Dirtbagβs, Tucsonβs iconic bar thatβs been βa part of growing upβ for generations of UA students for more than four decades, is expanding its reach to Phoenix.
Dirtbagβs Phoenix is expected to open in August in the upscale Arcadia district straddling north Phoenix and Scottsdale. It will replace the two-year-old bar and grill The Spot at 4801 E. Indian School Road.
βIβm very, very excited about this whole thing,β said Scott Hibler, who is franchising the brand from longtime Dirtbagβs owner Gary Welch. βWe are Wildcat fans.β
While the original Dirtbagβs at 1800 E. Speedway, a mile from the heart of the University of Arizona campus, caters mostly to students, the Phoenix outpost will focus on alumni living in the area.
Welch, who grew up in Tucson and bought Dirtbagβs in 1988, said Hibler approached him in December about the idea of franchising the brand in Phoenix, but it wasnβt until May that talks turned to action.
The timing couldnβt have been more perfect.
βWeβve built that base with the alumni and the number of alum that are in the Phoenix area,β Welch said. βWeβre seeing second generation coming through where mom and dad went to college. I have a kid here whose mom worked here 20 some years ago when she was going to the UA.β
Welch said UA alums living in the Phoenix area often return for football or basketball games and have long asked him to bring the brand to the Valley. Hibler said heβs heard similar pleas from customers of The Spot and its longtime predecessor Arcadia Tavern, which he opened in 2000 and ran until 2020.
UA sports were often on the screens at Arcadia Tavern, the neighborhoodβs first true sports bar and grill.
βWhat bigger brand could we bring to Phoenix than Dirtbagβs? The UA market in Phoenix is heavy on this brand,β said Hibler, who recalled his first time at Dirtbagβs in 2001 after attending a UA-ASU football game.
βI never forgot it and never forgot the name,β he said.
Although Dirtbagβs Phoenix will look nothing like the original from the outside, once you walk through the front door, the nostalgia of the original will hit you, Hibler said, from the Wildcats memorabilia and sports on the TVs to the UA-themed license plates from around the country lining the walls.
Youβll be able to chase your half-pound Famous Dirtburger with a Cocaine Shooter β a 1980s throwback shot of vodka, raspberry liqueur and grapefruit juice β or the three-layered shot dubbed the Mind Eraser that you suck through a straw. Hibler said they will add a few items to the menu, but the Phoenix location will replicate a majority of the salads, sandwiches and munchies that have long been a staple at the original Dirtbagβs.
But one thing that he wonβt mess with, Hibler said, is the vibe.
βWe are going to be a Dirtbagβs. We are going to have the Dirtbagβs vibe, the Dirtbagβs food,β he said.
When Hibler leaked word of Dirtbagβs Phoenix on Instagram (instagram.com/Dirtbagβs_phoenix) two weeks ago, dozens of UA alums commented. Poster blondie_pitt predicted βThis is going to be scaryβ while queenb330709 asked if it was too early to make reservations for opening day.
βHope its as beat up as Tusconβs Location (sic),β piped in poster tylerxdunham, who misspelled Tucson in his post.
βThe excitement level is through the roof and over the top,β Hibler said. βWeβve had people reach out to us via Instagram and social media from around the country that are excited about this.β
βWe cannot be more ecstatic,β he added. βI knew this was going to be special. The excitement level is beyond what I was expecting.β
Welch, a Flowing Wells High grad who managed a local McDonaldβs franchise for 15 years before buying the bar, said the Arcadia franchise is the first of what could be two or three Phoenix area Dirtbagβs locations.
Welch bought Dirtbagβs six years after two Chicago friends opened the bar and gave it the nickname of one of their fraternities, according to documented lore. Given its proximity to the UA campus, it quickly became a legendary hangout for students who viewed the bar, as its slogan suggested, βa part of growing up.β
