Tried Schoolhouse Pub and this one really snuck up on me 🍺📏✏️
It’s tucked away on Manor (aka a street absolutely loaded with hitters: Este, Haymaker, Bar Toti, Salty Sow…), so it’s very easy to miss. I did. For a long time. Finally corrected that.
This place isn’t a dive, but it’s also not trying too hard. Small, cozy bar with a fun school-themed gimmick 🎒— drinks named things like Jungle Gym, and when you order food they give you a number that’s literally a ruler taped to an eraser. Dumb. Charming. It works.
We came on Wednesday for their $25 steak frites 🥩🍟 because we’re currently on a mission to find the best steak frites in Austin.
Current value king: Vince Young 👑
Strong contender: Bar Peached
Schoolhouse? Now officially crossed off the list ✅
Here’s the issue: inconsistency.
• Mine: good flavor, but overcooked 😐
• Luke’s: well done (unfortunate)
• Javan’s: rare and honestly looked the best 👀🔥
• Rohit’s: somewhere in between, unclear, vibes-based
The au poivre sauce was really good 🫙🤌 and the fries were salty (which I liked), but the cook variance was frustrating. I wanted to love it more. If I come back, I’m ordering it rare and making eye contact while I say it 👁️👁️.
They also have happy hour daily from 5–7 ⏰🍻, which is great on paper. BUT — there’s a $7 fish & chips HH deal 🐟🍟 that sounds amazing until you realize it’s half an order. One piece of fish. Total bait. Luke and I thought we’d split it… nope. We split one fish. The fish itself? Fine. Whatever. Move on.
Food-wise: solid but flawed 🍽️
Vibes-wise: actually very good 😌
Bonus context: this is a perfect pregame spot if you’re going to the Bullock Museum IMAX 🎥🔥 (world’s biggest IMAX screen in Texas). It’s like a 5-minute drive, even in traffic. We pre-gamed here, then watched Avatar: Fire and Ash, and yeah… that screen is insane.
Final verdict:
Cool hidden bar ✅
Fun theme ✅
Steak frites potential ⚠️
Fish & chips HH = scam 🚨
If you’re seeing a movie at Bullock on a Wednesday, this is a solid pregame move. Just order your steak rare and don’t get tricked by the fish.
