Courtyard Hooligans serves up cold beer, low key atmosphere

Tucked in the middle of historic Brevard Court in uptown Charlotte, Courtyard Hooligans offers the ideal setting for sports fans.

The pub's old European charm with exposed brick and dark wood will transport fans to a back alley in England. The inside layout is a long, narrow hallway with one end starting at the bar and the other ending at the bathroom - but those are really the most important aspects of a bar to dedicated sports fans anyways.

Stools line the outside perimeter of the room and sit under a small table ledge for drinks, providing ample room and enought seating to pack fans in to watch big games. International flags from Britain, Mexico and Ireland hang from the ceiling and add the final touch to the decor.

While there were only a handful of people hanging out at the bar on a Monday night, Courtyard Hooligans is known to draw a crowd large enough to push outside the door and spill onto the patio.

During the 2010 World Cup, the bar opened for breakfast and kept fans entertained for hours on end, serving up breakfast and lunch, even setting up flat screens outside to cater to those on the patio.

Fans were packed shoulder-to-shoulder, clanking their pint glasses and spilling beer all over each other when their team scored. Mexico fans draped themselves in the Mexican flag and bull horns were blown.

I remember one businessman who took off an entire month of work to spend his time at the bar watching soccer matches. He downed a Guinness in the time I was talking to him at 10 a.m.

Although a Monday night hockey game wasn't nearly as exciting as the World Cup at the international bar, my three friends and I still had a good time.

It was pretty obvious that our bartender, Paul West, also a fulltime school teacher, was bored when we arrived. He seemed like a cool guy and was a very attentive bartender.

My friends opted for beers on draft and I chose Magner's hard apple cider, which was actually pretty decent. Although I don't think I would get ice in it if I ever bought it again because it watered down the cider pretty quickly.

Our excited bartender seemed to enjoy having new customers and was constantly asking us what we wanted. He finally convinced my friends Katy and Adam to try his new shot combination - a blend of whipped cream vodka and ginger ale. The concoction tasted like melted vanilla ice cream and while it was good, I don't think I could have finished it because it was so sweet.

At the end of the night when we were ready to close our tabs, Paul made us play a round of roulette to see who would be paying for the drinks. Poor Katy got stuck with the tab.

I highly recommend checking out Courtyard Hooligans, but if you want to be caught in the middle of the action, wait for a big international soccer game before you make the drive uptown.

Courtyard Hooligans
140 Brevard Ct.
Charlotte, N.C., 28202
704-376-2238

Brittany will blog about the Charlotte-area bar scene the month of July. Got a bar suggestion? Email penland.brittany@gmail.com.