This is a review for only Friday/Saturday nights.
I have only lived in this city for a couple months but it didn't take long for me to find the Pumphouse. To be honest, I like this place but I cannot figure out why this is one the more popular spots compared to the tons of other bars around the area (although I haven't visited all of them).
Inside you'll notice a lot of younger people (mid 20's) and it's a pretty even ratio between men and women. There's a couple bars inside and it never takes me too long to get a drink. In the corner there's a dance floor type area where most people start dancing as the night progresses and the drinking commences. The sound system sounds good inside, but what really surprised me was the quality of the sound and stage outside. Unfortunately, I've noticed not many people go there to see the bands as it tends to be more empty outside compared to the inside... at least the nights I've been there.
Bottom line -
If you want to go out with some friends, single or not but can't decide, this is the spot. It has a bit of everything really. A DJ, dance floor, band, outside seating, drinks, good sized crowd, and they even sell pizza on the way out when it's closing time (which I think is an amazing idea). Check it out, it ain't so bad.
Once upon a time, I thought that going to frat parties was the coolest thing ever. As the nerdy girl with too much acne, braces and glasses, even tagging along with my hipper, prettier friends and their boyfriends seemed awesome. Nothing could beat a beer selection of Bud Light, Natural Ice or PBR. And to have a pool table? I only dreamed of being sexy enough to dance atop one...like my friends decked out in daisy dukes and cut off shirts.
But that was once upon a time...though Pump House has a better beer selection (local brews abound) than those tri Greek letter sausage houses, the crowd is remarkably similar. And while the karoke and DJ add a bit of class to an otherwise popped-collar environment, Pump House is still a frat party for 20-30 somethings at best.
That said, if you're looking for an easy way to 1) hook up with someone who probably knows Snookie (or your brother) or 2) to get yourself (or that probably lovely soul eyeing-erm-checking you out something serious from across the bar) toasted, Pump House is the way to go.
Not my favorite place in Old Town. I don't usually go unless someone else drags me along. On the weekends, you can always expect to pay a cover. Usually around $5 bucks. Lots of outdoor patio seating, which is nice when the weather allows it. Pretty loud environment inside at night, but not overwhelming.
Review Source:This is a seriously fun place. Â I sat outside on Saturday afternoon last weekend and enjoyed a cold beer and the nice weather. Â Then later in the day my wife and I came back for another beer because the place had been so much fun earlier. Â I recommend this as a friendly, clean, good place to have a beverage.
Review Source:Out of all the bars in old town this is the most stuck up place I been too. Every time I go its always full off frat boy douches trying to pick up slorority girls. Always a long wait in line for a drink then when I get one they always seem to beg for tips. The manager tried to pick a fight with me just for playing good music on the juke.
Review Source:I stopped here for lunch because somebody told me it was good. They were wrong. I didn't really see anything I liked on the menu, so I ordered a burger medium rare with fries. My burger was more medium than anything else, but it happens so I don't complain. The meat however, was odd. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good and just tasted different in a bad way. I definitely would not go back.
Review Source:Good burger, great beer, and some decent bread pudding...
Would go back, but nothing really stood out to me other than the Fat Tire beer....
Hate to say it but I probably would'nt remember this place when I am in Wichita again....
The service was very good however. I will say our waitress was EXCELLENT...
Pretty cool ambiance. Drinks are well made, but I typically stick to beer. One of the bigger bars in town; seems to attract a lot of bachelorette parties.
The waitresses are pretty friendly and reasonably fast for how busy it gets. Plenty of room to walk around and talk to people.
The cover charge on the weekends is annoying when there isn't a live band. Wichita isn't "happening" enough to dictate a cover charge. Even though the cover is annoying, it does a pretty good job of crowd control. The type of people that are willing to pay a $5 cover in Wichita, are not the type of people to start a fight at a bar. So at least you can count on all the patrons being pleasant.
