The Mineshaft Saloon

I used to love the mineshaft. When I could go there on a weekday night and have a good time with some cheap drinks and not too many people around. They had a dance floor and they always have funny movies playing with the sound off, which makes for an interesting exercise in futility when it comes to trying to watch them and recall what's going on...or if you've never seen it, it can be enjoyable to play MST3000.Then it developed an identity problem and started trying to act like one of the bigger clubs in BR. The dance floor was always nice, because you could actually dance on it, but they started doing cheap drafts several nights a week and next thing you know the place is packed to the gills and you can barely get in the door. What happened, Mine Shaft? Why did you have to go and screw up your image? The music is usually a mix of old and new and is fun to dance to the bartenders have never really stuck out in my mind as being anything special, but who cares? Sometimes you can still go and have a quiet brew here, but for now I'll just steer clear of the crowds and hit up another bar that isn't suffering from an identity crisis.

One of the many popular Broad Ripple Avenue bars, the Mineshaft carries most of its notoriety for its Thursday pint night, where hundreds of Ripple-ites gather to slam multiple pints, run into friends and cousins, do shots with those people, and then attempt to get up for a reasonably productive Friday. This cozy little spot is your basic, no-frills 'drinking bar.' The place gets pretty lively on the weekends, especially Thursday nights. Located right along the strip in Broad Ripple, it makes for an easy stop along the bar crawl route, or if nothing else, a great crowd of locals on weekend nights.

The mine shaft is great if your wife wants to shake her ass with her friends while you stand at the side, drinking blue moon and judging people. It's smoky and loud just as it should be. If you're not a dancer but have been dragged here, the people watching is top notch. My only suggestion would be to get a better beer selection. Judging by the patrons, I feel that would be a waste of money as most of the people there are either too drunk to care or don't enjoy good beer. I retract my request for you to get better beer solely for the maybe once a month I am there.

Friends brought me here after the Lady Gaga show - we had waited in line forever at Talbot Street, and a magical bus appeared and asked us if we wanted to go to Broad Ripple. So we did. I had never been to this place before, and it was a huge disappointment. It's an obnoxious bar full of obnoxious people- drinks are overpriced for being well liquor and weakly mixed. The music the DJ was playing that night skewed heavily to top40 and hip hop, and while nothing is wrong with either per se, he was playing songs that I had last heard at my middle school's 8th grade dance - uh Rumpshaker, anyone? What year is this? It was so crowded all you could really do is stand in one spot and hope that you wouldn't get your drink spilled on you by someone trying to shove their way past. Not really my idea of a good time, but I'm guessing if you are 21-25 years old, you'll love this place.

I don't go to the Mineshaft for great ambiance or fantastic drinks. I go here specifically for one reason - to shake my ass. They have a decently sized dance floor, and a DJ who plays an assortment of old and new dance music. The drinks aren't priced any differently than anywhere else in broad ripple, and I know they have drink specials some nights, though I really don't know what they are. As I said, I really just come here to shake my ass, which makes it awfully hard to disappoint.

This is a small and usually crowded bar..it gets pretty wild and sloppy late night too. If you like to dance to top 40 dj mixes then this is a good place to stop if you are out in the area.I really am not much of a fan though. It gets a bit too packed and the crowd is a bit too annoying. But at least the people watching makes up for it!! The rock lobster down the street is a better choice if you want to get your dance on though..its huge and has different rooms with different tunes.

SO FUNI came here on New Year's Eve and had a great time. Granted, I was in a state of mind to have fun anywhere that had people dancing and no cover, but it's a good memory of this bar nonetheless. I would really like to check it out again sober.

I have to give this place 4 stars for being exactly what it is - a drunkenly good time. It is crowded, yeah, but it's not a mob scene like Landsharks. The drinks are fine and normal to low priced for Indy. They have dollar beers on Thursday nights. The crowd is young and fun, in the mood to dance and drink, and if you are too then this is a great choice for your night out!

I was leaving one of the bars in Broadripple but seemed too loud and crowded and as I was walking past the Mineshaft I looked in and to my surprise WOW!! They have remodeled the place front to back! They took out the dancefloor and added a 7ft pool table with leather drop pockets (FREE POOL WOO HOO!!!), added booths, changed lighting, have a food menu now and several other upgrades. I stopped in to have a drink before heading home and to check it out. The bartender suggested a couple different Bourbons that I hadn't tried yet and loved both of them. I will be back for sure!

Great food, fantastic friendly staff, awesome manager. Always a great spot for college night or any other time. Definitely one of the best spots in north Indy. Can't beat the prices and service.