The Cell Block

The cell block has the worst music selection!!! If you have gone to dollar drinks on Wednesday twice you can easily memorize the entire track list. It’s a pathetic line up from the 2000s with little to NO recent music. I have attempted to request newer music from the DJ and each time he either doesn’t know the music or says it’s «too hood». He isn’t even a DJ he pretty much hits the play button and the same lame music plays.

My night at the Cell Block was nothing short of disgusting and the horrible DJs provided the soundtrack to the night. As soon as I entered the building, a smell so near and dear to my heart entered my body like a priest entering an altar boy. The smell that I noticed was obviously marijuana. It had been four hours since I had last been stoned and I was hoping to have a good experience at this notoriously terrible local club. As I asked some shady-​looking people for the nearest ganja, I was only offered coke by the bigoted college students there. I spent an hour searching for bud, but nobody could help me. Then, I realized that it was in my pocket the whole time and that what I had really smelled was the mutilated genitalia of an oil worker. After that, I said, «screw it», and dropped acid and partied with young men who seemed to have fake IDs. While tripping, the bartender tricked me into paying extra and made me cry on the dance floor. Soon after, a cab picked me up. Leaving was my favorite part

The building is the coolest thing about this place. I visited this place during my stay in Williamsport, and please note that I am only 23, but the crowd made my feel old. I’m certain that everyone around me was still in college and pre-​gamed coming to the place even though they have $ 1 drinks on Wednesday (the night I went).
The bartender that night was kind of a douche, but one of the bouncers was amazing and gave me a full tour of the building, the highlight of my venture there. Other than to see the inside or get cheap liquor on Wednesday nights, there’s no real incentive to go, or in my case return.
But thank you to the awesome bouncer who gave me the tour.

Walking back to my hotel I became too intrigued to not go in and check out this place. Earlier in the evening I was checking out the exterior architecture before I headed to the Bullfrog for dinner and several more drinks at the Brickyard.
The Cell Block interior is pretty roomy on a Early June Wednesday Night. The place and all its party rooms are large. Since I was the only one over 25 in the place I felt a bit awkward. But my goal was to see the interior. Several bouncers were real cool to me and answered all my questions about the place and its history. They were also real accommodating and showed me all the rooms, even the off-​limit areas. VIP tour! I guess the usual customer here isn’t all that interested in the history, architecture or business model.
My favorite room is the live-​music area and I’m sure some badass shows are performed there.
Fellow Unilocalers did a fantastic job of describing this club so other reviews should be read.

If you like waiting a long time for a drink, enjoy the company of stuck up college brats and obnoxious gas workers, then this place is for you. The atmosphere at this place is the worse in town.

Yeah, the crowd is young. And kinda skeevy. The indoor areas are uncomfortably smoky and the music ain’t nothin’ special.
But the Cell Block is one badass behemoth of a place. It’s hard not to have a good time exploring all of the floors, stairways, and courtyards in this giant prison-​turned-​night venue. For that reason alone, the Cell Block gets 4 stars.
Oh, and word on the street is that Snoop Dogg/​Lion came through here some time back. And the kids went crazy.

The venue is both quite nice and very cool, a very large bar and club housed in an 1876 vintage jail which was the doorman told me was still an active jail until the 1990s. Some customers actually had been in jail there before! The big downer at 10 pm on a Thursday in June was the male– female ratio, counted about 30 young guys who were clearly mostly oil and gas industry workers and all of 2 (two) women. I guess the women were going to have an eventful evening if they wanted to. I left quickly. I assume when the local colleges are in session this situation improves, or maybe I was there the wrong night of the week

First of All,…They named it correctly. The place is an old Prison. They did a heck of a great job converting it into a Night Club. The prices for drinks and food are very affordable for everyone… especially college students. Drinks range from 25 cents to 3.00. Ages of customers range from 21 to 26… with a few college students parents roaming around on some weekends. During the weekends, it is mostly college students unwinding and getting stupid drunk on their cheap happy hour prices. I was amazed with the building and how well they kept everything in tact from the prison. The Cell blocks, holding cells, tunnels, court yard, and even the look out balcony that oversee’s the dance floor were pretty fasinating. Too bad I didn’t have a camera along to take pictures of this magnificent piece of architecture. I enjoyed celebrating with my daughter and family at her favorite College hangout. Since she just Graduated with a Biology Degree from Lycoming College. Thank You for giving her a safe place to unwind on weekends.

The crowd’s young. Really young. The door staff trends on racist (veiling it in dress-​codes that are seemingly selectively observed depending on skin color). The music’s meh, and the overall environment, while entertaining with the jailhouse motif, leans more towards skeevy. I’d only go here if you’re DESPERATE to dance. Or if you’re white and in the 18 – 23 year old range and you don’t mind a meat market.

The Cell Block is a decent place to go, granted it’s one of only TWO real Dance Clubs in Williamsport. The people who go there is what brings the place down a notch from my viewpoint, especially on Thirsty thursday let’s-see-all-the-immature-underages-act-like-idiots-and-try-to-sneak-drinks, 18 and up night. I wish the bouncers would do a little more to control the ignorant people on any given night. I’ve had beer spilled on me by ridiculously drunk teeny-​bopper girls and it’s annoying. I try to stay at the little bar upstairs with the live music or the lower level where there’s usually a decent band playing. The pool tables are crappy but it’s not like I go there to shoot pool. The other thing is the DJ there sucks. I’ve been DJing for almost 10 years, and my 8-​year-​old daughter could do what that guy is doing. Overall the Cell Block isn’t that bad, juts could be a lot better. Kudos to them for doing the summer fest Service Industry Appreciation Night. went very well and was a good time had by all.

I have to agree with Ryan S. in a higher rating for the cell block. It’s the best bar in this town. The specials are as he listed, however, he forgot to mention that sometimes when college kids are at home the crowd can be a little sketchy and skeezy. The bartenders are usually pretty cool so make sure to tip them right!
The three different levels will satisfy basically anything your in the mood for. I usually like the basement with the live bands on Saturday night. that is when the most people are there. During the week it’s nice to just drink and not go crazy so the «up-​upstairs» is nice for a good time and great drink specials! For those of you who love to dance then you will be glad to see that they have a nice lil dance floor on the middle floor and play pretty good music – decent DJs!
Make sure to check up on up-​coming events. they have some pretty fun stuff like beer-​pong tourneys and things like that.
The crowd is usually people 21 – 30 (mostly 21 – 25)? Occasionally you find the creepy old man wandering around trying to shake it with the young ladies but it gets to be entertaining!
But yes, it’s fun, good specials, cool atmosphere!
Williamsport has the best Cell block (there is also State College & Erie) because it is in the original jail of the town – hence «Cell Block»! I’d recommend hitting it up if you are in the area and haven’t yet!

I’ve been going to school in Williamsport for four years and have pretty much been here every night for the last two. Tuesday nights they have quarter drafts, Wednesday nights they have dollar well drink, Thursday night (18+) they have two dollar mixed drinks, Friday nights they have five dollar captain and coke pitchers and dollar fifty coors bottles, and Saturday nights they have quarter drafts, dollar well drinks, and two dollar 16 oz. bud lights. So, on a college budget, its awesome.
There are three levels with at least one bar on each level and are all themed completely different. The basement usually has a live band usually playing rock music, the main level plays rap with a dance floor and lights everywhere, and the third floor is more of a lounge area with a live acoustic musician in the corner. There is also a like an atrium type deal so you can look down on the dance floor and be creepy.
Oh yea… it’s an old jail!