Platform Sports Bar

Nothing special and plenty of wasted potential here. I have been here three times hoping it would get better but I give up. Three strikes and you’re out. The location is super and the building has tons of potential. The Platform is right on top of the Tunnel Bar (5 stars). They have a large outside seating area open in good weather which should have me coming back often — but it does not. Inside they have a lot of TVs for sporting events and NFL Sundays but an awful sound system with feedback for the game audio … which on top of all that they play too loud (thanks guys). The beer selection is totally average. The service is average but the timing for drinks is definitely sub par. The service outside last season was also triple bogie sub par, not good at all, was slow with plenty of mistakes in orders for me and others who have gone there. The ownership here changed a year or so ago and I think they got off to an uneven start. Anyway, there are so many great places in Northampton I would go elsewhere. These guys could be a primo spot for NFL Sundays — but sadly they do not deliver the goods. Oh well…

This place is awesome for so many reasons. One, it’s right by the train tracks, so if you happen to be there to see it go by is a nice treat. Secondly, the staff and owners are all amazing! Very friendly and interactive with the guests. Also, a big plus with it being a sports bar is they have lots of TVs and are always playing the big games and have other games on as well. So, it’s a great place to bring in friends to watch the game and share some wings and nachos. They have other great appetizers as well, like the spring rolls. The salads are great too and so are the sandwiches and burgers! They also have daily specials which are always really good, for example the baked mac and cheese ! On the weekends this is definitely the place to be! They have a back dance room with lights and a DJ and it’s a fun place for dancing. To add, there’s an additional bar in the back so if you don’t want to wait for a drink at the main bar (which is pretty packed on the weekends) you can grab one there, which takes debit and cash! The weekends aren’t the only exciting nights either! They have karaōke on Tuesday nights and also jeopardy on one of the other week nights, not sure which one tho. Overall, an awesome and fun bar

Completely ignorant bartender. I wanted to grab something to eat before I jumped on the train just feet away from the outdoor bar. The bartender refused to serve me because I brought my Brompton on the deck with me. He wanted me to put it in a bike rack, out of sight with no lock. The whole point of this kind of bike is it can go with you everywhere and you don’t need to own a lock. He would not listen to reason.
I have had a folding bike for over 10 years and I have never been refused service. I have brought my bike into bars, restaurants, and even movie theaters in NYC. People in NYC are notorious for giving people a hard time. I never had a problem. The bike folds small enough to fit into the overhead bin in an airplane. It even has its own cover and looks like a rolling suitcase when covered. And yet the bartender wouldn’t have any of it.
Well Mr. Bartender I hope you are reading this review. Better yet I hope your boss reads this. I have even been to your bar with my bike before and didn’t have a problem. However, I will never spend another dollar in your establishment and neither will my friends. Considering the cost my bike you wanted me to leave unattended, it means I have some disposable income that you and your restaurant will never see.
You need to rethink you personal policy.

Dont waste your time, please don’t. Artichoke Spinach dip wash like a cold mashed dip, the chicken quesadilla had no chicken and funny taste to it and the salsa it came with was made with ripe tomato. Finally the steak taco had a gross sauce that was smothered in and the steak had a very old taste to it. So sorry sent all the plates back as they came. & on top of it made us pay for it!!! Terrible!

My boyfriend and I stopped by here looking for a nice place to sit outside, have a drink, and get some good bar food. The deck was pleasant place and they have a full bar out there. Our waitress was really nice and attentive at first, but that did not last. Our food took a very long time, despite an almost empty restaurant, and when it finally came my boyfriend’s wings were cold and had clearly been sitting out for a while, and my fish taco was hot (which ruined the cold coleslaw underneath it) and my pork taco was cold and overly greasy. We are not picky people, but it was almost inedible. Also, our waitress seemed to ignore us the rest of the meal, and the we had to get up and ask for our check. Bottom line: calm and casual place for a drink, don’t bother with the food.

Awful service and mediocre food.
Went at 3:30 in the afternoon and our server barely paid attention to us. We ordered drinks and an appetizer. She never gave us silverware or appetizer plates. She never checked to see how we were doing. Instead of ordering more drinks and food, we asked for the check and left. Based on this experience, I would not recommend or come back.

Started off great! Quickly grabbed a seat at the bar to watch the Women’s World Cup vs. Germany. Ordered a beer and placed a dinner order. 1 ½ hours later our dinner order came out… nachos and a salad. We also ordered clam chowder, but were told they were out, after the 1 ½ hour wait. The 2 bartenders kept apologizing for the wait, and it wasn’t only us. It got to the point that when food came out people cheered. Pretty embarrassing and I actually feel sorry for the bartenders and the person in the kitchen. Hopefully they gave the owner an earful, as they comped our entire dinner and drinks. I’m sure they did the same for many that night.

