Booches is a bar,

restaurant A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

, and pool hall at 110 S. 9th Street in downtown

Columbia, Missouri Columbia is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the county seat of Boone County and home to the University of Missouri. Founded in 1821, it is the principal city of the five-county Columbia metropolitan area. It is Missouri's fourth ...

that was established in 1884. It is the oldest pool hall in Columbia and is known for its hamburgers. It is located near the University of Missouri and has traditionally been frequented by college students. In 2016 Booches was inducted into the Boone County Hall of Fame at the Walters-Boone County Historical Museum.

Overview

Booches was established in 1884, has had six locations in downtown Columbia, and has been at its present location on Ninth Street since 1928. It is the oldest pool hall in Columbia and has full-sized pool tables,

snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sports, cue sport played on a Billiard table#Snooker and English billiards tables, rectangular table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six Billiard table#Pockets 2, pockets, one at each corner and o ...

tables, and one billiard table (no pockets) for

three cushion billiards Three-cushion billiards, also called three-cushion carom, is a form of carom billiards. The object of the game is to the off both while contacting the at least three times before contacting the second object ball. A point is scored for each su ...

play. Booches is known for its hamburgers, which are served on wax paper, and a 2000 report in '' USA Today'' listed it as one of the best 25 burger restaurants in the United States. In 2005, Jerry Shriver of ''USA Today'' included Booches' hamburger on the list of top 25 dishes from his "Down-home Dining" project. In 2019, Joan Niesen and Laken Litman of ''Sports Illustrated'' named Booches' hamburgers as the "#1 Greatest College Town Eats" in the nation. Booches is likely named after its founder, Paul Blucher "Booch" Venable, who was nicknamed "Booch" as a child by writer Eugene Field. The restaurant has gone through many owners in its time and was a male-only establishment until the 1970s. During the times of

racial segregation in the United States In the United States, racial segregation is the systematic separation of facilities and services such as Housing in the United States, housing, Healthcare in the United States, healthcare, Education in the United States, education, Employment in ...

, the establishment would not serve African Americans. During the mid to late 1970s, the then-owners of Booches edited and published four issues of the ''Review la Booche'', a nationally published

literary journal A literary magazine is a periodical devoted to literature in a broad sense. Literary magazines usually publish short stories, poetry, and essays, along with literary criticism, book reviews, biographical profiles of authors, interviews and letters ...

featuring poetry, prose, sketches, and photographs by contributors of such prominence as John Ciardi, William Stafford, Elton Glaser, Frank Stack, and Richard Eberhart, along with local and regional contributors. The review was revived in 1990 for a fifth and final issue. Booches is located close to the University of Missouri, and it has traditionally been a haven for University of Missouri and St. Louis Cardinals sports fans. The establishment has a considerably more family-friendly atmosphere compared to its rougher atmosphere in past times. It has been described by some in contemporary times as a dive bar and a

melting pot The melting pot is a monocultural metaphor for a heterogeneous society becoming more homogeneous, the different elements "melting together" with a common culture; an alternative being a homogeneous society becoming more heterogeneous throug ...

. Booches was inducted into the Boone County Hall of Fame at the Walters-Boone County Historical Museum in 2016.

In popular culture

Booches was included in the film ''Norm'', which aired on ESPN's SEC Network. ''Norm'' depicted the career of the former University of Missouri basketball coach Norm Stewart, who was a regular patron of the establishment.

References

External links

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"Booches: The best burgers on wax paper"
Rockmnation.com. – Provides a comprehensive overview of the establishment and its history {{Coord, 38.95017, -92.32741, format=dms, display=title, type:landmark_region:US-MO 1884 establishments in Missouri Bars (establishments) Billiard halls Buildings and structures in Columbia, Missouri Hamburger restaurants Restaurants established in 1884 Restaurants in Columbia, Missouri Drinking establishments in Missouri

Overview

In popular culture

See also

References

External links