Happy Hour Showdown: Alley Katz v. River Rock Tap House
In our first of what will hopefully be a long line of Happy Hour Showdowns we pitted Alley Katz against the River Rock Tap House. These first two competitors are fairly new and very beer-heavy. Let’s take a look at the breakdown.
Happy Hour Time
Alley Katz: Every day, 3-7pm
River Rock: M-F, 2-6pm
Winner: Alley Katz. That extra hour goes a long way for folks who can’t get out of work til 6. Plus, a weekend happy hour is a big bonus.
Happy Hour Specials
Alley Katz: $1 off all drinks.
River Rock: $4 Craft Beers, $3 small plates, $3 Wells
Winner: In a tight one, I’m gonna give the nod to River Rock. At Alley Katz, it’s hard to beat the liter of Alley Katz Honey Amber for $6 (usually $7) and I like the simplicity of just taking a dollar off everything, but River Rock offers food specials and even if the wings are small and sad, at least it’s something. The food at Alley Katz is affordable and potentially tasty, but there are no happy hour food specials of which I am aware.
Stole this photo of River Rock's taps from Yelp...which is why it isn't all blurry.
Selection
Alley Katz: huge beer selection with lots of fancy Belgium bottles. They also offer a little thing called the Beer Tower ($30) which is basically three pitchers of beer poured into one long, tall tube type thing with a spout on the end. Plus, you can get tall boys of your favorite cheapo domestics.
River Rock: About 45 beers on the menu and a full bar. No beer tower, but I like the wall of taps.
Winner: Alley Katz, just because I think they have more options…even though I didn’t count’em or nuthin’. And a beer tower? C’mon.
Ambiance
Alley Katz: A big room with plenty of tvs, a comfy living room type area, pool tables and real nice long bar. When I went there was one guy who was rocking a little too hard to his own jukebox selections, but who am I to harsh his vibe? Also, they had Sex in the City on tv while the World Series and Monday Night Football were on.
River Rock: Friendly folks at the bar and good tvs. It definitely feels more like a restaurant than Alley Katz, but I guess that’s because it’s more of a restaurant than Alley Katz. No weird jukebox guy here.
Winner: I like them both, but I like the crowd at River Rock more because there was no Weird Jukebox Guy. Also, minus points for Alley Katz showing Sex in the City while major sporting events were on. So River Rock gets the nod.
Slyly taken photo of Weird Jukebox Guy making his sweet selections.
Other Notes
Alley Katz: There’s no sign out front that says “Alley Katz” there’s just a big ol’ red cat. Maybe let people know what’s going on in there with a sign or somethin’. Also, “Alley Katz” is maybe the worst name for a bar ever. Hmmm…maybe that’s why they don’t put it on the sign.
River Rock: They have a special club that you earn entry into by drinking 41 different beers (not at one sitting). Every time you finish a new brew, you have the bartender sign off on the menu. When you complete the 41 beers you get a free upgrade to a larger mug of beer whenever you order for the rest of your life…I think. Sweet deal!
What goes on in here? And, yes, this photo was also stolen from Yelp.
Overall Winner: Alley Katz
Right out of the gates we’ve got ourselves a super-close finish to a Happy Hour Showdown. These two beer-friendly joints are similar in a lot of ways and you’d be doing ok for yourself if you hit up either one. I’m giving the coveted Showdown Trophy to Alley Katz though because I really like a happy hour that goes til 7pm and the beer selection is truly spectacular.
Sacramento Oktoberfest 2011
Attention schnitzel lovers! It’s Oktoberfest time again!
That means it’s time for my annual struggle to decide if I should wear lederhosen or not. I think if I had a good set of ‘hosen I wouldn’t struggle so much, but mine are just the cheapest ones they sell at Evangeline’s. I think if I had a good pair, I’d pretty much just wear them year-round – to important meetings, home for the holidays, while doing yard work, etc.
Anyhow, I can’t promise that I’ll be wearing the ‘hosen, but I can promise that I’ll be drinking a big beer and eating a huge pretzel.
This year it looks like there are two main Oktoberfest parties in town.
First off, there’s the event at the Turn Verein hall this Friday and Saturday. This is always my favorite Oktoberfest party in town. The line will be around the corner early…and rightfully so. There will be real and actual Germans there, official Oktoberfest beers, a million tasty sausages, jager shots, apple schnapps shots, traditional dancing and, if you’re lucky, roasted nuts. You like roasted nuts, don’t you?
Then, next weekend, there’s the party at Cal Expo. It’s the second year they’ve done this one and I missed last year’s so I can’t really speak to it. There’s beer though and probably a girl or two in a dirndl, so it’s hard to go wrong.
Outside of the great lederhosen debate, there’s another annual tradition I have that revolves around Oktoberfest. It’s the tradition where I plead with all the decent Germans and German descendants in Sacramento to please step-up and open a German restaurant in town. Sure, the Hof Brau is awesome and I can get schnitzel at Café Marika, but come on. We need a German beer hall!
I want a place where, any time of year, I can belly up to the bar and drink a whole boot of beer without being judged. Come on, Germans, do me a solid on this.
Sacramento Catch-up
I just thought I should post something since I’ve been away for so long. Here are a few Sacramento-related things I’ve got on my mind.
Idle Hour 50th Anniversary Party: It’s tomorrow (Thursday) and the Lew Fratis Trio is playing at 8pm. Come on out and say hi. Also, congratulate the Tahoe Park Rangers softball club (sponsored by the Idle Hour) on their summer league championship.
