Crossbones

Bar

5611 S 36th St
Omaha, Nebraska, 68107-3229
United States

(402) 991-4920 | map

Formerly Brass Monkey Sports Bar
PLACE STATS
Average:
4.26
Reviews:
5
Ratings:
6
pDev:
7.75%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews.
 
Rated: 3.75 by BrettHead from Nebraska

Dec 13, 2013
Photo of lambic3120
Reviewed by lambic3120 from Nebraska

4/5  rDev -6.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
The Brass Monkey is one odd mix of craft beer fans and BMC swillin' blue collar (or seemingly unemployed) people. I've seen it all here: Bar fights. Barfing in the middle of a Sunday afternoon. Beer nerds geeking out over "rare" beer on-tap. It can be such an odd mix of people. With that said, I've enjoyed my fair share of beers here since they opened. I'm even part of their mug club (but I fail to bring my mug with me most of the time).

It is really hard to explain what the Monkey is. Part craft beer bar... part South Omaha neighborhood bar... part biker bar... part, well, Brass Monkey. There is plenty of good craft beer on-tap along with a couple BMC and mainstream (dud) imports. The tap selection could be better. I'm never sure of the rhyme and reason behind some of the taps... sometimes the focus is lacking. However, GREAT prices; best in town! The few craft bottles they have are extremely cheap as well. Major kudos for that. Still, any craft beer geek can find a handful of really, really good beers on-tap to choose from (anything from IPAs to quads to hefes to brown ales to doppelbocks).

Service can be very good. No beer geeks work here but there are hardworking, really nice bartenders.

They always seem to have a special event going on every so often with cheaper drinks or free food or something. The Monkey can be a lot of fun. It isn't a serious beer bar by any means (I mean that literally). It is a place to hangout, watch TV, and drink some good beer and people watch....

No kitchen.

Plenty of parking.

Patio outback to smoke on.

The Brass Monkey is a great landing spot for folks in Sarpy County, South Omaha, and even parts of Midtown Omaha. I recommend it to all the beer folks I know... it is an up-and-coming beer bar that, in some ways, has matured and in other ways... well, not so much. As I said in my review of Crescent Moon the regulars tend to over look its flaws and I am sure I am about the Monkey too. But, I can say this, I see more and more former Moon regulars drinking at the Monkey.
Jul 28, 2010
Photo of Mud
Reviewed by Mud from Nebraska

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5
While there is no dispute that the Crescent Moon is Omaha's best Ale House. It is only due the the facts that they were the first and they have food. On any given weekend though you can get great BBQ right outside from a local Smoker who smokes meats right on site.

First you have to understand the culture of So. Omaha. It is not know for Craft beer drinkers. Most bars South of Leavenworth St are BudMiloors establishment!!! They are many that drive all the way to the Moon from So. Omaha for Craft and Imports but not no more.

Second is that this is just a hobby for Kevin and Maria. They are not trying to be the Moon. They have a Store across the Street that is the bread and butter. Over the years they notice a lot of craft sale in their store; so they started drinking some to see what the buzz was about. Before they knew it they were hooked on Craft beer. They are neophytes when it comes to beer but they are learning fast. They always listen to their customers and ask for recommendations on products to ensure that the best is being serviced to their custiomers.

The Monkey is a very nice and clean SPORTS BAR in South O with plenty of TV's to watch you favorite sport. They have Sat. instead of cable to get Football, Horse Racing and other sports not provided by the local cable provider. This they have over the Moon because there is not a bad seat in the house!!! Unlike the Moon.

The Clientele is a mixed of neighborhood locals to Craft beer hounds and local brewers as well. Many look at the neighborhood and wonder about their safety but to the date of this writing there has not been a problem. (There are prejudices about So. Omaha) This should not be the case here.

IMO believe they are the freshest and best beer selection in town for one bar. Currently there are 36 taps but will be expaned to 42 soon. You have have German, Belguim, American Craft as well as the best selection on Nebraska beers anywhere. (One thing that Kevin and Maria have tried to focus on is NE beers.) That is great for Neb. Brewers IMO.

There bottle selection is not so great and sparse at best for Craft beer but the Taps make up for that. After all they are not selling GrainBelt on tap but you can buy a bottle very cheap.

Speaking of cheap. They have a Mug Club in after drinking 36 beers (only paying for 33 of them; the 15th, 30th and 36th are free) You get a 1/2 lt. mug in which it gets filled for Happy Hour prices at anytime. Which currently is $2.50. You don't have to try every beer (i.e. Old Chicago) you can drink the same one if you want but why would you. With Spaten, Fraziskaner, Weihenstephan, O'Dells, Avery, Big Sky, Delium, Unibroue and a host of others as well and (Nebraska Brewing, Gottburg Brewing, Ponca City Brewing, ThunderHead Brewing, Lucky Bucket, Spilker Ales, and Empyrean Brewing... All Nebraska Beers) Happy Hour Price $2.50 Reg $3.00 Now that is cheap!

