Field Office

According to the Cornell Unviersity Law Department website, "The term 'field office' means any office of a Federal agency that is not the headquarters office location for the Federal agency."

Upon initial consideration, this may not seem like a relevant name for a small dive bar next to the railroad tracks on Industrial Ave. in Midland. But this is oil country after all, and things made a lot more sense when I learned that field offices oversee things like applications for permit to drill (APDs) and managing oil and gas leases, among other things. So, in fact, it's a pretty funny name if you imagine some government pencil pusher ending up here on accident only to find some locals pounding beers like it's fuck-this-shit o'clock.

As for myself, I arrived without doing due diligence and was fully expecting a radioactive waste site with three-eyed boars prowling the parking lot. Instead, I walked into the early stages of a Christmas party (it was a week before the big day) attended by a cheery crowd and a bartender that was as friendly as a Capitol Hill lobbyist.

Field Office isn't winning any beauty pageants—bars next to the railroad tracks usually don't—but it has plenty of charm and plays the greatest hits: neon signs, dollar bills hanging off the ceiling, CD jukebox, pool table, a poster of supermodel Tyra Banks from 1998 (a special time in many boys' lives).

The more you look for scrawled messages and knicnacks, the more you'll find—which is one of the most entertaining dive bar games there is. There's even a sign that reads, "Dyslexics of the world unite."

Field Office is a classic dive and my favorite spot in Midland to date. Recommended for roughnecks, pencil pushers, and Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue collectors alike.

A few select online reviews:

"Best place on the planet to drink beer and hang out."

"Coldest beer in the basin!! Rest in Peace Tommy."

"A defendant place to goosfraba and mingle with the crowd."

"I've tasted some grub. That they don't sell in restaurants or pubs. Welcome to Midland."