What to do in Hagerstown when there’s a thirty-minute wait for Schmankerl Stube? Walk down the street and have a drink at Bulls & Bears, of course.
On a Saturday night at 8:30, this expansive, open restaurant was packed, with only one bar stool open. Why? Because of Lucas and the Lovelys, scheduled to take the stage at 9 PM.
I’m not used to Hagerstown bar prices, but could become so very quickly. I was stunned to learn that a bottle of excellent McSorley Irish Pale Ale ($4) is owned by Pabst (although it’s brewed under contract at Lion Brewery).
Maybe even more surprising was the anonymous house Sauvignon Blanc ($6 for a huge pour). I have no idea what vintage this was from, or even what country this was from, but it was true to the varietal, and I’ve had many, many overblown new-world Sauvignon Blancs that weren’t this good.
At 9 PM, the band started playing, and that was our cue to head back down the street.