There are people that try to be the best and then there are people that are the best. The Brass Monkey is one of the latter.

Thurs and Sundays there is Beer Pong for you Mongos out there. Ein Prosit

update 7-15-10

It has been almost three years and the place keeps getting better. Now they have TWO BEER ENGINE TAPS as well as the 38 others.

The owners are BEER GEEKs' and no longer neophytes. The is as at least two Belgium, two German, two English offerings as well as their continual support of Nebraska brewer's. (around 8 taps) Rest are a steady rotation of American Craft.

In the spirit of Ben Franklin they are always giving back to the community with various fund raiser's (Make a Wish, Religious community, Individual's misfortunes.) Poker Runs, Graffiti clean and too many to mention. The Brass Monkey has offered their had to all those in the community.

The place continues to grow and grow. In all aspects...but providing quality beer at a low cost is what they do best. IMO the best place to have a session beer.

Don't forget to go to Mr. Butt's across the street for pkg. They don't have a large selection but you will find something you will like and the cheapest price in town!!!!
Jul 27, 2009
Photo of BigBossMan
Reviewed by BigBossMan from Iowa

4.74/5  rDev +11.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5
The selection is phenomenal - many local Nebraska beers, a good micro selection, a couple high alcohol Belgian style beers, and only 3 macros (even Busch Lite - if that's your thing). The bar is clean, and the bartenders are nice and attentive - even offering free samples if you don't know what you want. The best part, however, is the price. I'm guessing this is about the only place where you can get an Odell IPA for $2.50 or a Northcoast Le Merle Saison for $3.50. It's a great bar and should become Omaha's clear #2.
Jun 25, 2009
Photo of dbossman
Reviewed by dbossman from Nebraska

4.38/5  rDev +2.8%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5
Although the Crescent Moon has established itself as the premiere beer bar in Omaha, Brass Monkey is trying very hard to compete. I stumbled across this place kind of by accident, and I was thoroughly impressed. First of all this place is small and feels like a cleaned up version of many of the South Omaha dives. The atmosphere isn't overly impressive but it is not bad.

They had 36 beers on tap with only 3 macros. The beer ranged from IPAs from Odells, Avery, Big Sky, and Tallgrass to a nice selection of Nebraska beers (7 total) to other American micros from Left Hand, Boulevard, and Rogue to German beers like Wartsteiner, Spaten, and Franziskaner Dunkelweiss to Belgians like Unibroue Maudite (well, Canadian but Belgian style) and Delerium Tremens. They even had a saison on tap. The bottle selection was not great, but who needs a good bottle selection with tap beers like that?

Although I have read that the bar owners are very knowledgeable about beer, they weren't there. The bartender didn't seem to know too much but she was pleasant, gave free samples, and seemed to care. The patrons were a strange mix ranging from typical South Omahans drinking Busch Light to knowledgeable folks sipping on Deliriums. They also have a punch card system that gets you a free beer for every 14 purchased.

This place was great and I forgot to mention how cheap it is. Most micro beers were $2.50 but even the Belgians were only $3 or $3.50. They didn't have food but did have free popcorn. I hope that this place continues to do well because its nice to have this type of place in South Omaha.
Jun 21, 2009
Photo of moratorii
Reviewed by moratorii from Minnesota

4.18/5  rDev -1.9%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4
Brass Monkey is tucked away in a neighborhood in South O. The main drawback, in my opinion, is that it is out the way. It's not really close to anything, so if I want to go there, I more or less need to make a special trip.

That being said, it has always been worth it. The bar is owned by a young couple who are very friendly and know a fair amount about beer. They have a vast tap selection, and almost everything is good/worth trying. I think I saw 3 bmc taps when I was there last, and about 30 micro/import taps. They seem to find a reason to offer super low prices on everything all the time. I've never paid more than $2.50 for a pint there. Ever. And they don't have certain beers on special. If one is $2.50, they all are (I think bmc is $2, but you get my point).

The atmosphere is nothing special. Lots of televisions on the wall. Some beer kitsch, but that's about it. Not a very large area. Seating away from the bar is mostly limited to several banquet tables. But hey, they're a young business. I've never minded sitting on a folding chair at a banquet table.

The only food they offer is popcorn. The last time I checked, they weren't sure if they were ever going to expand much on that any time soon.

Overall a great place to go--cheap beer, friendly staff, great selection. Probably my favorite bar in Omaha along with Crescent Moon.
May 12, 2009
Crossbones in Omaha, NE
Place rating: 4.26 out of 5 with 6 ratings