This place was cool. Definitely a college spot to watch games at. Had a very authentic southern vibe to it. The service was all right nothing amazing but it was cool and the food was not bad. read more

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Here up in Clemson SC on a Hot Summer Friday and stopping in for a late lunch!! Esso Club is always rocking with the locals!! Great spot to watch sports or just hang out!! Staff here are on point and very friendly and helpful!! Hey the food is solid bar food. I had the Bird Dog Wrap with fries, excellent food. Easy 5 Stars !! read more

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First we ordered the Nachos with the jalapeño peppers on the side, with chicken. Only one of the two nachos they offer have jalapeños. The incorrect nachos were given to us, not the end of the world, honest mistake. But they were very dry, so we asked for sauce. Then the wings were very overcooked, I told my server (she was very polite) and she offered to have them make me another order. Having worked in restaurants, I never want another order from the kitchen I just complained about. I left close to half the order uneaten. Again, having worked in the industry for years, those wings shoild come off. The bill came in full. That was a surprise... dry, overcooked food, disappointing all around. I have included a pic of said chicken jerk, errrrr I mean wings. read more

The Esso Club - Dried out wing, opened up to show how overcooked it is - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

The food is awful. Even for bar food, almost not edible. But the staff, location, and the old bar feel is cool. Staff - 5 stars Location - 5 stars Bar - 5 stars Food - minus 12. = 3 stars! read more

Bird dog great. Savannah great. Give dat girl a raise ya heardddd she da bomb. A server above all servers. We were not worthy

Was super excited to try bc I've heard so much about it since moving to Clemson. The food is super dry especially the chicken. Everything tastes the same. Super greasy. I've given the place multiple chances and every time it was the same. My parents came down and wanted to go and I said no bc the food is not good. It's all hype. read more

still five stars for great service, large variety of menu offerings and very reasonable prices. the vibe is dive bar/ sports memorabilia for sure. great place for lunch. plenty of indoor seating on our Tuesday noon visit. Recommended. read more

Classic and timeless Clemson treat. If you come into town from just about anywhere the Meat and 3 will shock you for a low price and a huge amount of food. The indoor outdoor options and family friendly environment make this a favorite stop for decades to come. read more

The Esso Club - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

I had the most amazing onion rings! Our server, Stella, did a great job and her recommendations were spot on!

Stopped in here just to visit an old dive bar. Beer was ice cold on a hot day. Place was packed very few tables were opened and only one parking spot available. read more

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Don't count on this place if you're on or near campus when there's a major event, oh like a concert. They can't take to-go orders, can't take online orders, they will be rude to you at the door. Don't bother. read more

How is this place still open?? First of all, it's absolutely filthy, dark, sticky, and loud. While it wasn't very busy, we were told they had a limited menu due to the crowds... that never came). Our burgers were cooked extra extra extra well done. There was no moisture left in them. Not even sure you could call them beef anymore. Our fries were cold. We couldn't order the drinks we wanted because they were on a "limited menu night". I swapped to a margarita on the rocks but couldn't get it with salt because the bartender wasn't doing salted rims tonight. Huh? $70 dollars for the worst burgers and drinks in a filthy restaurant. No thanks. read more

The Esso Club in Clemson is the perfect mix of college-town charm and Southern grit. Great beers, laid-back vibe, attentive service, and tons of Tiger pride. The real win? Finding fried okra on the menu--crispy, salty, and just the way it should be. Instant favorite. read more

The Esso Club - Cold beer and Fried Okra - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

Came here for a work lunch today, and ordered the steak quesadilla! It was very good and a huge portion. The service was quick, and I will be back. Everyone at the table kept saying "uhm we should have ordered that." I will be back now that I am working in Clemson. read more

A great time and tremendous philly cheesesteak! Ally was our waitress and she was absolutely wonderful. We are from Texas and this place was awesome! We will be back! read more

This place is a 5-star dive or college bar. I mean that as a huge compliment. The food was fine but nothing special. The wait staff was helpful. Our experience probably jaded by a bathroom malfunction near our table. No fault of Essos. Made a memory but didn't add to the experience. read more

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Sad to see where this place is now. It used to be the spot to go in Clemson all the time. Must have changed management or owners because its nowhere near what it was. Food was below mid tier while cold and tasted old. Bartender sat around yapping to 1 guy instead of getting things done in a timely manner. Also no staff nor the bartender knew what sports were on (March Madness Mens Championship) or how to work the TV's. Never been to a college sports bar or bar in general where that has happened. Sad to see Esso in this shape. read more

Esso club is an institution at clemson - it is what it is. Very laid back - decent not gourmet food. Students work there so please tip well- our waitress was so friendly and responsive. I didn't take pictures this time. We sat outside with our dog in the covered deck with fans that helped keep the flies away (it's part of eating outside). Husband got the dog bird sandwich and I got wings - thumbs up! read more

