Favorite college bar, favorite bar anywhere, hands down. We came, we sang, we drank, we took part in Table Wars, we lost our voices and our minds. It's been a few years since I was back, so it may have changed. But it was a fabulous place to drink---just like it was when my Dad was at school at PSU. I haven't found a bar as "comfortable" since. You haven't lived until you've been at the Phyrst on a football game Saturday night, standing on a bench, pounding on the ceiling, holding on to the people around you (who you don't know) so you don't fall, screaming out the lyrics to some song with EVERYONE ELSE in the bar....grinning your head off. It's a wonderful feeling. read more

One word: Bartenders They wear next to nothing. Whats not to like! Order a Lunch room tray of fries for $5 to share with 8 of your friends. Perfect college dive bar. read more

Terrible professional knowledge and demeanor by ill training and unmotivated security ruined the night for several in my party, which resulted in the other dozens of us leaving out of protest. Racist & ageism implications were made, and justified. The bartenders and waitresses were nice, and deserve 4 stars, but the callous nature of the young and ill-mannered security weighted to the score of one star. Of note, the owners also own bar whiskey, which is has excellent staff & a classier atmosphere, and champs, which is middle of the road however positioned for young guys who just want to drink heavily. A caveat for anyone who visits this place, do not stumble or you will be ejected for being drunk, even if you'd not drink at all. Do not talk to, or buy, young white women drinks, or you will be ejected for supposedly putting something in their drink... Even if you do not touch the drink. The cheap drinks do not justify the terrible experience for a high percentage of clientele. read more

I think I actually found my favorite bar in State College, and its called the Phyrst. This place is pretty small from the outside, but it's actually not bad most of the times. The Phyrst is located right next door to a spot that sells cheese fries and cheesesteaks. If you're coming here on a Friday night, you'll see people lining up along the sidewalks for something. I can tell you that they're not lining up for fries. The Phyrst itself is located downstairs. After you get through the crowd and pay the cover charge of $5, you can have the pleasure of ogling at the bartenders, catch a live band, drink, and even play table wars. Out of all the spots in State College, this is the realest spot. Not too many bros, and everyone's just here to have a good time. The band can get loud at times, and the floor does get sticky from the beer, but that's what you get when you hit the dive bars. read more

The Phyrst is one of the most iconic State College bars around and definitely worth checking out if you are in town. I don't love that every server and bartender is an attractive, big-busted girl forced to wear a cut-up t-shirt as part of her uniform, but I might be in the minority with that argument. If you randomly stumble into the Phyrst, chances are that you will get to see a great band, as I have never been disappointed with a show I've seen there. They definitely get the best State College bands to perform there. They have an amazing happy hour from 7-9 where you can get pitchers of Yuengling for $3. Yes, that was PITCHERS and yes, that was $3! They also have two pool tables in the back room. It gets pretty packed on the weekends, but it's usually a good time! One of my favorite disgusting late-night food binges in State College is an Ernie's cheese-steak, which is right upstairs. You can order and bring it down or just order it from one of the servers. Get it covered in cheese whiz and onions and I guarantee you will not regret it. Well, you might regret it, but you'll enjoy it!!! read more

I loved this place in 1986, and I still love it today. It's hot, it's loud, it's no frills, and if you like it that way, you'll love it. If you don't like the above, steer clear. I came into town a day early for a conference and met up with some friends to hit a few of our old haunts on a Saturday night. The 'punkish' band that was on stage was great. It was just like being back in school except I had a lot more money in my pocket 32 years later and could still afford to eat the next day after buying a bunch of beers during the evening. Good times! Aging, be damned! read more

When the Chancellor and his cohorts are barefoot playing in the band, you know it's an awesome place. Bring your yelling voice, always crowded and rowdy, Table Wars are legendary, cheap beer. If you are adverse to noisy and hostile environments, get the hell out, you are in the wrong part of town. I may get shunned for telling you this, but steer clear of the bar when that bell rings! Spongebob Awesomeness: 4 krabby patties, 2 pints of whatever that one guy is drinking, oh and 6 pints of that stuff too read more

Three stars because, well, it's okay. I enjoyed being able to get up and sing along with everyone...that creates a friendly atmosphere among everyone. Well, unless you're the guy that threw a pitcher of beer in some dude's face, I guess...too bad that no one bothered to clean it up and everyone was walking in it for the rest of the night. As a basement bar I don't expect it to be pristine, but it wouldn't take much effort to clean up at least SOME of a huge mess. Drink prices are about average. The bar gets crowded, but that's okay if you get a table and are waited on. Overall, it can be fun as long as you know what to expect. read more

