College Dive is one of author Anthony Head’s favorite bars. At age 21, Head got his first job as a bartender at Bluebird in Bloomington, Indiana.
“We had really colorful characters and the level of dialogue was always glowing and effervescent,” said Head.
Head returned to his roots with his book Texas Dive: Persistent Neighborhood Bars in Lone Star State,” Published by Texas A&M University Press. It features 12 profiles of dive bars across Texas, including Dudley’s Draw at College Station’s Northgate.
“We looked at a few places and Duddley’s…had what we were looking for. But it’s open to everyone,” said Head.
Duddley’s is celebrating its 45th anniversary on Saturday. Head goes to the bar on Sundays and signs copies of the book from 3pm.
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“Texas Dives: Timeless Neighborhood Bars in Lone Star State” features 12 profiles of dive bars across Texas.
Texas A&M University Press
In Dudley’s chapter, Head describes Texas A&M students who frequent the bar, with regulars including “grad students, dropouts, professors, other faculty members, and people who keep humming College Station.” He details the recipe for the Grand Slam Shot, also known as the “breakfast shot” with bacon, and the bar’s other quirks.
Rusty Richards, Duddley’s general manager and partner who has run the bar for 16 years, said the bar was honored to be featured in the book. Richards said the bar became where it is today because of Dudley’s founder Richard Benning, who died in 2005. The Benning family is still the majority owner of Dudley’s.
“Life is a lot easier when you have everything laid out in front of you. Just stay on the same game plan and roll with your punches,” said Richards.[Benning] He built the bar and all the credit goes to him.
“Texas Dives” will be released on August 12th and includes chapters on Showdown in San Marcos, Mynars Bar in the West, Alice’s Tall Texan in Houston, La Perla in Austin and The Goat in Dallas.
Photographer Kirk Weddle, who shot the famous cover image for Nirvana’s 1991 album Nevermind, took the photos for the book.
“This book is just a love letter to these bars because Kirk and I share a history of writing about them and we love being there,” Head said.
Weddle said he enjoys the flavors of cool dive bars, noting that they are becoming harder to find.
“I think those places are disappearing somewhere. Everything is completely corporatized,” says Weddle. “None of these are chains, and that’s the beauty of it. There’s still a lot going for the cash, but I prefer the dive bar atmosphere to the sophisticated nightclub scene.”
Head made it clear that a dive bar is just another name for a neighborhood bar and shouldn’t be judged until someone has been there for a while.
“When other people write about dive bars, they’re always using it in a negative connotation,” Head said. The implication is that it does not match the experience of a professional bar writer.Dive bars are one of the most welcoming places in any area.”
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