I actually had the honor to be in this vicinity twice over the last three days.
Saturday night I met some friends over at The Deck outside bar. The place was crowded. The bar island they have going on is nice; but getting the bartenders attention seemed nearly impossible. I went twenty minutes without a drink and then left to go someplace else.
I hadn’t eaten here so I went in with my wife tonight to try their food.
Sandwiches, wings, lemonade? What could go wrong?
The boneless wings were garbage. They were probably frozen. Maybe? I’ve eaten a lot of fresh fried chicken in my day and I feel I can call them out as frozen. We got the sweet and sour sauce that tasted mostly of soy sauce. Not a very pleasing first course. I didn’t mind the soy sauce but my wife did.
The philly-​cheesesteak i received wasn’t bad. Nothing to write home about but that meat to veggies to cheese to bun ratio was pretty optimal.
My wife got the Chile-​Lime ((I think)) chicken wrap but on a bun.
Pre-​cooked cut up chicken breast on a sandwich? No cheese on the regular item nor the changed up order and she got jalapeño mayo instead of regular mayo ((it comes with the jalapeño but she isn’t a fan of overly spicey things)).
For what they are charging and what they are offering. Honestly build your own starts at 9.95 for burgers and chicken and it’s .50 cents, 1.00 or 2.00 for everything but cheese? Sure other places offer burgers around 11 – 12 dollars but you don’t even offer a standalone burger to begin with.
I am guessing the only thing keeping this place afloat is the bar service in side and the crowd on the weekends. I did have good beer service last summer at the inside bar.
Fries and pickles werent’ bad– but it’s hard for most places to screw those up.

Hands-​down the best place to go in Northampton it just has it all !! From the beautiful outdoor deck to game night in the platform or date night in the tunnel you can’t ask for more.

After hearing some good things about this place, my boyfriend and I were excited to pop in and check it out before heading to dinner elsewhere. We figured we would grab a drink, and look at the menu to come back in the future. Plus, we were using out parking validation ticket– bonus!
Boy what a letdown!- Nothing special on tap– while my bf ordered a Sam summer, I asked for a water «for now». After a sip of his beer, I planned on ordering one as well. Except no one ever came back to ask what I wanted. Or if we were interested in any food (what is we HAD planned on eating here?!) The bartenders (a tall man with a beard and a blond woman) serviced other customers and chatted with each other. Bar was fairly full but certainly not slammed. Clearly they were serving food as others around us, and the people next to us had a list of daily specials. By the time anyone came back over, all we were interested in was the check.
Now we’re enjoying a much better beer selection, and excellent customer service and food as always at Sierra Grille across the street.
Won’t be back!

Back at Platform after running the Holyoke St. Patrick’s Day Road Race. We tried getting in at Roberto’s and Joe’s but both had waits over an hour at 5pm. We grabbed the last group of tables at Platform. It was hopping this time. Lots of people, lots of noise. Our waitress was good… helpful, funny, efficient. Beer was good… Guinness for me. Lots of selections from IPA’s to porters to light stuff. Wings were very good… perfectly cooked & well sauced. Nachos were loaded. I went with a burger… good stuff & tasty sweet potato fries. Topped it off with a couple of rounds of tequila shots… I’d say Platform deserves a one-​star increase & my return patronage.

I don’t understand all the bad reviews! This place is chill, it’s a bar, has baller steak and cheese grinders and the waitstaff is awesome. I’ve been during the week and on weekends. Also you get to watch the train go by! Woo hoo!
Oh and they make a good grapefruit martini! Beer has never been flat either!

Fail. Met a group of eight here for dinner and drinks. Make that «drink.» The beer was flat and not very cold. It took three polite requests to get a water. Our server seemed bothered at the second request but since I wasn’t going to order a second flat beer, I really preferred water.
I tried to play it safe with food and ordered nachos to share. Instead, I was served a plate of dried up, room temperature cheese with chips and jalepeños buried beneath. Even with jalepeños, it was a bland dish. The guac was okay. Most of it just wasn’t edible.
The Brewery will always be my favorite NOHO spot. I like to branch out, usually with success but not on this visit.

