Lubbock<\/a> central!<\/p>\nJ. Pat\u2019s, as it was known to locals, was a bar that was much longer than it was wide. I\u2019m not sure how many people it could hold, but it certainly wasn\u2019t a ton. It was a place for happy hour or a place to grab a drink before heading over to the Lubbock Auditorium and Coliseum for a show.<\/p>\n
J. Pat\u2019s was located at 1211 University Avenue, facing the front of the Texas Tech campus. Meanwhile, the Copper Caboose took care of folks around the side at 4th Street and Boston Avenue, in an area that has now been swallowed up by the Marsha Sharp Freeway.<\/p>\n
A Bar That Was Barely Irish<\/p>\n
The bar had a barely Irish motif, with dark wood throughout, and it seemed to thrive on the energy of Texas Tech and the surrounding area without really being what I would describe as a college bar. I\u2019m sure it had its share of college students, but it was certainly an all-ages hangout when I went there.<\/p>\n
The bar opened around 1975 and made it until sometime in the late 1990s. Research shows that it did a decent lunch business too, but I have to admit that I always had drinks on my mind when I visited. I can\u2019t even bring up a mental picture of the menu.<\/p>\n
Most of all, I remember the radio \u201cjingle.\u201d It wasn\u2019t really a traditional jingle. The ad simply borrowed the hook, \u201cAt a bar called O\u2019Malley\u2019s, where we\u2019ll plan our escape,\u201d from \u201cEscape (The Pi\u00f1a Colada Song)\u201d by Rupert Holmes.<\/p>\n
Damn. Now I can\u2019t get the bar or the song out of my mind.<\/p>\n
I guess that\u2019s why J. Patrick O\u2019Malley\u2019s will go down as one of those great Lubbock \u201cPlaces We Miss.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lubbock’s Must Try Frozen Margaritas For Summer 2026 <\/p>\n
Need to cool off with a truly refreshing frozen margarita? Here are some must-try frozen and blended cocktails to get your summer sizzling! <\/p>\n
Gallery Credit: Renee Raven<\/p>\n
Where to Find the Best Chicken Wings in Lubbock<\/p>\n
Looking for great flavor, texture, and maybe even a great place to hang while you enjoy them? Here’s a look at great places in Lubbock to grab wings. <\/p>\n
Gallery Credit: Renee Raven<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There was a time when “across from Tech” was open to every one. Sure, everything across from Texas…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":391088,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[168,170,169],"class_list":["post-391087","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-lubbock","tag-lubbock","tag-lubbock-headlines","tag-lubbock-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/391087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=391087"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/391087\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/391088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=391087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=391087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=391087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}