In the quiet riverfront village of Athens, a new brewery has taken over a familiar space. Housed in the former Crossroads Brewing Co. taproom on 2nd Street, Night School has been pouring beers and building community for over a year. The brewery opened in April 2024—the product of years of persistence, industry hustle, and what owner and brewer Johnny Osborne calls “a lucky break.”
The brewery is the latest chapter for Osborne, a longtime industry hand whose path has taken him from bartending in Texas to brewing internships in Georgia and production roles at New York breweries like Sixpoint Brewery. In 2020, he launched his own experimental beer label, Deep Fried Beers, operating nomadically out of breweries across Queens. The brand quickly gained a following for its bold, hop-saturated IPAs and playful collaboration-driven releases. By 2022, he was overseeing production at Crossroads Brewing’s larger facility in Catskill, which became a temporary home for Deep Fried. When Crossroads shuttered its Athens taproom in early 2023, Osborne got a call: Did he want to take over the space?
“It was ‘right place, right time,’” he says. “They’d tried to sell it and couldn’t find a buyer. I figured, worst case, I go back to brewing somewhere else. But I had to try.”
The result is a laid-back neighborhood brewery with a rotating tap list of house-made beers, including small-batch Deep Fried releases, guest taps, and cocktails. The space retains much of its original Crossroads character, including the well-loved bartop made from a tree that fell in town. “We didn’t touch it,” Osborne says. “If I changed the bar, people would’ve poked me in the chest and said, ‘What the hell did you do?’” A half-wall that once divided the room was taken down to open up the space. A pool table sits in the front of the taproom, surrounded by plenty of casual seating. Wood-paneled walls, chalkboard tap lists, and a mix of pendant lights—some casting a red glow—add to the bar’s warm, lived-in feel.
The tap list features a mix of Deep Fried collaborations and Night School originals. Standouts include Unsportsmanlike Conduct ($9), a juicy DIPA brewed with Ill Will Brewing and packed with Citra and Nelson Sauvin hops, and Porgs in a Blanket ($9), a tropical hop bomb co-created with RaR Brewing using Citra, Motueka, and Nelson Sauvin hop kief. From the Night School lineup, popular pours include the malty Recess Red ($8) and the nitro-poured Study Hall Stout ($8). Guests can also opt for “Extra Credit”—a specialty sipping shot paired with any Night School pint.
The food program began with pizza and has grown steadily. Whole pies—like the lemony, arugula-topped 4H Club ($29) and the meat-loaded Locker Room, with sausage, salami, and pepperoni—are served 20 inches wide, with slices ranging from $4.25 to $5.25. Smashburgers joined the menu in December (singles $13, doubles $17), followed by veggie burgers, jumbo wings, garlic knots, salads and fried chicken sandwiches. Portions are generous, and pricing is tax-included.
Osborne is quick to credit Night School’s cocktail program to lead bartender Nate Gebhard, who runs the bar with a mix of precision and creativity. Gebhard thrives on requests most bartenders dread, known for his encyclopedic palate and off-menu improvisations. “You say ‘something fruity,’ and most bartenders roll their eyes,” Osborne says. “Nate asks three follow-up questions and whips up something perfect. He just runs with it.” A couple of standouts from the regular menu include the Substitute Teacher ($13), a refreshing mix of vodka, Berto aperitif, triple sec, lime, and soda, and the Writer’s Block ($14), a smoky, citrusy blend of mezcal, blanco tequila, lemon oleo, and absinthe.
Looking ahead, Osborne has plans to bring more brewing in-house, expanding Night School’s offerings to include a broader range of classic styles alongside Deep Fried’s experimental IPAs. “I’ve got some complicated ideas I wouldn’t ask anyone else to do in their facility,” he says. “One’s a [Night] School-related product, another a Deep Fried product. I’m excited to get this facility online and have my own little lab where I can just go crazy.” On the food side, the menu will continue to evolve, with brunch on the horizon and, if Osborne gets his way, a slushy machine behind the bar.
“If I can make a living brewing beer, making tasty food, hanging out with people I like—and it turns into something sustainable? Maybe even own a house someday?” Osborne says. “That’s it. That’s the dream.”
Night School is open seven days a week at 21 2nd Street in Athens.