Not bad fried food. The portions were quite generous. I ordered the meat plus 3 and I could not eat it all. Popcorn shrimp, fried okra, Mac and cheese, deviled eggs and corn bread. Everything was good except the meal was luke warm and the cornbread was burnt. Slightly disappointing but the food was good. We also ordered the tenders and onion rings. The hand battered wings were delicious!!! I just wish they were hot. Everything arrived room temperature. Also ordered the lemon pepper wings and the kids loved them. Not a fan of the smoked wings. For what we paid I will say it's not a bad place. I wish I remembered our servers name because she was excellent. read more

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For a place that's synonymous with Clemson, I feel dirty for giving it a bad review, BUT here we are. The hamburger was so bad that I created a yelp account to let others know how crap it was. It's a consistency thing. Like it's some sort of meatloaf meat or something. Maybe it was ground too fine and had eggs and bread crumbs in it or something. To me it's like the meat was deviled ham or some sort of canned dog food that they pattied out and grilled. Ambience was nice. Wait staff was good. Chicken fingers were apparently good, according to my friends. Burgers are a-s-s full stop. read more

Easily the worst burger I've eaten in memory. No flavor to the meat or sautéed mushrooms. The so-called dippers were sent with no dill ranch sauce. Bun is far too large and dense, which makes the dry burger even worse. Weird, mealy texture and purplish color to the burger. Ordered take-out with coworkers since Esso is a Clemson institution, but I will eat paper towels for lunch before I ever eat from here again. read more

It's easy to see why the Esso Club was voted one of the top sports bars in the country. Known as "A Clemson tradition since 1933", the Esso Club is the quintessential college bar. Within walking distance to the football stadium, I can see this place filling up FAST on game day. Inside, you'll find a friendly neighborhood bar atmosphere with TVs everywhere and a fully stocked bar. We were greeted by the staff and we noticed immediately how friendly everyone was there. I can see how a bar like this would feel like home to the Clemson community. The food is good and the drinks are cheap. I discovered bird dogs which is apparently a thing unique to this area. Fried chicken and honey mustard - what's not to love!? The wings were a little dry for my taste but I really liked the fries and the bird dog sliders. Clemson, you've got a gem! read more

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It is the best food in the whole area. I preictally live there. I taught at Clemson University for three decades and are lunch there every day and was never disappointed. Ask if they know Larry Addis when you go. Larry Addis five star read more

After a long day of travel and getting my daughter moved in to her dorm, we stopped here for our farewell dinner. The place was busy and they had every other table reserved so people could properly social distance. I got the meat and three deal for $9.99. Lots of sides to choose from ("the three"). My country fried steak was really good, as was the fried okra. Not sure what happened with the mash potatoes...if they're weren't instant potatoes I'd be shocked based on the texture and lack of flavor. Corn bread muffin was stale. Mac and cheese was ok but had some overcooked hard pieces. The waitress was nice but MIA for long periods of time and to the point where my husband had to start drinking my water bc he had been waiting for his to be refilled for quite awhile. There is a lot of Clemson memorabilia on the walls so that was cool. We were told the restaurant has been around since the 1930s too which was neat. Overall, it was just ok for me and I'd choose somewhere else next time we are in town. read more

The Esso Club - Meat and three meal deal for $9.99 Country fried steak, mashed potatoes, mac&cheese and fried okra - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

We had our favorite lunch here! It's a typical college bar but serves fantastic comfort food. read more

The Esso Club - the outside of the restaurant - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

A Clemson staple, The Esso Club is a "MUST GO" if you're ever in the area. Directly across from Clemson's football stadium, it is a vibrant spot that has zero shortage of locals consistently funneling in and out. I went there for lunch and my dude insisted that I got the "Meat and 3," which is apparently a big thing in the South. You pick a meat and then get three side dishes. It was like $9 bucks or so, which was a downright steal. I opted for the steak fingers (deep fried steak that looks like chicken fingers), corn balls (deep fried corn balls), some spicy ranch pasta salad, and then a loaded potato dish. All were outstanding, the service was great, and I was full for the day. Esso is certainly not the healthiest spot in America, but if you're in the mood for some good country food right on Clemson's campus, this is definitely the spot. read more

The Esso Club - Meat and 3 - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

Well, it was recommended to us, and I must say, we were not impressed. When our food came out, it was warm at best. Nothing tasted fresh at all. Hamburger steak was cooked but cold, and the gravy kind of warmed it up. The chicken was more breading than anything. Our dogs liked it, though. Going to GOOBERS next time. Would we come back. Nope read more

Can't beat this atmosphere in Clemson. Definitely recommend visiting for at least a drink if you're a first timer in Clemson. A lot of TVs so you can catch the game when you're getting a drink or a quick bite to eat. Clemson memorabilia all over this restaurant/bar. Solid selection of beer on tap for a college bar. They carry a few local (Greenville area) beers on tap. Food is solid but nothing special. I'd recommend the chicken fingers with chips. Side of honey mustard is probably the best part of the meal. Definitely a different atmosphere on a Clemson home game. Very close to the stadium so a lot of people are going to get a drink and pregame before the game. read more