Staff is amazing and fun but the kitchen is useless. I've been at the bar multiple times and had incredible drink service only to have the kitchen take over an hour to make my wings or cheese steak. Stay for the drinks and the music, don't try and get food. The kitchen sucks. read more

Seriously great. The Phyrst is the perfect dive bar. Luckily for me, my dad, and my girlfriend last weekend, it was one of the shorter lines on game day. Even more awesome that Lowjack was playing. And they were ONNNNN man! Charlie Daniels, Led Zeppelin, CCR... To begin with, it's in a windowless basement. Dark, crowded, humid. Cheap beer, good music, attractive crowd. Scantily-clad, efficient bartenders. Friendly bouncers who let you finish your drink after last call (provided you're not a total douchebro). I'd move in if they'd let me. read more

I absolutely love this bar. My band played here every Sunday for a year (a school year that is) and you really can't beat this place. Tiny, divey, basement bar that smells of past regrets and spilt Coors Light pitchers, but still... everyday there is live music, a 2 hour long happy hour (which usually consists of half priced EVERYTHING) and now, they've added food which includes cheesesteaks, fries, wings, eggrolls and now grilled cheese, burgers, sandwiches, soups, and more. They serve you on your 21st, bar tours can come in, and it's really just a great place to come and hang out. get here. read more

Pretty typical college dive bar..cheap beer, loose women, great looking bartenders ( . )( . ) crowded, loud music, disgusting bathroom I love The Phyrst but its not for everyone it gets very crowded and very loud( my only real complaint) but if you love cheap drinks and college kids its your spot The bathroom gets disgusting by the end of the night I've urinated into puke more than a couple of times Ernie's upstairs has some great food..the fries are a deal, great to share w a group because theres alot ,the wings and cheese steaks are really good too read more

Although great happy hour pricing and a fun atmosphere, the bouncers are definitely guilty of age discrimination. Recently they have established a practice for kicking out older alumni spending good money, while allowing highly intoxicated youth to remain. This may be worth pursuing further. read more

As a first timer in town walking around trying to get a layout of the bar scene Phyrst comes off as a dark downstairs basement with death metal blasting up to the street. Weird right, Penn State and death metel? It's weird so downstairs I went, turns out there was a band, acoustic guitars and soft spoken singer warming up to death metal of all things, whatever gets you in the zone. Once the band started to play it was great, the bar became packed and a number of songs were originals and a good portion of the crowd seemed to know the tunes. Great spot for a few tunes but not somewhere I would want to spend the whole night, once the drunk crowd stated to roll in around 11:00 it was time to move on. Good prices and a fun crowd. Be prepared for a progressively rowdy bunch. read more

Love/hate relationship (more love) with the phyrst. Some of my best times at PSU were at the phyrst! Amazing bands, tons of fun, nice doorman, trashcans and beer pitchers, 21sts.. But they also have kicked me out more than any bar in state college. (Yes even more than the gaff) sometimes I've deserved it but others I was literally sober, waited in long lines and paid cover. The waitresses/bartenders are nice most of the time and the service is pretty quick! Some of them def need to get diff outfits tho... read more

I came here on a Tuesday evening and the gentleman at the front door told me there was a $2.00 cover to get in. So I went to an ATM and got the money to pay the fee. Upon my return there was no longer a cover. Which seemed odd. At which point i was asked to leave. I asked if this was because I was gay. Once again I was asked to leave. I asked to speak to a manager but was told the manager was no longer there. Which was also seemed odd. I called the location and was told by the manager that they stand behind their employees 100%. Really not sure what else to do other then share my experience. read more

I am am alumni with two children. The bartender told us they can only let in "younger" women" and asked us to step out of line bc of my age and weight. He asked us to leave and said hed comp us a round if we left before real people came in - alumni, imagine if your child isnt model-worthy and having a bartender devalue them for no reason. read more

Table Wars. Noah and Dominic for life. Trash Cans and Purple Gatorades are some uncommon gems that only true Phryst goers know. Sometimes they've kicked out myself or friends because of "visible intoxication" when we clearly had just arrived and they were clearing out to get more people in and pay more cover. I respect the game, but when you always wonder if you're magically going to be kicked out. It's annoying. read more

my friends and I thought we were the oldest people there, until a table of 50-somethings rolled in. maybe someone told their parents it was Parents' Weekend or something. there was a $2 cover. my one friend is oddly fixated on $2 bills, so he paid with that, much to the confusion of the door staff. a bad live band that took way too long to set up, and I just decided to keep yelling out "METALLICA, WOOOOO, YEAAAHHHHH-HYEEEAHHHH" like the belligerent force I am. who the hell is gonna stop me? I can't recall how cheap the Jameson shots and PBRs were, but it was almost ridiculous to not invest in these. sure, I felt some regret the following morning, but that's part of the college bar experience (or so movies and TV had led me to believe; I guess going to a college in an urban area meant I had a slightly different experience). bonus: there was a bench called "The Wall" so we kept saying that it was going to get ten feet higher, and decided various other people would pay for it. meme magic is real, kids. read more

