Local Whiskey

Good meal. Danielle was very helpful with our drink selections and the food was very good. Brisket sandwich, Reuben, burger and fish n chips were all very good. Would recommend it for sure! Seating could present a problem for bigger groups or 5 stars for sure.

We went later in the night and had the limited menu. Good manhattans, and some unique offerings. The cheesesteak egg roll was tasty and unique! The tray of fries was way too much, even for our party of five. The wings were crispy with good sauce.

Perfect place for good bar food apps and cheap drinks! We ordered a «tray» of fresh cut french fries and Philly cheesesteak egg rolls and they were super tasty! I didn’t have a drink by my co-​workers did and they were very satisfied by their drinks… one of my co-​workers thought her drink was a bit too strong without enough chaser that could be a good or bad thing depending on your preference.
I ordered the BLT minus the egg for my entrée and it was the perfect size, with the perfect balance of bacon. They use a special house mayo that is super tasty and adds just the right flavor. We’d definitely check it out if in the area again.

Meh… it’s ok. 2 stars isn’t bad enough to complain or good enough to really say anything.

Definitely one of the best places in town for really good cocktails. I’m so glad the trend is getting away from super sugary fruit juice cocktails. They have the best cocktails in town for me, I like gin and vodka, and they have plenty of variety for ingredients like rosemary or ginger beer, which I love! The food is great, the service is great, they are always on it even when busier.

I really want to like this place since it’s supposed to be the downtown bar that caters to grad students and young professionals, but I feel pretty underwhelmed every time I go.
The best part about this place is being able to order a mountain of french fries served to you on a large baking sheet. The cheesesteaks are pretty good too.
The beer tastes like they don’t clean properly their taps, which I’d expect at most other downtown bars but not here.

This place has a ton of options for drinks and food. The food is my favorite part. I usually get fries when I stop by which might be some of the best in town. Along with them they have incredible Cheesesteaks compared to other spots. Something interesting to try is their buffalo mac n’ cheese which has a different flavor to it.
Compared to other spots in town, this a great spot to sit around watch a game or 2, while hanging out with friends!

Visiting my sister in state college Pa, we decided to go to dinner and drinks for New Year’s Day. She’s been to this place before and thought it was good. Okay the menu it’s not really big, prices I think they are kind of high for bar food. We got there at 5:30 and no specials, no happy hr nothing. The burgers or sandwiches didn’t come w any sides. So because of all this I lost a star. On the other hand, the ppl that work there very nice and helpful. Our waitress was awesome! Even tho I asked for water every 5 min she always had a smile, and brought me a big water container lol but that was awesome! I got a Rubin sandwich, which was just ok. Nothing special, the place got pretty busy after like 7. So if you are in a mood for bar food, drinks, and great service this is the place :) ps. They have an outside seating strip, so I think in the summer would be fun to be here.

Ok, I’ll start with the name. The sign says Local Whiskey but the locals call it The Second.
Assuming this is because of the place downstairs called The Pyhrst?
My, how clever…
Anyway, my wife and I (yes we are what many other Unilocalers refer to as the «older crowd»), stopped in on NYE (early though, remember, we’re the «older crowd») on the advice of a good friend.
Well, we walked in and were kindly told to sit where we like, which we did.
We picked a booth, very comfortable btw and within 3 minutes, our first waitress approached and took our drink order. Whiskey sampler, a Stella and a Islay Mule.
Whiskey choices (Brandy) were very good, Stella perfect of course but the Mule needed some work.
Not sure what happened here but sorry, just not very good (to us).
Then our second waitress? stopped by to take our food order.
We ordered a «plate» of fries (holy crap), in a very good way, Philly Cheese and a Chicago dog.
All were excellent. Remember, this is a bar folks so keep this in mind.
Bottom line: the service was great (although a bit confusing) the food was very good and the drinks were good with that one exception.
Being we went there primarily for food, we give this place a 4.
After reading all reviews, we were mixed but decided to give it a go.
Will we ever go to the «Phyrst»?, HIGHLY unlikely, but we will go back to «The Second», aka «Local Whiskey».

Has been pretty good each visit. I like that it is focused on whiskey and cocktails. Tonight we ordered the squid and it was fantastic! The waitress Andrea is great at navigating the menu and helped me pick a cocktail. We will return and continue trying out the menu and learning more about whiskey.

Head, shoulders, torso, legs and feet above the Phyrst.
I’ve been here a few times, service was for the most part, prompt, regardless of how busy they were. The bartenders knew how to make drinks well and lived up to their whiskey specialty moniker.
The food isn’t going to knock your socks off, but it’s good and for the most part reasonably priced.
The décor on the inside has a classier feel, but not so much so that you feel the need to wear a button down and a tie.
The only thing I don’t get about this place is their steadfast refusal to serve people on bar tours.