We went to The Platform for the first time last night to celebrate a friend’s birthday. Suffice it to say, it will be the last time we go there.
All of the draft beer was flat and the bottled beer was «skunked.» We stared with some boneless wings which were ok, but our entrees were a complete disaster. I chose a chicken taco, which came to me stone cold and flavorless. My hubby ordered the Ahi tuna tostada and after one bite he determined that it pretty rancid and was sure to become ill if he kept eating it. The rest of our party had the same issues, cold, flavorless food and flat disgusting beer.
The wait staff was oblivious and clueless. The chef’s (and I use that term loosely) and management have a lot of work to do if they want to make it in Northampton. I wish I didn’t have to give this place one star, because they don’t even deserve that.

We spent a bit of time at The Tunnel Bar and we decided to stop in at Platform Sports Bar since we were spending time upstairs.
When we walked into the bar, the place was packed with a ton of undergrad students. The bar is open concept with a ton of TV’s as well as side tables. The bartender here was polite and the prices were reasonable unlike downstairs.
Overall, the bar is a nice addition to the area and we hope that in the future we can come back to watch some games on their TV’s.

A blast. Built at the old railroad station, it’s a nice and different space. Drinks are cheap and staff is very friendly. Food is great as well. Definitely recommend.

I can’t review the food or the drinks because I was completely invisible to the servers.
I was on a bike ride along the rail trail this past Sunday and stopped here to catch some football and a bite to eat. I wandered into the bar and found a solo seat in front of the TV showing the game I wanted to see (the Saints). I didn’t go to the bar only because I wasn’t interested in the Giants game. Servers ambled past me at least 5
times in the 20 minutes I sat there. Not a word from a one of them.
Lame.

I went here with a friend for lunch at mid day and place was practically deserted. While it has a certain sterile, slightly unfinished look to it going in, and in the sports bar. It is a nice place to watch people through the many large tinted windows, go by on the bikepath, and look at the trains when you’re not viewing the dozens of large-​screen TVs that are hung throughout the sports bar. The food was artfully done with garnishes and sauces tastefully applied. I had a unique sandwich I’ve never had before; the shrimp Po Boy with Andouille sausage and it was creative and delicious! And the seasoned fries that came with it were great. The staff we encountered were friendly and checked up on our progress a number of times and it’s really seemed to care.
I’d definitely go back and recommend that you check it out for yourself!

This place has a bazillion TVs, which is awesome and amazing and there’s nothing else like it in Northampton and it was badly needed for a sports fan like myself. But some time during the third messy shit I took after getting home from Platform I decided it probably wasn’t the place for me.
Walking in you feel… nothing. You just feel nothing. There is zero personality here. It was definitely opened with the motto «If you cover the place in TVs, they will come.» They might, but will they stay? I sat down at the bar and ordered a beer, and I just looked around trying to figure out why it felt so god damned unwelcoming in there and then I realized the main problem. The windows. They basically blacked out the windows so that you can’t see out them. Tinting would have been a good idea so that mid-​day glare didn’t make the joint unlivable, but they’re still windows for fuck’s sake. I’d like to see out of them. It’s not a titty bar, ya know? So in essence you’re drinking in an above-​ground dungeon.
The beer selection is fine. I prefer the selection at the Toasted Owl, but I don’t have any real problems with it. The food, on the other hand, not so good. I ate a heaping slimy mound of bland meat and starches called the Short Rib Poutine that I did not finish because bland food is bland, and as I alluded to before I spent most of my subsequent evening on the toilet, trying to make light of the situation by Snapchatting toilet selfies and videos to my friends.
The staff is still getting their legs under them because the place is so new, so I choose to give them a pass for the somewhat disorganized system they seem to have. That may come around in a month or so. All in all I may go back here to drink and watch a game, especially during football season when I’m sure they’ll have the Sunday Ticket package and be showing every game, but I don’t think I’ll ever order food there again.

Northampton was in desperate need of a high quality sports bar and Platform certainly fills the void. If I owned Toasted Owl I’d be quite worried.
Went there midweek for Game 7 of Pit/​NYR and was beyond impressed with the amount of high quality TVs viewable from all seats at the large oval shaped bar. There are also a large amount of high tops in the rear portion of restaurant.
Decent beer selection; not on par with McLaddens 90+ but it was adequately varied. They also have 4 bottom filling drafts which while neat has some kinks (too much head). My friend and I both ordered a different grilled cheese sandwich; could have used more pork for $ 12 on mine but fries were fresh.
Both bartenders were attentive and friendly. They seemed to have a little issue figuring out which bar seat ordered what food but I’m sure that’ll be worked out. I will definitely be back; Noho will be a great city for this unique sports bar!