Owner Steve Theobald stands with one of the original and well-worn tabletops from the original Hungry Chuck's bar near Syracuse University. Theobald is reopening Chuck's this summer at 135 Marshall St. (Don Cazentre)

Syracuse, NY — For the first time in five years, Syracuse University students returning for the fall semester can head straight to Hungry Chuck’s bar after they unpack.

Hungry Chuck’s opens at 9 p.m. tonight in its new home at 135 Marshall St. Students, many accompanied by their parents, began moving in this week for the semester that starts Monday.

“We will be fully open,” owner Steve Theobald said. “We are ready to receive.”

Hungry Chucks, aka Chuck’s or Hungry Charlie’s, was a long-time fixture in the Marshall Street area, from its founding in 1970 until it was forced to close in 2017. It had occupied several spots in the alleyway off South Crouse Avenue that once ran behind and parallel to Marshall Street.

Its last location was forced to close and was demolished in 2017 to make way for a high-rise residential/retail development called The Marshall. That project also displaced other business, like Funk ‘n Waffles and AppeThaizing.

Theobald immediately began planning to reopen in the Marshall Street area. At one point, Hungry Chuck’s was scheduled to take a ground floor retail spot in The Marshall, but that fell through after SU bought the building from the private developer who built it.

In April, Theobald announced Chuck’s would open this summer right in the heart of Marshall Street itself. The location at 135 Marshall had most recent been home to the Panda West restaurant.

Theobald is bringing back many of the old Chuck’s artifacts, like the weathered table-tops, graffitti-strewn wall boards, original signs and other items that have been in storage since 2017.

The new Chuck’s will still be a place to grab some beer, watch a game, get some food and simply hang out with friends, Theobald said.

What will be different in the new Hungry Chuck’s is the menu. Theobald plans to continue a “pub” menu for game days and other high-volume times, but the regular menu will feature pastas, noodle dishes and a chocolate station.

Generations of SU students and others drank beer and signed or carved their names on the bar’s walls and furnishings. It was a special tradition for graduating seniors to leave their mark.

It will likely take time for the new Chuck’s to really achieve the beer-soaked vibe of the original, but Theobald is looking to get that started tonight.

“We are ready,” he said.

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Don Cazentre writes for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.

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