Burgers & Barley or Sweetwater? Rock Hill or Lake Wylie? It’s the title round matchup
The battle for sports viewing supremacy is down to just two destinations.
Burger, beer and bar heavyweights No. 6 Burgers & Barley and No. 9 Sweetwater remain in the Herald’s Hardwood Hot Spot bracket. Your votes picked the Rock Hill and Lake Wylie watering holes from a field of 16 places across York, Lancaster and Chester counties. Now your vote will decide a winner.
Just vote for Burgers & Barley or Sweetwater in the box below. Vote as often as you like. Voting will run through noon Friday. The winner will become Hardwood Hot Spots champion and will be featured ahead of final round games in the men’s and women’s college basketball tournaments.
Both finalists narrowly made the championship. Burgers & Barley bested No. 10 Friendly Billiards in a back-and-forth battle for Camden Avenue. The Winthrop-area sites are close enough to roll a basketball from one to the other. They collected more than 4,400 combined votes in the semifinal, with Burgers & Barley earning 55% of them.
The Cinderalla-seeded No. 13 R&B Pub House in York led for much of its semifinal, but lost out to Lake Wylie’s Sweetwater which also got 55% of its semifinal vote. The two spots combined for more than 4,300 votes.
Don’t forget to vote early and often in the final. Here’s a look at the remaining contenders, and how the bracket contest has gone so far:
Taking the Field
The field of 16 establishments covered York, Lancaster and Chester counties. With so many places to catch a game in those areas, the final list came from reader recommendations. There was an effort to spread the love and cover as many different parts of our coverage area as possible.
As for the rankings, attention was given to spots that have multiple locations in or just outside of our readership area. Spots in bigger areas or with bigger online followings got a little bump. At times, we just put a number beside a place because brackets with seeds are just plain awesome.
Burgers & Barley
Rock Hill restaurant Burgers & Barley offers a range of one-of-a-kind burgers, craft beers and drink specials with indoor and outdoor seating. The Cherry Road location is near Winthrop University and the bustling downtown area.
Sweetwater
There are nearly as many televisions as seats in Lake Wylie restaurant Sweetwater. Burgers, craft pizzas, wings, nachos and the like combine with craft beer, cocktail and drink specials on the menu. The stop on S.C. 49 on the main thoroughfare into Lake Wylie from Charlotte also has outdoor seating.
Third Round
Eliminated in the third round: Friendly Billiards and R&B Pub House
Second Round
Eliminated in the second round: Towne Tavern, Hickory Tavern, Hobo’s and The Office Craft Bar and Kitchen
First Round
Eliminated in the first round: Wing King Cafe, Wild Wing Cafe, Lake Wylie Bowl N’ Bounce, Papa Doc’s Shore Club, South Main Bar and Grill, Main St. Retreat Bar & Grill, Christopher’s and Manhattan Lounge.
This story was originally published March 7, 2022 at 11:47 AM.