This place has a douche bag of a bouncer. He kicked my man out for being too tired?@? Like seriously he had one drink and you said he wasn't allowed to be there? I've seen many similar reviews for people being kicked out for doing nothing wrong. Get over yourself. Just because he went out with me after work and was tired gives you no right to say he was blitzed. Thank you for such a shitty night. read more

I've personally always hated how cramped the bar was. I would love to complain about the often long lines, but you can't really complain that a place is busy. The recent upgrade to the sound system was long overdue. It now sounds amazing in there compared to the old system, just wish they'd turn it down a bit. Biggest complaint are the bartenders. Yes, they're hot. however some their drink making skills are sub par. The consistency of the drinks is all over the place. Some nights they'll be great, others they're horrible. The wait for drinks can sometimes be long. The Second, Clover, New Phyrst, Shamrock, or whatever the upstairs bar is called is a completely different story. Great service, reasonable prices, and it just makes you feel...classy. read more

Do NOT pay to skip the line. You don't get in any sooner than the regular line and it is a waste of money.

Do you like being shoved around? Listening to talentless cover bands? Struggling to avoid glancing at your server's cleavage? Having very little choice in drinks? Paying a cover for no good reason? Being unable to hear yourself speak? I think I found the bar for you. read more

DON'T EVER GO HERE unless you want to die of alcohol poisoning! The worst place in State College. They're constantly watching over you. If you didn't buy a second drink in 5 mins they kick you out. Sick to my stomach. read more

This made me angry enough to write a review and hope customers listen. We were in State College for the first time away from our 18 month old daughter. I definitely admit to drinking before I arrived at Phyrst around 10pm. I had a great time dancing with my friends to a great cover band tonight. Unfortunately, we were kicked out of Phyrst tonight. I'm honestly humiliated because apparently my dance moves were mistaken to be belligerent? Or maybe they're the type of bar who kicks people out when they don't buy a drink. Ryan, the manager, was very unhelpful. My husband was equally unhelpful in resolving the situation a little later, but the point is the situation was never resolved. Anyway, it was pretty silly. But since the band was awesome, two stars. read more

The Phyrst was my favorite bar as a student but after visiting last night and not having been for a number of years I will never return again. My friends and I were kicked out for no apparent reason and completely mistreated by the bouncers who were apparently on some sort of power trip. If you're an alum, it's not the same bar you used to attend as a student. Stay away! read more

I used to love this bar it was the perfect penn state bar. Then as a valued alumni I was rudely removed for no reason from the bar.

Yeah I just turned 21 and my roommates convinced me to come here twice in the past week. Worst decision of my life. Not only did they overcharge me for drinks the first night I went, they kicked me out without even a conversation. I went there completely sober and "somebody" had a problem with me before I finished a drink. BULLSHIT. Asked to talk to the manager because...I was sober?.......he told me "I don't care have a good night" DO NOT come here. They force the girls to wear pretty much only their bra's and fire them if they deny the attention. They also can not tell the difference between belligerence and a simple buzz. Zero stars if I could read more

The only reason I can guess that it has so many stars on here is because of what it was. It was fun. It was quirky. It had character. It was one of my favorite bars when I was a student at Penn State (class of '06). I don't know why they decided to change but its now a shell of its former self. It's now bland, boring and banal. Table Wars doesn't really happen anymore (I stayed from 9pm-midnight on a football Saturday and only heard a total of two chants; one of which I started). The fire hydrant just sits there. The music is now what you would expect at the Skeller or Saloon, no longer the offbeat stuff that was actually pretty fun. The only thing that's unchanged is that the prices remain high by State College standards. Despite all of these changes, it was still tolerable for nostalgia purposes.... Until they ask you to leave for no real reason. You'll enjoy yourself at the table, not being too loud, not causing trouble, not being warned of anything, and the bouncer will come up and kick you out. The bouncer will even say (half-embarrassedly) "you're not that drunk and you can probably get in at any other bar" as a way to soften the blow, but there are two major problems with that logic: 1) Getting kicked out of bars is never wanted. It's a matter of pride, and being admitted into a bar doesn't negate the impact of getting kicked out of another one. 2) I got kicked out around midnight on a Saturday during a football weekend. Even if I am "sober enough to get into any other bar", I will still have to wait in a long line and pay a $5 cover charge. Is the Physrst going to reimburse me for that since, in their minds, it all cancels out? I thought that my experience was a fluke, but I went on a Twitter tirade afterwards and multiple friends told me that they had identical experiences. I understand the need to enforce responsible drinking, but they have gone completely overboard. Honestly though, I'm not bitter about being kicked out; it used to be way more fun back in the day. It is no different than any other bar in State College now, except that any other bar in State College doesn't leave you on the street at midnight. read more

