Cowboy boots, country music and free late-night chicken tenders are not typical features of downtown Gainesville’s bar scene. But at Whoopi’s, a newly opened country-themed bar, they’re part of the draw.
The two-story venue, which opened this spring, offers a different atmosphere from many of the dance and cocktail bars lining the downtown strip. With bar games downstairs, a DJ upstairs and a laid-back country aesthetic throughout, Whoopi’s is attracting UF students looking for a new kind of night out.
Annalee Watts, a 22-year-old UF information systems and operations management master’s student and a bartender at Whoopi’s, said the bar’s concept stands out from other spots downtown…