Cool Casual Clemson bar The tenders & fries combo definitely on par with the best in area; draft beer selection not run of the mill, surprisingly original Plenty o TVs in case u missing your team play Certainly cool & calm when Tigers not on tv. Complete opposite on tv, choose seat wisely Waitstaff on it & v v helpful Even went out of her way to find me a hot sauce to 'kill it' Will be returning read more

Just OK. Brought 10 people here July 10th for a birthday. Some people enjoyed their food, but my burger was extremely dry and difficult to swallow. It was fairly expensive for the 10 of us so I expected better quality. And one of the sandwiches was made with the wrong meat. The server was good and did correct the error but the experience was overall blah. read more

This place is a Clemson legend so I get the attraction. The cheeseburger was average and the service was good. Unless you're a student or alumni I'm not sure I'd suggest going here. read more

The Esso Club - Indoors - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

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The only thing you can knock the Esso Club for is it cost $30 for a hat. A ballcap. I get it, but you can buy an Atlanta Braves hat for $20. It is because this is a landmark bar that sits right across the street from the stadium, practically. I think the Esso Club really got established as a top college football bar when I was in school there in 1980 - not that I had anything to do with it, but Lewis Grizzard had spent a day there drinking and communicating and wrote an article about the bar for the Atlanta Journal. At the time, for Southerner's, Lewis Grizzard was a well known, good 'ol boy humorist. Then we won the 1981 National Championship and about the same time, the Esso Club started Spitoono, basically a reason to drink beer and listen to music and congregate together. So my son turned 21 and I had the honor to take him out for a beer at the Esso Club. The bar is a mix of regular adults and some college kids. It is more adults now from my memories back when the legal drinking age was 18. We ordered some fried dill pickles and received a healthy portion, enough for 4 to share comfortably. They were outstanding. It was happy hour timing (5:00 PM ish) and not very crowded but just comfortable and it was fun looking around at all the Clemson memorabilia and just being in the "heart" of Tigertown with my son, drinking a beer. read more

So disappointed! This place is a Clemson classic that has gone so far down hill. They took the prices off the menu, so good luck knowing how much your food will be until you get the bill. $30 for wings and a beer is less shocking when you're told the price of what you're buying ahead of time. read more

This is definitely a college town bar scene and I would not recommend it if you're wanting to even slightly hear yourself talk or make conversation. However, the food quality was surprisingly above average. I got the bird dog sliders with fries and their homemade chips and I ate almost every bite. Their spicy ranch is shwae as all get out. Our waitress was pretty decent given the busy atmosphere on a Saturday night. Not to mention, they have large TVs perfect for watching march madness games! If you're simply wanting a night out with friends this is a good place to hit up. And make sure to check out the view of Lake Hartwell over the big hill to the left of the restaurant afterwards:) read more

The Esso Club - Bird dog and bird dog sliders - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

It's been a few years since I went to the Esso Club. We went last weekend and were so pleasantly surprised with how great the service was and the food was fantastic. We had pork tips, fried chicken greens, okra, and mashed potatoes, and everything was cooked perfectly came out, had a great temperature and the service was fast. Highly recommend going Back if you haven't been in a while and if you've never tried it, this is a must stop in Clemson. read more

The Esso Club - After eating half the pork tips, potatoes, beans and Mac and cheese. Yummy - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

Always fun! Great service for a very busy place. The servers are the sweetest and food came out fast.

I went to the Esso club last week with a sizeable group of folks. Fortunately it was in the middle of the week and not during game day, or else I am sure this place would have been overrun. This is a quirky sports bar that caters to all of the Clemson students (and others, of course) right across the street from the university. It seems that every college town has a place like this, so it is always kind of fun to explore the place and see what they have in there. Rooms are kind of haphazard, and you can see that the place sort of grew over time, adding a room or bar here and there as they got larger. Our group was seated in one of the back areas, kind of away from the main bar area, which was fine with us as we weren't really interested in following the sports being played on the various monitors scattered around... we wanted some food, some drinks, and some time to talk to each other and catch up after six months. I ordered some wings for my table to share and also a meat platter for myself, getting the pulled pork with some corn nuggets and fries. The pulled pork was decent, though more of a sauce would have been nice, and the corn nuggets were properly done. The fries also were prepared decently. The wings I had ordered with mild sauce and a size of their hot sauce, and it was mild. Dipping into the hot sauce, I found it to be more in the realm of a medium hot sauce, which while tasty didn't really do a lot for me. The food is fair here, but nothing really to write home about. What makes this place special is the history it represents as being a landmark for game day at Clemson for so long, and that is really why you go here. read more

The Esso Club - Pulled pork, fries, and corn nuggets underneath... wings can be seen to the left. - Sports Bars Near Me - Clemson, South Carolina

Complete dive bar and I liked it! Tons of attitude and cold beers. Get drunk and enjoy

Super slow service and not good food. Very bland. We were there at 2pm and waited 45 min for food

Delicious food. The fried pickles, peach cobbler, and burgers are phenomenal. Keep in mind that the service can be a bit slow and the portion sizes especially for the appetizers are enormous. Plan to go with more than one other person if you want any chance of finishing one appetizer read more