BG=Bar Goers?

The student population of BGSU makes up a substantial portion of Bowling Green. If there's one thing college students have in common, it's a desire to party, and many do it downtown. BG is definitely a bar town. There's a dozen in the area covered by our map in the post below, and more spread across the city.

The place I go most often is probably Uptown/Downtown. This is misleading because I love Downtown but hate Uptown. I've only even gone upstairs a handful of times. I'm not into the dance scene usually present up there. But Downtown is much more laid back, and has a lot of tvs for my sports-watching pleasure. There are also some good weekly specials, including what I consider to be the best one in town. On Thursdays you can get cheap beers and Captain and Cokes, as well as any shot for $2. I think they take some of the top shelf stuff off the table, but it's a great chance to try different stuff for cheap or have a lot of your favorite. A buddy of mine has lost multiple jobs for missing work Friday morning after a night of Irish car bombs.

Another bar I frequent is Nate and Wally's Fish Bowl. There isn't too much that makes it a great place, but it's usually a good spot to get a drink rather than wade through crowds and wait in lines. Other than that, the best part is probably the namesake, a drink called a Fish Bowl. It's usually available in two flavors, and is served in a plastic fish bowl.

These are the bars I usually go to, but head downtown and check them out for yourself. Each has characteristics that makes it different from the others. Need some help? Check out Raising the Bar in BG. It's a blog that won't be updated, but it contains articles written by myself and other journalism students that classify the downtown bars. Cheers!

Downtown BG Bars

Below is a map of the various bars downtown Bowling Green has to offer. There are others in town, but this focuses on the downtown area, which is highlighted in orange. Click on each location to find out more, like contact information, websites and images. I took most of the pictures myself.


View BG Bars in a larger map

Marketplace of Freshness

After watching Food Inc. this past summer, I began to respect independent food producers more than I had ever done before.  Within this fast paced industrialized world we live in, franchises like McDonald's and Taco Bell seem to dominate the food market.  This quick fix-corporate-food phenomena has complicated the American economy and our health simultaneously. Food Inc. also highlights the discouraging  fact that many government employed regulators whom work in agencies such as the FDA, tend to have ties with the same corporations they should be monitoring to ensure healthy practices and safe food.

Think about it for a second.  Our national news is dominant over local news.  Commercials are from nationally recognized entities.  We're tuned into national politics rather than attending town hall meetings.  Lastly, we tend to shop at franchises over locally owned Mom & Pop stores.  There is this national/state vs. local dichotomy present in different aspects of American life. 

But withstanding all the national competition remains an endangered shrine of locality: The Farmer's Market

On Wednesday's from 3-8 on S. Main St. (Between Sam B's and Mesmerized) you can find all types of vendors selling herbs, fruit, veggies, fudge, cookies and more.  After my visit today, I felt refreshed.  I conversed and ate with Willy who owns Willy's Salsa (amazing), Tony who owns Antone's Hummos (tasty), and Bob the fudge man (delicious) about entrepreneurship and Bill O'Reilly, whom they said i'll debate with one day.  I also bought some natural hand sanitizer from Elizabeth, who is a chemist, made from from olives and sage.

It was a breath of fresh air.

Small Biz BG Slideshow

Bowling Green's downtown is comprised of a nice variety of small businesses.  No skyscrapers or colosseums, just a bunch of blue collar families trying to make a few dollars.  Enjoy the slideshow.

The Cookie Jar... And More?

This kinda ties in with something Daniel wrote about earlier, because "The Cookie Jar And More" is one of those places you're kinda surprised is able to stay in business. In no way should this be taken as an insult, I just mean that a cookie delivery business is a very specific sort of shop. It's at 130 East Court St., across from Spots, and definitely offers more than just chocolate chip (although they do that pretty well also). The Cookie Jar opened about three years ago, and is managed by Christy Johnson and Maureen Lanigan.

I've been spoiled most of my life by having some great cooks in my family, including my grandma and my mom. One of the things they really got creative with was desserts, which might be a reason I can appreciate what The Cookie Jar is all about. Cookies freshly made and baked from scratch are their specialty, and they some cookies every day as well as special varieties each day of the month. There's some really creative combinations on the menu for October. They also sell muffins, and do a great job catering their treats for events. The Cookie Jar is closed Monday and Tuesday, but can still deliver on catered orders. The rest of the week they are open until midnight. Call them up at 419-354-8780. Of course, you can also order milk.

