“Let Us Live While We Live”-Owls Club
Located at 236 S. Scott Avenue just off Congress St. behind the Childresn Museum is the Owls Club, one of the most unique bar scenes available in downtown Tucson. The Owls Club is truly a low-key atmosphere with a nod to the western roots of our wonderful town. The environment is not typical to what you may find down the block on and off Congress. The Owls Club is one of the few places that offer a wonderful selection of whiskey in addition to old world spirits and excellent cocktails. The mellow setting with live musicians playing quite often, offers a much different feel from the loud electronic music that pulses just blocks away. Part of what makes Owls Club so unique is its interesting history and location. This page will serve to share information about Owls Club in downtown Tucson.
Just blocks from the local favorite and Tucson famous Hotel Congress you can find this little gem, Owls Club. The name couldn’t be a better fit and you will understand well when you walk in. The dark ambience almost as though you are entering a secret lair leaves no wonder to why it was named the Owls Club. A place for the owls of the night to enjoy a fine drink and company with perhaps some live jazz music. Unlike Hotel Congress and other surrounding bars such as Hi-Fi, Cobra Arcade or Funky Monk the Owls Club does not feature DJ’s playing the latest popular hits at top volume. This is a place you can bring a friend and enjoy nice conversation with a soothing ambiance. The description Owls Club offers on their site is fitting. “The Owls Club is an aspirational Western bar located in the historic Armory Park neighborhood of Downtown Tucson. Offerings include an extensive whiskey selection, old world wine list, well-curated spirits collection, and a modest beer program. Nestled inside a 1920s structure decorated with beautiful stained glass and chandeliers, the Owls Club provides a warmth and elegance to the neighborhood bar experience.”(Owls Club)
The stained glass and chandeliers paired with the dark walls and dim lighting are key aspects of the Owls Club unique setting. As you walk in another unmistakable feature is the old church style benches for seating. The smell of the wood you are sitting on and the wooden rafters and unique architectural structure adds to the experience and the overall elegance. Another tasteful piece in the make up of the bars unique elegance is the lighting fixtures, they are dim, but once your eyes adjust you are really getting the Owl experience. Once you have soaked in the atmosphere you are left to choose a drink from a menu offering only a short list of exclusive beverages. Of course the bartenders will make up any drink that you request this list they provide is sure to offer something out of the ordinary that you may find to be absolutely marvelous. Whiskey is a draw here; they have got to have the broadest list available in the area.
Now that we have described the place fairly well the location is another aspect that adds to the atmosphere. Before the bar opened up the space was a funeral home that had been closed for a period of time before becoming the home of the Owls Club. This immediately leads the supernatural believer folks among to start wondering if the place is haunted. Through my research of the limited resources available online regarding the establishment I have seen people claiming to have had paranormal encounters such as shouting to “get out” or contruction workers being interrupted by books flying off a shelf. Arizona Travels posted an article (https://www.arizona-travels.com/blog/2016/12/06/owls-club-tucson) that has mention of some of these “encounters”. If the dim lit ambience didn’t entice you enough imagine for the folks that believe in the supernatural it makes the experience even that much more exciting or I suppose depending on the person terrifying.
This bar is a truly unique part in the downtown community, as I have described it fills a niche that no one else is even attempting to fill. Unfortunately places like this are not favored over the new style night scene. But perhaps that is just as it should be so the Owls Club experience remains the way it is now. Imagine walking out of the busy show at the Rialto where you have hardly any room to even move around. You walk west down Congress and slowly the noise gets softer and softer. You start to be able to hear the sounds of the night. Before you know it is nearly silent and you have almost reached Scott Street. Wind down your night at the Owls Club. It is open from 5 P.M. to close everyday.
The owls club hasn’t been open for more than a few years but I think as time goes on it will prove to be a staple of downtown for a low key spot to enjoy a nice evening. Though the music may not draw the biggest crowd it is among the few places you can sit down and watch some talented musicians play their instruments. Which I think for those of us that kind of scene appeals to us would just as soon have it kept to ourselves. As I have mentioned I have lived in Tucson my whole life and the night I walked into Owls Club was the night I realized it is possible to open up a really neat place to spend an evening and meet some great people. Though that may not be valued in a community as much as the new style night life scene I think there are those of us that recognize the value of a place like this where you can bring your friends and actually talk over some nice music and drinks.