If the bartenders DO mistakenly over-​serve someone, they could at least treat the customer with some basic dignity. Maybe – but this would be asking too much– they could even let the customer order food and water!
I was a huge fan of this place for a couple years. I used to come here on a regular basis with friends, and was so happy to have found a place that caters to «older» crowds. So, one star for the ambiance, and for the fact that this place actually attends to an adult (i.e. not undergraduate) crowd.
Recently I was out with friends for a rare celebration, having a couple of drinks, and yes, I was a little buzzed, celebrating the fact that I just defended my dissertation proposal. We had planned on ordering food, and on spending our evening here. I was chatting with friends and enjoying our time.
Then out of nowhere, several huge men came up behind me and told me I needed to leave.
Of course I cooperated. But they wouldn’t give me any reasons.
To be honest, the whole thing was creepy.
Why weren’t they more civilized about this? I understand that if someone appears to be too intoxicated, they are legally required to leave the establishment within 30 minutes. That’s fine. I cooperated 100%. But these people were a) INSANELY hyper-​vigilant, and b) downright rude about it.
First of all, why send multiple HUGE muscular bouncers, to basically sneak up from behind a petite, peaceful, kind, and cooperative woman, while I was just sitting at the bar and chatting with friends? I understand that someone determined that I needed to leave. That’s fine. But why this approach? Did they think that a tiny female, size 2 – 4, would try to start a fight? That they would «need» so many huge men to get me out of their establishment? Come on. Were these people planning to «man-​handle» me or something?
Second, what’s inexcusable was their approach, and that they were incredibly rude to me and my friends.
Third, I was not being rude or belligerent. I was not starting a fight or a scene. I was simply chatting with my friends. Afterwards, when I asked my friends what I had done «wrong,» they said I had «looked a little tired» at the bar.
In most major cities, New York, San Francisco, LA, nobody would have noticed or cared. I’ve been far more intoxicated at bars in major cities and I have never once been kicked out. In normal cities, you have to be starting a fight or dancing on the tables to get kicked out of a bar. But here, we live in the twilight zone.
It’s one thing to refuse to serve someone. It’s another issue entirely to kick an entire party out because one person was over-​served and needs to peacefully sober up – by spending more money at your business.
I understand that they legally cannot serve intoxicated people. But the least they could do, if this does happen, is to be a somewhat decent, respectful, and respectable human being about it. Even when you’re kicking someone out of your establishment, remember that that person is still a human being – and a paying customer.

I love this place! I came here this past weekend after leavin Indigo, because it was too much for me at the time. I don’t know if it’s cause I’m getting older but I loved that I came here at 1am and they were still serving food! I got cheesesteak eggrolls and some fries which were both MAGNIFICENT. I also got a glass of cabernet. I have to say the fries are probably the best at state college and same with the cheesesteak eggrolls. The sriracha ketchup could use more sriracha but other than that I’m a huge fan

We had a table of 8 and ordered growlers all around. Us girls wanted actual mixed drinks, so our husbands ordered us mixed drinks. The drinks contained almost no alcohol. And when we complained to management, we were greeted with eye rolls and smart ass comments. We are paying customers with high paying careers, not drunk college kids looking for free drinks. Worst experience j have ever had at a bar.

Outstanding cocktails, although a bit overpriced for State College. Delicious food, well designed interior, a crowd that’s not too young (few undergrads) nor too old (few retirees) and usually decent music. I wish there were no TVs.
Whatever you do, DON’T GO IN THE BATHROOM OF THE OPPOSITE SEX. EVER. You will be kicked out without so much as a warning.

The second (the proper name for this place) is pretty good. They have a decent beer selection and one of the better «bar» atmospheres in State College. They typically don’t play loud music and it tends to attract less of the «party hard» crowd.
The only reason they aren’t getting four stars is the fact that their menu doesn’t have any good vegetarian options. I would like to see something other than appetizers without meat. Other than that it’s pretty great.

I’m not a huge whiskey fan, but I understand they make a kick-​ass whiskey sour. They probably make the best cranberry and vodka in State College (it’s all about the juice). The food is good too, especially if you want to eat something other than pizza at 1:30am, the kitchen is open late. They offer a variety of items, including subs from Ernie’s and a cookie tray pile (yes cookie tray) of french fries for $ 5 — something to share with at least 2 other people. It’s a nice atmosphere, and much more mellow than the Phyrst right downstairs.
It can get crowded during the early evenings though (before everyone goes out, and towards the end of whatever big games are being played that day). During those times, you may have to stand for a while before someone leaves and you can grab their spot at the bar or booth.
Side note — the pictures in the side room never cease to amuse me — women with deer and antelope heads… So random, but so funny. I hope you can find an odd appreciation for them just as I have.

When visiting the parents, my mom really wanted to try this spot out. It’s not too often State College gets a new joint that isn’t catered to the sloppy college crowd.
Once inside, the waitresses were all super friendly but did give us a warning that food would take about 1 hour. It wasn’t a problem for us since we weren’t on a schedule. We ordered two cocktails, the hummus platter and a garden cheese steak. Surprise, our food ended up only taking 20 minutes!
They did a great job with the cocktails and the ½ cheese steak and hummus made for awesome mid afternoon snacks.
Our waitress was lovely and was able to help us pick items off the menu that we would like. My mom also really liked the blue shirts they wear compared to the typical black/​white ensemble.
Overall great spot and I’d happily return.

HIgher End Drinking Estabishment in Downtown State College with massive food.
We showed up for dinner on «first night» and were surprised to see this place. They had a good line up of liquors as their name would hope. However that would have to wait, our main goal was food.
Portions are massive here!
A small fry plate, is a gigantic dinner plate filled with fries.
I got the «Fully LOADED» and it was. It was a massive amount of corned beef on rye and fancy mustard, and it was AWESOME. It was packed with so much meat, almost unfathomable amounts.
Give this place shot and eat here, although your heart may hate you for it.

Back in town for NYE, I was looking for a place to eat and get in out of the cold. Getting off the bus at the library, I look across the street and what do I see? A new restaurant! Local Whiskey.
We took a quick look at the menu posted on the wall outside and decided it would do. They were preparing for a masked ball thing for NYE so inside was all decked out with gold decorations, masks, etc. The décor of Local Whiskey is pretty fancy for a college bar/​restaurant. I was impressed with the bar and all of the tvs.
I ordered a cheesesteak because they share a kitchen with Ernies (and they are also shared with the Phyrst downstairs) and also got a small order of fries. When the food came out — I had to double check that our order of fries was the small one. It was a ridiculous amount of fries.
I’d go back, maybe catch a game and actually try some of their fancy drinks.