I don't know why people love the Phyrst, I went here a multitude of times during my years at Penn State. There is almost always a cover, even during break weeks there would be a cover. Every time I went the bartenders would ignore you, it would take forever to get a drink, the floor seemed like someone dumped carpet glue on it, the bathroom is something that seemed like an afterthought and if you are over 5'5" you are going to have to tilt your head to walk in. They have bad cover bands such as My Hero Zero come in and jack up the cover charge. read more

If a 0 star rating existed, this would be the business to deserve it. From the part owner (Mike) to the bouncers, this place is an unprofessional and disgusting cesspool managed by individuals who must have barely finished high school. If the management were competent this place would be fantastic, but unfortunately the environment is "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" minus the humor. Incredibly disrespectful, abusive of "authority", no sense of customer satisfaction, and completely inequitable, this is a dump that should be AVOIDED AT ALL COSTS. read more

This is my favorite bar. I'll admit, it may not be for everyone. If you are into the "club scene" this is not really for you. This is a basement bar. Smokey, kind of shady, kind of tight (not much room to move around), the tables are church pews! Rock bands play, you won't hear dance or club music. As someone else said, there are not many "bros" or typical club people, just a really cool, down to Earth place. Hard to hear, kind of crowded, but if you're ok with this it's a damn good time. Unlike some other dive bars in St College this one gets very crowded, though not as crowded as the clubs. The back room has pool tables where you can play, or just sit around drinking. Good alcohol selection, drinks are pretty good, awesome atmosphere, fun time always. read more

It's wanna be bar that has the live music going for it and that's it. Very unfriendly staff, impossible to get a drink on busy nights. Many people I know have had terrible experiences with bouncers and bartenders basically harassing them. They target individuals and use them as entertainment. Somehow always has a cover even if there's nobody there. Go to Champs, you won't regret it. read more

I saw the bartender pour an unused shot back into the bottle. I know it's a crappy, college, dive bar, but that's disgusting. When confronted she said "it was only one shot." Worst thing I've ever seen done in person, and it was done in front of the entire bar like there was nothing wrong with that. read more

During low peak times, this is one of my favorite bars! The service is quick and they take good care of their customers. During football weekends and other busy times, they suddenly charge high covers for average bands and overly priced drinks. Their happy hour prices disappear, be warned!! I will always remain a loyal customer, but be careful if you're just in town for a big alumni weekend. And that's the tea! read more

As far as divey basement bars go, it's pretty low on the scale. The live music is good, but there are other nicer basement bars that have actual tables instead of the two plank wide stands made of drift wood that the Phyrst has. read more

Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to see inside the bar and experience the service because we were denied entry on the spot. After a round of drinks at Local whiskey, we were denied entry to Phyrst by a smug twit for a doorman. A line was forming inside the bar, and while we don't know exactly what the reason was for denying entry, we were told that we were "too intoxicated" and that we should try to come back tomorrow. Needless to say, this bar is NOT RECOMMENDED, and we will not be returning tomorrow, or anytime ever. This bar is owned by the same individual/company that owns Local whiskey. By virtue of our terrible experience, I also do not recommend Local whiskey. read more

Great bar with great live music.....bartenders are hot and would suck there all of there toes and would let them fart in my mouth.

The dive bar is moving uptown. The bathroom smell has been fixed. The food is better than it's ever been since I started going in 1995, and better than many local restaurants if you order appropriately. Upstairs is a place to take a wedding rehearsal dinner, and downstairs is a place for the after-party. Bouncers are polite but firm unless you get aggressive, and then you deserve it, IMO. Some of the performers here are national award-winners, and the bar rarely "calls it in" on live music. Don't dress up--the tables are "rustic" but you should be dancing so no worries. Don't drive--you'll be drinking. Be polite--you're not a special snowflake. read more

Sometimes you just wanna go to a crowded, noisy, dark bar. Enter the phyrst. The express line for irish car bombs should give you an idea of what kind of place it is. It's got decent live music from time to time, and a lot of good atmosphere, but I feel like yogi said it best: "nobody goes there anymore, it's too crowded." read more