Side note: in researching The Cookie Jar, I discovered that they actually hold an annual cookie eating contest: the fastest to eat six of their cookies and drink six pints of milk wins. I've never heard of this but thought it was worth mentioning if you like to see people throw up from eating too much.

Mr. Spots

Everyone loves Spots. I'm not sure how else to say that. Their menu (.pdf link) features some of the best sandwiches and buffalo wings you'll find in Bowling Green, as well as salads and quite a few drinks, juices and sodas. And they deliver beer. Let me repeat that: with proper ID, they deliver beer. Been drinking, need more, and don't live near a store? DON'T DRIVE. Call Spots and let them help you out.

If you're still reading after that, let's get back to the food at Spots. Their Philadelphia style cheesesteak sandwiches are great, and probably the signature menu item. I like the Fire Steak, which has all the meat, cheese, onions and stuff and a bunch of hot sauce. There's other sandwiches, salads and hoagies as well. Get them with a bag of waffle fries. Call 419-353-SPOT, or visit them on East Court Street near downtown.

If you're from the Bowling Green you may or may not know that there is also a Mr. Spots in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Each location has been around for more than twenty years. I don't know how old this is, but here's a tv commercial I've seen from time to time...

Clazel: Theater to Bar

The video below gives a brief look at the Clazel, a former movie theater on Main Street that was renovated several years ago into a nightclub. I'll do a full length post on the Clazel at a later date, but the video will give you a view of what it looks like now. You can see some of the old architecture and movie theater style left intact, but I assure you the historic building looks much different than it used to. However the video is a promotion created for the Clazel and is accompanied by some loud music, so I'd watch it on mute if I were you.

Small AND Big Business

While our focus for this blog is on small business, it's important to understand the balance between local establishments in Bowling Green and the presence of larger companies. I've lived in BG my entire life, so I've been a part of the community's development for more than twenty years.

Like just about anywhere else in America, one thing we've always had here has been fast food restaurants. There are now two McDonald's, three Burger King's, two Wendy's, and a Rally's. That's a lot of burgers, but it doesn't stop there. BG has an unbelievable amount of Subways. I think the count currently is around 7, including several locations in gas stations. One of the busiest chain restaurants in town is Taco Bell, which stands in a prime spot on the walking route between the BGSU campus and downtown BG, specifically the bars.

Even with the presence of so many large companies, the city maintains a strong sense of small business as well. There are many small businesses and restaurants in downtown Bowling Green, which creates an interesting balance with the many chain restaurants. It's not possible to completely understand how chains affect the viability of small businesses in a small city, but there have been plenty of places that have gone out of business.

One of my favorite restaurants when I was a kid was a baseball-themed hamburger place called Casey's. It was very simple, with a menu that offered sandwiches that ranged from a single up to a home run, as well as fries and milkshakes. No go-wraps, fruit smoothies or gimmicks. I don't know if an increase in chain restaurants chased Casey's out of BG, but a rise in the number of locations for the big guys couldn't have helped.

Bowling Green: Small City, Strong Spirit

Bowling Green is a small city in Ohio whose residents pride themselves on a strong sense of community. With a population around 30,000, people of the municipality strive to deliver the services of a mid-sized city with the neighborly atmosphere of a small town.

One of the things that makes Bowling Green an interesting and pleasant place to live is the presence of many small businesses that make up much of the local infrastructure. Downtown BG is lined with small shops, restaurants, historical buildings and businesses, as well as bars - one of the qualities that appeal to the students of Bowling Green State University, which also has a significant presence in the city.

This blog is intended to showcase the businesses and service providers around the city. We'll visit the restaurants, show you the stores and the sights, and write about what makes Bowling Green such a special place. Hopefully this will be not only a source of information for people who live in or plan to visit BG, but also a model to inspire our sense of community in others.

The following is an excerpt from Mayor John Quinn's welcome letter, available on the City of Bowling Green's website:

"Bowling Green is a city of energetic and forward-looking people from all walks of life who are genuinely concerned about their community and how it grows and prospers. Our aim is to make all citizens, students and visitors alike feel that they are part of and welcome in this community. With all of these attributes, I think that Bowling Green is a friendly and pleasant place to live, work, play, and study."