Tip: Try to get Megan as your server, she's the best.
As others have said, the builign used to be an old school gas-station with service bays. Â cool look to the outside and an interesting idea they had with one of the service bays - the below ground area for the mechanic to stand and work on the car is now a below floor bottle storage area - and the thick plexiglass ceiling in the floor you walk on. Â Cool idea, unfortunately a storage area viewed from above looks like ... well .... a storage area.
That pretty much indicates up my opinion of the Pump House - a cool idea that could be so much better.
Large casual sports bar that had about 25 people in it on a Tuesday night. Â had a beer. Â didn't trust them to make a quality Manhattan. Â lots of TV's - but the only TV in the place that could play the Sharks / Cunucks hockey playoff game was the 1 large TV behind the bar. Â and the people at the bar were watching NBA playoffs.
So a sports bar that has only 1 TV that gets all the sports channels? Â What's up with that?
decor was nothing special, crowd was nothing special, service was nothing special. Â saw only 1 bartender and 1 waitress.
Would I go back? Â maybe, but not if I want to watch hockey,
This is a really big bar. I love that it is a old gas station....hence the name "PUMP HOUSE"
I enjoy it here it's pretty laid back and they play a decent mix of music...it can get quite busy depending on the day sometimes hard to find a table.
I have only been here a handful of times so I really don't know what specials they have....
Its in an old gas station right in the middle of the 'hipster' Old Town neighborhood. Â They have great beers on tap, tons of tvs, cool bartenders, OK bar food and best of all - A BARRY SANDERS jersey signed and framed on the wall!!!
I say no more.
Its a cool place to hang out and drink while watching sports, talking to friends or just relaxing.
Go Here...
The Pump House is a cool little place that started as a gas station, opened up the bar, and the bar overtaking the business of the gas station - they only this month stopped selling gas (though also possibly because everyone just drives up and parks in front of the place). From a nightlife perspective, the place is a nice medium between some of the trendier-looking neighbors on the street, though business can range from a packed house to the bar being completely empty. I'm not a nightlife kind of guy, so I am more interested in the food.
I ordered a cheeseburger, which was fairly ordinary in a good way - cooked medium-well, lettuce, onions, tomato, and cheese. The fries were pretty great due to their being made in-house.
I didn't intend on a cup of soup beforehand, but the hamburger soup featured on the menu interested me, and I thought it would pair well with the hamburger burger. I was horribly, horribly wrong, not because the pairing didn't work, but because the soup was very poorly made with diced onions and celery, sliced carrots, diced tomatoes, and unseasoned ground beef floating in a water base. When I was eating, the bartender asked me if it tasted like a burger.
In my day to day life, I've picked up a facial expression a Charlie Chaplin film - I can't remember which - where the man has to eat something he doesn't like in front of another person. To respond to the eagerly-awaiting server, he scrunches up his face in a way that may either be construed as a forced smile or a thinly veiled portrait of disappointment.
This is the face I had to pull out when tasting that soup. It was not good.
It was so disappointing, in fact, that I developed a recipe for a true hamburger (bacon cheeseburger, actually) soup. It starts with a sweated mirepoix blended with beef broth and sharp cheddar cheese melted into it. Frenched caramelized onions are added, as are browned and julienned potatoes, and half of a head of chopped lettuce. The protein arrives by way of boneless short ribs, braised for four hours, half in a mustard-based liquid and the other half in a ketchup-based liquid. The soup is topped with a tomato-pickle relish and pieces of bacon.
It worked pretty well, though not without faults of its own, what with it being a first draft and all. BUT in any case, it was a hell of a lot better than the watery vegetables and lifeless meat I got at the restaurant. I suppose the Pump House should get some credit for the idea, but on the whole, a poor soup, a decent burger, and some great fries amounts to an indifferent three stars for the food.
