Murphy’s Law

Bartender on Friday 1÷15÷16 completely ignored us until we flagged him down then told us «have a nice life» when we left. Negative stars for service…

I was a little disappointed in this place, to be honest. The reviews made it seem like it was a really cool bar with a lot happening. I did go on a Wednesday night, so maybe it gets more active during Fridays /​Saturdays.
I will say, the drinks were very reasonably priced. $ 4 draught beers during happy hour (which goes until 7, later than most of the bars in the Sunnyvale /​Mountain View area). Even during non-​HH hours, beers are still only $ 5. The bartenders were really friendly. The other patrons were your typical dive-​bar locals during the early hours, and as it got to be later, it turned into a slightly more professional crowd.
I would come back on a night that has live music, as not too many places in the area offer that. For meeting a friend for a quick drink, I’d go again. But not for anything more than a cheap deal.

The wife and I are attending the Sunnyvale Summer Music series, every Wednesday from 530pm to 9pm through August, in the old downtown Sunnyvale on Murphy street.
We wander through one day, and are attracted by the chalkboard sign saying $ 10 jambalaya with chicken, ribs or pulled pork. There is a security guard in the front, who beckons us inside.
We walk through the enclosed bar area, and the heat is stifling –it’s got to be 100 degrees inside, with the overhead TVs showing the sports action. I don’t drink beer, but drinking anything would be a relief in that oven.
Outside in the back, are 4 long bingo tables, with sun umbrellas, each one occupied by a guy nursing a beer in the shade, while surfing the internet on his laptop.
A group of smokers occupies one table, with the smoke blowing back to the recycling bins against the wall. OK, not the best of ambiance.
Ron and D.S. in cook’s outfits are waiting for customers, and spot us right away, greeting us warmly, better than my family! $ 10 for jambalaya with a choice of chicken thighs, 4 ribs, or pulled pork. 2 sides, including bbq beans, corn, cabbage, and macaroni.
Food cooking in a series of hot pots cooking on the side.
We each get the jambalaya, with pulled pork, myself with a bun, beans and cabbage. The wife gets the macaroni and corn.
We ask for water, but have to get that from the bar. No waiter service inside –if you want something you have to go up to the bar.
The jambalaya has some serious kick to it, with chicken, sausage, and green peppers mixed in with spicy rice. The cabbage has bacon bits to add to the flavor. The beans are firm and the sauce delicious. The pulled pork is a large portion, a bit on the dry side, remedied with a large portion of bbq sauce.
We end up sitting on Murphy street listening to the bands playing 100 feet away, I in my smoky white thin crisscross strap Birki sandals.
Now the music is just so-​so. The food is so good that we come back the following week for an encore, a 20 minute walk from our home south of El Camino Real.
Great food, no table service. Cash only for the BBQ. Tomorrow is Wednesday, and you know where we will be –at Murphy’s law! And bring your own water.
Ron and D.S., save us some of that jambalaya!

Really good place and great live music. Their staff is very friendly and excellent service!

Love this bar! A Murphy Street staple, for sure.
Great selection of beer. Good options on tap, and a lot of bottled variety. I’m a fan of DIPAs and they have several really good ones behind the bar.
Nice little patio out back.
To me, that thing that sets this place apart from the other Murphy Street bars is the friendliness and knowledge of the bartenders. Well done, guys.

This is one of my friends favorite spots and he argues it’s the best bar in sunnyvale, I’ve never been that impressed with the prices or atmosphere but today I had a guy tell me I had to make my service dog leave — WTF? Some folks don’t understand or give a crap about Federal Law…
The only reason it gets 3 stars is because my friend swears by it.
Without his input I’d give 2 stars…
Paul and Harveys across the street is a better alternative =)

We come here often for a drink or two on the way home from work. It’s convenient for the CalTrain and the service is always prompt. I always wonder why it never seems to have many customers but I’ve never been during a busy time, more just early evening during the week.

This is the ultimate dive bar. Good for people watching. Went there for the live music and it was great. Arrived around 9:30pm/10pm, place was filled with sport fans, watching some football game on the tvs in there. There were a lot of older people sitting around that seemed to be the regulars. There was a lady at the bar, she looked a bit rough if you know what I mean, that kept going back and forth inside/​outside. She would strike up a conversation with a group of guys and I swear she was selling something. She would leave her purse on her seat at the bar and shuffle outside when she saw a group of guys standing out front or across the street at the other bar, Paul & Harveys.
Other than the lady selling god knows what to the guys outside, the place was cool. The live music started, more and more people kept coming in and started to dance. Bar tenders were nice! Definitely going back to listen to the live music and people watch.

I actually quite like this place. It’s definitely nothing special at first glance — pretty much what you’d expect of a dive bar. I’ve been to the Irish pub down the street a couple of times as well, and this place is actually my preferred hangout when going for a drink with friends after work (even though the other one might ‘look’ nicer on the surface).
The place is cheap, and every time I’ve been the bartenders are very friendly. Once I was explaining to a friend what Fernet tastes like, and the bartender offered us a shot at no charge. I’m a fan of this kind of service, not just because it’s a free drink, but because the bartenders want to make sure you’re having a good time.
A few times I’ve been here, they have a movie playing. I assume it’s when nothing else is on, but remember thinking it was a nice touch.
Don’t prepared to be blown away, but it does deserve a 4-​star review just for the welcoming environment.

Shout out to my boy Yani who keeps it real every time! He’s the best bartender in downtown Sunnyvale aside from Missy down the street. His creativity and craft is a one of a kind. This guy works hard and does and great job doing what he does. He’s the reason why people have such a good time at this bar. He has locals coming back for more and he treats his customers like family. I’ve never seen a bar that had this much love and family oriented type of vibe. This review goes out to Yani. He’s the reason why I come.

