for a cute little dive bar, you’ve arrived. I personally love the half time rec. It’s tucked nearby the Como zoo and boasts a pretty kick ass bocce space in the basement. It’s small, it’s dark, it’s perfect.