I can't even count how many times I've been to the Pump House in the past year. This is a go-to spot for everyone in my company's Wichita office. Seeing as I had many work trips there recently, I found myself at the Pump House almost every night for many weeks. The space itself is cool - an old gas station - and large enough for groups. Biggest pro: I really love their grilled turkey and cheese sandwich. It's warm, melty and perfect on a cold night. Sometimes I switch it up and go with ham. These are served pretty plain and with a big pile o' Ruffles on the side. I happen to love greasy potato chips so this poses no problem for me. Plus this is an extremely cheap meal. It kind of looks like something I could whip up at home on some Wonder bread. Maybe because I don't buy myself Wonder bread, this sandwich is a treat. Biggest con: limited beer selection for someone like me who doesn't like Bud, Miller, wheat beer or IPAs. I always have to drink Guinness here for lack of other choices. That doesn't put me out too much :) This is a place filled with regulars, everyone seems to know everyone else. During a final four game in March, it was packed to the gills and a total blast watching all the Kansas fans in action. I will be back to try a burger sometime soon.
Review Source:this place has all the potential to be the type of bar i would want for my own town. Â it's roomy, has a pool table, juke box, lots of outdoor space, live band outside, food, beer, liquor, etc. Â except that the bartenders are absolutely the slowest and most frustrating humans around. Â i literally sat at the bar (there wasn't even really a line - it was like 9:00) for over 15 minutes before just deciding i probably wouldn't be drinking. Â we did end up getting a waitress who was amazingly on the ball and great, but i can only imagine that this experience was the exception rather than the rule. Â also, i was amused but not entirely impressed by the overt displays of testosterone that occurred throughout the evening. Â i guess they do things a little differently in the midwest....
Review Source:the Chumphouse. Such a douche bar. I go in there dressing in shirt and jeans while everyone else is dressed in slacks and polo's. I play some good rock music on the e-juke and then the douche Manager comes up to me and yells at me for playing a few good hard rock songs by Slayer. I'm sorry i'm not into cheesy Dave Mathew's, Nickelback or Backstreet Boys. You had that music playable. But the waitresses are sexy though. All the people who hang out there are just stuck up rich assholes from the suburbs who know nothing about city life. I'd rather not spend $10 on a saturday hanging out there without live music and just awkwardly standing around.
Review Source:I Like Christine's review and so will try to not dwell on the same items. Love the outside design of a old garage. I also agree with Derek that the waitress are very nice to look at.
The menu had todays special as Roast Beef and mashed Potato but when I ordered it I found out that it had changed to BBQ beef sandwich and chips. Thats sounded good too so ordered it and a water since they don't have Pepsi products. The BBQ came in about 5 min and was nice size sandwich. It wasn't dripping with sauce but did have a good flavor but not smokey like some BBQ I have eat. The chips were the Ruffles type and there was a 1/4 pickle on the plate.
Total with tax was $6.32 and was a good BBQ sandwich but nothing special. Overall average but they do have a good WiFi connection and a nice patio area.
This place blows. I've been dragged here on numerous occasions in a past life, and it is nothing but a glorified meat market. However, when you are in Old Town, it is probably one of the better bars. Which is like saying I'd rather be missing a hand versus a leg. There's your extra star, Pump House, take it or leave it...
Review Source:After four absolutely horrible experiences over the last year, I now refuse to go to the pump house.
The service is God awful slow and incompetent. Â It appears that the cook gets overwhelmed when more than 1 table orders.
The final straw was the waitress rounding up my bill of 21.31 and only bringing me 3 dollar bills for change (out of $25)
RIP pumphouse.
It's too bad, the Ruben was one of the best in Wichita.
Decent bar in a good location. Â The drinks are fairly cheep and the staff are really nice and range from attractive to "Oh, my god! Â I just fell in love!" Â At least that's true for the female staff. Â I'll leave it to another reviewer to let you ladies what the guys look like. Â Probably the best bar in the old town area.
Review Source:
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