Was told by the bartender my music was going to be skipped because my choices were not to his liking. In a bar «packed» with less then 10 ppl. If you don’t want certain music played you should change you fucking jukebox or put a sign up. As a customer I have every right to listen to what ever the heck I want to pay for on the jukebox. Seriously. If some one doesn’t like it they can pay to pick a song they like.
In my 6 years of bar hopping, in different states while traveling I have never been told my music was going to be skipped.
A place called «Murphys law» a claimed Irish Pub that doesn’t like bands such as Floggin Molly to play when Skirlex songs have been playing. :|

Murphy’s is my 2^nd favorite bar on the downtown Sunnyvale ‘strip’ and that’s not in any way a bad thing. It has a lot to bring to the table. While Fibbar is where i’d go for a good beer and dinner, Murphy’s is where i’d go to get hammered.
The prices for spirits are slightly lower, the live music is loud, the energy is rollicking, and its pretty big and clean for a «dive» bar (dive is quoted, because lets be honest; its not even the dive-​iest bar in downtown. that would be Pat & Harveys)
The crowd tends to be a weird mix of older folks and just out of college twenty year olds, but that just guarantees that you’re going to run into some interesting characters. Some of my best and weirdest encounters have been at Murphy’s and I loved it, whereas it would have just been off putting in a different environment.

I have no complaints.
My coworker had her birthday meet-​up here last night.
We sat outside at one of the tables provided.
The bartender is great eye candy and pours heavy handed drinks. I spent about 44 $ on myself on several double-​shotted tall drinks.
Wasn’t too busy for a Tuesday night so it was nice and intimate.

Just moved here and am frantically searching for a good happy hour spot. In terms of value, Murphy’s Law is great. Happy hour consists of $ 3 drafts and well done drinks! Solid. Additionally, parking is no trouble for anything on Murphy St. if you park across the street at the Macy’s.
I wish there were more bar activities at Murphy’s Law, like a pool table, shuffle board or darts at least? Furthermore, the customers (at least when we were there) were… interesting… My friend and I went and we are both in our early 20’s. One guy who looked mid 50s kept peering at us weirdly. He hovered behind me and checked out my friend, then went behind my friend and started checking me out. That made us uncomfortable… Also, I wish there was food.
Solid place, but I think I’ll continue my search for my regular place.

Really divey. Lots of great brews. Live music on weekends. Older crowd. Unmemorable for lack of a better word.

Nice back area for people who smokes.
It was nice little joint.

This is a nice little bar on the Murphy Street strip in Sunnyvale. It is easy to find due to the massive sign up in front which is great for newcomers. Parking isn’t too much of an issue.
Tip! Go to the end of Murphy street near Macy’s and Target to park. There is security and cops there regularly too which makes it safe to leave your car there!
The drinks are priced fair, and the bartenders are all very friendly! The people that go in the the bar itself are also typically very friendly. The place isn’t super modern and classy, so don’t expect crazy colors and soft chairs, but I like it!
It is a very friendly enviorment with an occasional local live band! Sometimes even dancing!
Overall; a friendly stop for a pint and making friends Good service, and fair prices

Awesome happy hour? Check.
Bartenders that will listen to your sad, pathetic story? Check.
Awesome happy hour? Double check.
Come here and give them your monies!

The bartender was great. LOVED the Angry Orchard «beer» and the patrons were super nice.
They get one star because of the nasty owner. Several of the regulars refer to as «that old b**ch.» We made arrangements with the bartender a few weeks earlier to bring a group in for a pub crawl. We’re raising money for Leukemia and Lymphoma and the event was a fund raiser. While we were there, we wanted to draw raffle tickets.
The owner came over, stopped us asked (shockingly nastily) «What are you doing?» My friend said «we’re here on a pub crawl and we’re drawing for raffle prizes at each stop. We cleared it with the bartender.» She snapped back «You didn’t clear it with ME, and I’m the owner.» Friend asks if it’s OK to continue and owner snips back «yes» and sits back at the bar. Strike one.
I went over and gave her a flyer with the comment «Hi, this is what we’re doing» without looking at it, she handed it back to me and growls «I’m not interested in this.» Strike two.
OK, just because you own the place, doesn’t mean you need to be a gracious host. But When my friend went up to thank the bartender and let him know we were leaving, the owner asked where we were going. My friend replied «Pat and Harvey’s» and the owner rolled her eyes and said «Good luck over there! I hope you brought a gun.» Strike three.
Next time you want to bring a group of people into a bar with no pool, darts, music (Saturday afternoon) or welcoming owners, this is your place. Several patrons followed us to the next location and bought raffle tickets. Across the street, we bought drinks, played darts and people didn’t act mad that we were spending money there. I don’t know if you really need a gun at Pat and Harvey’s (didn’t seem like it) but you need a thick skin to go to Murphy’s Law.
I won’t bother them with my business in the future.

The bartender on Monday and Tuesday nights is pretty hot.
Oh wait, this has to be about the actual establishment…
Well okay let’s see. It’s your typical Irish pub atmosphere, on Monday nights they have a band playing so that’s cool, and the bartender’s butt looks faaannnttaaass…
Uhhhh —
Let me start this again.
You can order food and eat it at the bar, where the bartender will make you four 7&7s that will inevitably lead to your downfall and have no less than three groups of guys, age range 25 to 83, hit on you and try to get you to Dubai/​their boat/​let them kiss the spider bites you were complaining about earlier.
Great place to up your self esteem. Wear something revealing… or don’t, they’ll hit on you anyway. The pours are steep enough that you can forget all about how sad this should make you.
Tip your bartender with more than just your number, otherwise you look like an asshole. Maybe put it ON a $ 20?