Originally planning on opening an Irish Pub, the original owners of Union Jack’s got the inspiration to open the business after visiting an English style pub in Naples, Florida, during a visit his parents. After a long conversation between the two business partners, they decided to switch up their plans and create Knoxville’s first English Pub, all while paying homage to one of the owner’s Welsh grandmother.

The inside of the original Union Jack’s was inspired by a German pub that was located in the basement of Shelbourne Towers on UT’s campus, including the seats around the bar. The name for our Knoxville English style pub came from a newspaper that was popular in pubs at the time called “The Union Jack.”

When Union Jack’s first opened, they only had a bottle cooler and a refrigerator for cooling bottles and a very small keg cooler that held up to three kegs at a time. The area now used as our kitchen was simply a dry storage area to stack beer cases.

The original owners were not the only ones to have a significant impact on creating the Union Jack’s we know and love today. The original employees also played an important role in creating the bar, including creating the recipes for the original menu and creating our still-popular Beer Challenge.

Outside of the business, the building Union Jack’s calls home has a history of its own. Originally, the building was two separate retail spots occupied by a local print shop. The back garage was a cabinet maker later turned auto repair shop. Today, this area has been transformed into a spacious and welcoming patio for all UJ patrons to enjoy.