Business & Tech
The Pub Crawler: Abe’s Mugs on Missouri
The Clearwater bar and grill has had many names, but the place just keeps getting better.
It's been called many names over the last 10 years.
The Stadium.
Mugs & Jugs.
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Mugs on Missouri.
And now Abe’s Mugs on Missouri.
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But no matter what the name, it certainly offers ample amounts of three important sports bar ingredients: wings, beer and entertainment.
In 2004, Abe Moussa bought the former Stadium restaurant and converted it into the second location of his popular 66th Street sports bar, Mugs & Jugs. It specialized in beer and wings served by skimpily clad bartenders and waitresses.
He sold his stake in that location in 2008. Moussa renamed the Clearwater restaurant Mugs on Missouri, which has since changed into Abe’s Mugs on Missouri.
The restaurant’s style has evolved along with the moniker.
Not content with the negative connotation the name and his employees’ attire projected, Moussa ditched the "jugs" and the skin-tight shorts and low-cut tops, in favor of a more family-friendly theme.
Judging by the amount of business the place does on a regular basis, the changes worked.
“We’re catering to the masses instead of a select crowd," Moussa said during a busy afternoon lunch rush Friday.
Indeed the extensive menu, large collection of flat screen TVs with all available sports packages, video games, and staples like karaoke have helped Abe’s become one of the busiest restaurants in Clearwater.
Known for its award-winning wings, Mugs’ menu also features mouth-watering items like steak bites, giant gourmet burgers, wraps and grouper nuggets (when available).
The drink menu is impressive as well, with daily beer specials, a full liquor bar, and even Mugs’ own spiked lemonade and sweet tea, which are buy-one-get-one-free every day.
And there are plenty of beers to choose from including more than 30 different domestic and imports available on tap or in a bottle.
Now, the place that was once famous for being packed only during football season and for its similarities to other area wing places has grown into an entity all in itself.
So does Moussa have any designs on expanding again?
“I’m not really sure yet, let’s see by the end of the year,” he said.
But he’s already got the name picked out: Abe’s Mugs on Fill-in-the-Blank.
1250 S Missouri Ave
Hours: From 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday to Thursday; and from 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.
Call: (727) 446-0797
