Big Ten History

Established in 1955, The Big Ten was comprised of three sections: a restaurant, a bar and a sub shop. The restaurant (then the site of the Village Wok) served homemade soups, stews and fresh bread from a cafe counter with a few stools for the students.

During the 60’s & 70’s, The Big Ten was a popular escape for U of M students. There was a piano near the back entrance of the bar, where students enjoyed and sang to the rowdy music and college songs.

In the early 80’s the restaurant began serving roast beef and meatball sandwiches from behind the bar. Later hamburgers, fries and the famous Big Ten Sub sandwich were added to the menu.

In the 90’s the famous Big Ten Sub remained the most popular menu item and continued to be created in the original shop. From the grill, we hand pattied burgers, fresh grilled chicken sandwiches and a variety of other menu options that made the Big Ten such a popular campus dining place.

In 2016 the Big 10 Restaurant and Bar at the U of M was forced to close to make room for a luxury apartment building. We continued to make great food at the Hopkins location. However, we missed the campus location so much, we decided to rebrand and develop a new concept called, Thirty Bales in July of 2018. Due to the great demand for the subs, we decided to begin a delivery service to help continue the great tradition. The subs are made to order out of the Thirty Bales kitchen for pick up or delivery. You can click the link on the menu to be directed to the ordering platform. We hope you enjoy the tradition that is the BIG 10 Restaurant. THANK YOU FOR THE SUPPORT and GO GOPHERS!!