About a month after The Social at Midtown opened its doors across from UF, throngs of dehydrated students have lined up to experience the bar’s fresh-faced digs and abundant selection of alcohol.
Among some of the more traditional decades-old bars that cohabit Midtown, The Social is the new kid on West University Avenue.
And since its Oct. 3 opening, its staff — and many students the bar caters to — believes it has drawn business away from its competition, although nearby bars refute that assertion.
“We’ve been getting a large push of people who want to experience us for the first time,” said T.J. Brown, the assistant general manager at The Social. He said thousands of people have visited the bar every weekend since it opened.
The three times that UF telecommunication junior Stephanie Zajac has been to the bar, the 20-year-old has waited in “pretty insane lines” not seen at other bars during that time, she said.
She said The Social’s sophisticated, contemporary atmosphere has appealed to a larger swath of college students who may be tired of Midtown’s iconic but monotonous offerings.
“Compared to other bars, The Social is a lot less ratchet and a lot more sophisticated and chill,” she said.
Danny Zeenberg, The Social’s general manager, said his bar’s stature compared to the competition has inevitably pushed the Midtown scales and given the bar a larger chunk of crowds.
The Social at Midtown has a capacity of about 1,000 people, while some neighboring bars hover around a 100-person cap.
“Part of our brand is to not be sardined here,” said Brown, The Social’s assistant general manager.
“We are having to hold the doors every night for the most part to make sure we are not overcrowded and everyone has their own space.”
Two long-standing neighbors disagree.
At The Swamp Restaurant, a popular Midtown centerpiece since 1994, director of operations Ryan Prodesky said turnout has been similar to other years due to its location directly across from campus.
“We haven’t seen a big change one way or the other in the Midtown area,” he said, adding that new bars are always popping up.
“This area has always been a busy area in the community.”
At Copper Monkey, another long-standing Midtown bar, business has actually increased in the past month, said general manager Averie Johnson.
“It could be overflow — or the fact that we have been here for 38 years,” he said.
Matt Tsang, a 19-year-old UF mechanical engineering sophomore, said The Social is the preferred hangout spot for his group of friends.
“More people are like, ‘Hey, let’s go to The Social,’ than (for) any other bar,” he said.
Zajac said The Social is changing Midtown’s bar-hopping dynamic and positioning itself as the scene’s go-to spot.
“There is definitely a difference,” she said. “I don’t know if this will be permanent or not, but I think it will change for a while.”
