Which Janesville bar has a rooftop?

Riley's Sports Bar & Grill at 209 W Milwaukee St has a second-story rooftop beer garden, according to the visitor bureau.

What is the oldest bar in Janesville?

Franklin Street Tavern says its location has held a tavern for 100 years. Looking Glass says it was established in 1982.

Does Hammy's Tavern serve food?

One reviewer on its listing says the place does not seem to have food. Call before you go if you want a meal.

Janesville WI Bars: Nano-Brewery, Tavern, Rooftop

Five Janesville bars, from a downtown nano-brewery to a century-old tavern and a biker bar on Center Avenue.

A night out at Janesville bars runs from a brewery in a carriage works to a tavern that has held the same spot for 100 years and a biker bar out on Center Avenue. Four of the five bars below sit within about 0.3 miles of one another downtown, so a walking crawl is easy. Hammy's Tavern is the outlier, about 2.4 miles south of them.

Which Janesville bar for which night

Pick Rock County Brewing Company for house beer, Franklin Street Tavern for a smash burger and an old room, Looking Glass for a patio and Sunday brunch, Riley's for a rooftop and darts, and Hammy's for live music and cheap beer. Hours vary between each bar's own site and the visitor listings, so check before you walk over.

Rock County Brewing Company: a nano-brewery downtown

Rock County Brewing Company

Rock County Brewing Company is at 10 N Parker Dr in the historic Carriage Works building downtown. It opened in 2016 and calls itself Janesville's first nano-brewery. Downtown zoning did not allow brewpubs until 2015, and the co-owners chose downtown partly for walkability and historic character. The taproom has a large wooden bar, two indoor levels and a side patio, and its Tower 81 Irish Red is named for a Janesville Fire Department ladder truck. Reviewers mention the amber, blonde and hefeweizen, and regular food trucks. The kitchen also bakes Detroit-style squares, but pizza hours differ from taproom hours, so ask first.

Franklin Street Tavern: a century in one spot

Franklin Street Tavern

Franklin Street Tavern at 13 N Franklin St says its location has held a tavern for 100 years, and the Gazette called it Janesville's first pub after Prohibition. Inside are Prohibition-era prints, a reclaimed brick wall and a coffered wood ceiling. The menu leans past bar food to smash burgers, Italian beef, walleye tacos and kimchi fries. Visitors describe a small bar with gaming machines, fast service and generous cheese curds.

Looking Glass: patio, beer club and Sunday brunch

Looking Glass

Looking Glass at 18 N Main St says it was established in 1982, and a 2018 Gazette review notes the old habit of dancing on the bar has ended. The room has exposed brick and antique mirrors, and a large pass-through window opens onto the patio. It runs a members-only monthly beer club with an annual bus trip, and the visitor bureau lists a Sunday brunch.

Sunday brunch gets more room in the guide to breakfast in Janesville.

Riley's Sports Bar & Grill: rooftop and darts

Riley's Sports Bar & Grill

Riley's at 209 W Milwaukee St is locally owned and has a second-story rooftop beer garden over downtown, according to the visitor bureau. Reviewers mention dartboards, a patio and good old fashioneds. One reviewer said it can get rowdy.

Hammy's Tavern: the biker bar on Center Avenue

Hammy's Tavern

Hammy's at 2131 Center Ave describes itself as a neighborhood biker tavern with a pool table, an indoor stage and an outdoor patio with its own stage. Reviewers mention music on weekends, an open jam and cheap beer, and one warns that the place does not seem to serve food.

Other downtown names worth knowing

The visitor bureau's downtown page also lists drafthouse, O'Riley & Conway's Irish Pub, Whiskey Ranch Bar & Grill and Wiggy's Saloon, with live music at O'Riley's and Whiskey Ranch. Genisa Wine Bar at 11 N Main St lists more than 100 wines and a heated patio, and Jack & Jenny's at 15 N Main St was set to open in July 2025 in a building dating to 1866. None of those are in the listings here yet, so check each one's page for current hours.

The Wisconsin old fashioned

A bar order here often means a brandy old fashioned: Wisconsin's preference grew out of liquor shortages in the Second World War, and a sour version uses soda. Wisconsin Historical Society Press's 2017 book Bottoms Up profiles 70 of the state's taverns and breweries and covers the old fashioned and the bar games.

Before the crawl, a day at the Rock River parks and gardens fills the afternoon.

Dinner can come from a Janesville kitchen with a real menu, and a downtown hotel room is a short walk away. Start at the brewery, finish wherever the music is, and remember Hammy's needs a ride.