Pizza is my Happy Place

Rome was once the largest empire in the world, and I wholeheartedly believe it’s because they had delicious and intoxicating pizza.

My personal favorite has always been a traditional New York Style but honestly put extra cheese on anything, and I will eat it. Now, being a student in a college town, I have eaten my fair share of pizza. The usual order was to Papa Johns using the 50% off after a win code and then making the pie last the whole week.

But after a dinner excursion checking another local joint off our bucket list, with my best friend Ashley, I have found the holy grail.

Even though I ordered a calzone, let me tell you, the smell of pizza hits you in the face the moment you walk into Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria. With a placemat menu full of specialty pizzas and toppings list to create your own, it would be impossible to not find something you like. Trust me, the table beside us ordered anchovies…

If the pizza wasn’t enough to entice you out to the Old City, the music scene just might pique your interest with a musical guest taking the stage every day at 9 p.m. Every Monday night the University of Tennessee, student radio station WUTK, broadcasts live from the restaurant, with their specialty show Y’alltentative, an American Folk themed show. Every Thursday night at 6 p.m. WDVX presents their show Swerve with new artists each week.

The next perk to this local hot spot is the weekly trivia night with the Knoxville Trivia Guys. If you have a friend that boasts their knowledge you can put them to the test, starting at 8 p.m. every Wednesday night the questions begin!

Barley’s might be tucked in the back corner of the Old City but don’t miss out on this Knoxville gem!

How It All Started…

My best friend and I are about to finish our undergraduate degrees at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and in doing so, we have decided to take the last three months of our time to check off boxes on our bucket list.

The bucket list happens to include the many places to eat, bowl, sing, dance, and eat some more. These are all of the fun, cool, and trendy places to be in the Knoxville area. While we are neither, cool or trendy, we are pretty fun. And in the name of fun, we have already checked off our first item on the list.

The Mill and Mine is a  location in the Old City. This music hall was the scene of the sold out Morgan Wallen concert that genuinely was unlike any other my BFF, and I have experienced. Morgan Wallen’s lights and video set stage was perfectly illuminated by the Mill and Mine’s crowd as Knoxville welcomed the artist home.

Many more ticks will be checked off the bucket list, but for now this spring semester senior needs some shut eye.

The Journey Begins

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton

In the last few months of my senior year, my best friend and I have set out on a journey. We have gone through the past four(ish) years of undergraduate school saying “Oh yeah we’ll eat there someday,” “Wow maybe one time we should check that place out,” or my personal favorite, “We’ll get there eventually.”

Well, the clock is running out for us to explore all our little college town has to offer. From unique taprooms, sold out concerts, cheesy pizza, basketball fandoms, or to the quest for the best doughnut in Knoxville, we are checking things off our bucket list.