Halyard’s – Gowanus – Thursdays @ 8 pm

The Trivia: Four themed rounds of ten questions each. One entirely music round (name the song & artist). The host offers double points on one round of each team’s choice, but you have to choose it before you hear the questions, so it’s a bit of a gamble there. The top scoring team of each round (including double points) wins shots, but if two teams tie for a round, they each have to tell a joke as a tiebreaker; audience decides. The questions were fair, but challenging, with a few headscratchers. Overall, the questions were high quality, and its clear that the host puts a lot of effort into writing a balanced round of trivia (with his writing partner, who hosts at 99 Rogers). I still think some of the questions are too long, but he blames that on the other guy. These guys offer some of the better-written trivia rounds in Brooklyn, so if you are choosing between multiple places and everything else is even, let that be the tie-breaker. However, whereas 99 Rogers gets packed on a Thursday night, Halyard’s trivia is still growing. There were only about 5 to 6 teams when we visited, and the small crowd creates a more intimate environment, which leads to a lot more interaction with the host.

$50 bar tab goes to the winner, but there is NO SECOND PLACE. I find this a very bad marketing strategy for the bar, as even a $10 to $25 bar tab pretty much guarantees the team comes back, and you KNOW they’re gonna spend more than that in drinks alone. The highest scoring team each round gets shots.

The Venue: Halyard’s is a relatively peaceful bar (no loud pumping music here) with a labyrinthine layout with plenty of secluded space and a large outdoor space. Trivia takes place in a backroom with a microphone and PA setup, so no megaphone here. There aren’t any televisions in the back room, in case you plan on half-watching sports during trivia. Small, but solid list of cocktails, beers, and ciders, and Table 87 pizza.