Hickory Tavern Rolls Out $9 Burgers and 99-Cent Wings Across 16 Units

Hickory Tavern has launched a weeklong program of discounted food and drinks across its 16 locations in North and South Carolina, with 99-cent wings on Wednesdays anchoring a daily specials menu built for football season.

The new program, called The HT Lineup, runs seven days a week and prices burgers at $9 with fries on Mondays. Brand President Tony Read framed the initiative as routine-building rather than discounting for its own sake.

"We want Hickory Tavern to be the kind of place guests can count on, whether they're looking for somewhere to watch the game, meet friends for trivia, hear live music or grab dinner on a Tuesday night," Read said. "The best part of a neighborhood tavern is becoming part of people's routines and traditions, and that's the kind of experience we want to create every day."

That is a traffic strategy, not a menu strategy. Each day of the week now carries a named promotion.

What does the daily lineup cost?

The specials, per the company:

• Monday Mayhem: $9 burgers and fries, $4 domestic drafts, $6 Tito's cocktails
• Nacho Average Tuesday: $8 nachos deluxe, $4 Modelo drafts, $5 house margaritas, $6 flavored margaritas
• Wing Wednesday: 99-cent wings and a 22-ounce beer sold at the 16-ounce price
• Wine & Dine Thursday: $11 flatbreads, half-price wine bottles, $4 domestic drafts
• All weekend, Friday through Sunday: $17 domestic beer buckets, $25 High Noon buckets, $6 mimosas

Food specials run all day at every location. Drink specials run all day in North Carolina but only from 4 to 8 p.m. in South Carolina, a split that likely reflects state-level alcohol pricing and happy-hour rules rather than brand preference. Offers and availability may vary by restaurant, the company noted.

The daypart restriction matters for operators watching the model. Deep discounting on Tito's and Modelo drafts compresses beverage margins, typically the most profitable line on a tavern P&L, so the program depends on volume and incremental food attachment to hold its economics.

Which locations get entertainment?

The chain has also refreshed its recurring entertainment calendar across select units, scheduling music bingo, trivia, karaoke and live music on fixed weeknights.

• Music Bingo: Monday at Sun Valley, 7 p.m.; Tuesday at Ballantyne, Rock Hill and Steelecroft, 7 p.m.; Wednesday at Hickory and Wesley Chapel, 7 p.m.; Thursday at Asheville, 6 p.m., and Gastonia, 7 p.m.
• Trivia Night: Tuesday at Hickory and Indian Land, 7 p.m.; Wednesday at Asheville, Holly Springs and Steelecroft, 7 p.m., and Spartanburg, 8 p.m.
• Karaoke: Friday at Steelecroft, 8 p.m.
• Live Music: Friday at Asheville, Ballantyne and Harris, 9 p.m.

Programming varies by location, and guests can check HickoryTavern.com for their local schedule. The cadence is deliberate: Monday through Thursday entertainment gives slow weeknights a reason to exist, while Friday music hands the weekend to the bar.

How does the chain court football fans?

The timing is no accident. Football season is in full swing, and Hickory Tavern positions itself as a game-day destination with an average of more than 40 screens per location carrying college football, Carolina rivalries and every out-of-market Sunday afternoon NFL game through NFL Sunday Ticket.

Game-day menus include wings, wing flights, the Pre-Game Combo, smashburgers and weekend bucket specials. For marquee matchups, each restaurant prioritizes audio based on customer interest, with viewing and audio selections varying by location.

The chain also posts updates on Instagram at @hickorytavern and Facebook at @TheHickoryTavern. If the HT Lineup holds, expect the named-day format to expand — value pricing plus fixed entertainment is the classic playbook for keeping a 16-unit regional tavern chain full on Tuesdays in November.