When our annual Best Of special edition hit the stands three weeks ago, our team of critics had much to say. You can read all about their choices in the On the Town section of Best Of 2025 at FWWeekly.com. As we mentioned last week, the Readers’ Choices are in name only. No writers were involved. Just you. And you did great. Buy yourself a drink at one of the places below. Here are some upcoming events at a few of these winning establishments.
A Great Notion for Many Things
These folks didn’t just win your hearts as the Best Bar-Bar, but you also picked A Great Notion (2024 Ridgmar Blvd, Fort Worth, 817-731-8521, Facebook.com/AGreatNotionPub) for Best Bartender — congratulations, Alissa Bedran! — Best Dive Bar, and Best Karaoke Night. Every Sunday afternoon is time for football on TV and darts. The dart tournament entry fee is $15. Signups are at 3:30pm with a start time of 4pm. As for the karaoke, it’s 9pm Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays and 7pm on Sundays.
Blackland for Distillery and Mixologist
Eric Riemenschneider, this year’s Readers’ Choice for Best Mixologist, would love to make you a drink with any number of spirits from Blackland Distillery (2616 Weisenberger St, Fort Worth, 682-268-5333, Facebook.com/BlacklandDistillery). As if a great drink isn’t reason enough to visit, there’s live music during the Blackland Fall Music Series, every other Thursday from 6pm to 8pm this week thru early December, featuring local solo artists. Sam Anderson plays Oct 9, Big Mike’s Box of Rock on Oct 23, Jacob Furr on Nov 6, JD Monson on Nov 20, and Jessi England on Dec 11. The series is free to attend, but reservations are encouraged at BlacklandDistillery.com.
Hyena’s for Place to See Comedy
While it does have the word “comedy” in its name, Hyena’s Comedy Nightclub (425 Commerce St, Fort Worth, 817-877-5233, Facebook.com/HyenasFW) has plenty of competition these days. However, even after 30 years, they are clearly still up for the challenge. Along with booking national touring acts, such as Jack Shaw this Friday and Ku Egenti on Saturday, the club hosts an ongoing event called 325 Showcase. The concept is that three up-and-coming professional get to perform in front of a live audience, each with a 25-minute set. For free tickets to see the next one Thu with Alvin Newsome, Kerry Smith, and Parker Slavens, RSVP on Prekindle.com.
Martin House for Brewery
When Martin House Brewing Co. (220 S Sylvania Av, Ste 209, Fort Worth, 817-222-0177) does a new beer release, it’s accompanied by a great launch party with the same motif. The next such launch is noon-5pm Sat, Nov 1, when they roll out a new Mexican-style lager. Rancho Grande Fiesta is a family- and dog-friendly event with live music, a petting zoo, and various vendors, including a food menu by Oh Balls! Food Truck. Entry is free for kids and nondrinkers. If you’d like to enjoy some beers, the $20 wristband gets you a souvenir pint glass and four pours of your choice. Wristbands are available at the front of the taproom and on the patio by the bar. There also will be a chance to win a “new (to you) but very used” 2016 Ford Fiesta recently custom-painted to feature a rooster by artist Ryan Davis of Random Direction. If you’d like a chance to win, just guess the number of cans in the trunk before the 3pm cutoff time, when the winner is announced.
Our Taphouse for Beer Selection and Restaurant Bar
These two accolades totally track for Our Taphouse (1001 Bryan Av, Fort Worth, 682-224-0431). On the food side of the readers’ picks, their salsa was named the best, their Jalapeno Popper Empanadas won Best Empanada this year, and thanks to the great beer selection, you can wash all that down with a wide array of suds choices. (That’s four awards, by the way.) According to a tasty-looking recent post, Our Taphouse recommends pairing the delectables with Churro Bandito. “Deep Ellum Brewing is returning to more of their seasonal [beers] this year, and this one hits.” Our Taphouse goes on to explain that this beer is a Mexican lager with cinnamon, vanilla, and just the right amount of sweetness to be delightful but not over the top. As for events, Our Taphouse would love to become your go-to for Thursday night football-watching.
Ol’ South for Late-Night Food
Besides being winners, one thing that all the places above have in common is closing time. After Alissa and Eric serve you drinks all night, you may have mad munchies on the way home. That’s where Ol’ South Pancake House (1509 S University Dr, Fort Worth, 817-336-0311) comes in. They are open 24/7 every day, all year, every year, including at 3am when you really need some coffee. And a German pancake. Or a patty melt (add avocado, trust us).
Who Else for What?
It’s all happening! From dart tournaments and trivia nights to football-watching and Halloween parties, take a moment to check out what our other On the Town winners are up to. For the complete list of this year’s Readers’ Choice winners from Good Grub, look for this Last Call column on FWWeekly.com in the Eats & Drinks drop-down.