Hellbound Glory @ The Blue Lamp on Friday: This band was a lot of fun when I saw them a couple months back so I’ll be back this time around. I’m not sure who else is playing that night, but it should be a good one.
Café Marika: I live in fear of the couple that runs this place retiring and closing up shop. Luckily, they’ve recently painted and remodeled the inside. I’m assuming this means they’re sticking around for a while longer.
My Grandpa’s 90th Brithday Party: It’s on Sunday, but you are not invited.
Phono Select: I like this place a lot, but how can a record shop survive with these kids today with their downloads and their Zunes. Zunes are cool, right?
The Garlic Shack: This place has opened down the street from my office. So far, everyone is telling me it’s too pricey. Have you been? Let me know.
Giraffes: Best thing at the zoo.
California Pizza Kitchen: Not too sad that this closed. Looking forward to the new DeVere’s/Mason’s venture going in its place.
Clark’s Corner: I still think this location should just go back to being a Shakey’s. This new place is ok though.
Tower Café: There’s always a line out the door on weekend mornings. Good for them, I guess, but you folks know there are lots of great breakfast/brunch options out there, right?
Cheaters: I stop here on my bike ride home pretty much every day. Just thought I’d give them a shout out.
My Pants: A little more snug every day.
Gold Rush Days: Everybody’s favorite old west celebration is coming back to Old Sacramento over Labor Day weekend. Get ready for that. I’ll be working in the beer garden and wearing a cowboy hat.
L Wine Lounge: I hope this closure is short-lived. Even though I can’t afford to drink there, I always liked the idea that it was there should I come into some cash.
EarthTrek Expeditions: If you find yourself having to entertain 15 British folks (as I do), I highly recommend a rafting trip with EarthTrek.
Ginger Elizabeth: The Parisian Macaron Ice Cream Sandwich is the single most delicious food item available in Sacramento.
This Blog: I will try harder.
Sacramento’s Oldest Bars
My good friends over at the Idle Hour will be celebrating their 50th anniversary on August 5th (you can buy a sweet t-shirt with the above logo on it there).
That’s a long time for a bar to stay in business with the same name and same location.
I know Old Ironsides has been going strong for 77 years and that the Torch Club started in 1934 too, but had to relocate a couple times. If I remember correctly, the Pine Cove is pretty old, but also had to move when they built the highway. Pre-Flite is like 40 years old and still thrives in its hidden little hole. I don’t know how old the Distillery is, but it looks like it’s been there a while.
Does anybody out there know of any other old bars in the area? Or do you have any more info on the ones I mentioned above? I want to hear some bar history!
Add a comment…or email me .
Sacramento Hot Dog Tour: Official Results
Well, the wait is over. Here are the official results of the Nick on the Town Sacramento Hot Dog Tour. I put together a crack team of me and one other guy (John) and we visited 8 different hot dog establishments. We got at least one dog at each joint and then judged each one on a 1-to-10 scale of “Overall Hot Dog Experience.”
Here are the results from the stinker at the bottom to the Sacramento’s King of Weiners.
8. Urban Dog
This was the biggest surprise and the biggest disappointment of the whole group. Mostly, it was presentation and customer service issues, but the dog itself didn’t blow us away either (although the dog probably suffered because we were already mad at the place).
Even though I don’t work in a professional hot dog restaurant, If you asked me to make you a hot dog right now, I could drive to the store, buy all the fixin’s and have a tasty dog in your mouth in less than half an hour (feel free to hold me to this). Urban Dog, however, can’t make that happen.
Plus, the place is just kind of depressing inside. It’s like they’re making dogs in a jail cell; sparse decorations, a soda fountain that’s half empty and hardly any seating. Of course, the seating wouldn’t be such a big deal if it didn’t take so long to get a dog. Seriously, there were like 4 groups of people there, no one had food, everyone was pissed and the dude making the dogs and the lady at the register didn’t seem to care. Plus, one guy who was lucky enough to get a dog had to bring it back because it had “blue cheese” on it. He hadn’t ordered a dog with blue cheese on it and thought maybe it was just mold.
Also, they have like 6 dogs on the menu and a full list of burgers. A hot dog place should focus on hot dogs. Burgers slow you down…apparently.
In short, these guys need to get their act together.
Oh wait, I forgot to mention the dog. My Chicago-style dog was just ok. For some reason they put the pickle wedge perpendicular to my dog. This contradicts the hot dog’s natural mouth-friendly construction. Line up that pickle, decorate place and learn to make a hot dog in under 30 minutes.
SCORE: 1.5 Points
7. Yummy Yogurt
As a general rule of thumb, you should avoid hot dogs from hot dog places that have neither the word “hot” nor “dog” in their name. This is a frozen yogurt shop, however, I had a coupon for 2 hot dogs, a soda and a bag of chips for $3 so I pulled the trigger anyhow.
Look how tiny these dogs are though:
As you can see, I took a bite and missed the dog entirely. It was kind of a sad experience, but if you’re in a pinch and you want a tiny hot dog to go along with your frozen yogurt, you could go ahead and get this thing. It’s basically a 7-Eleven dog. This is how it made me feel:
It should be mentioned that I think I saw larger dogs on the hot dog roller, but I guess those weren’t the 2 for $3 kind.
SCORE: 2.0
This goes against my rule as well. It is not “Burgers and Brew and Hot Dogs” and after eating the dog here, I know why. Just stick to burgers (and brew), Burgers and Brew.
The “hot dogs” here are more like a smoky sausage-type thing – which I wish they would’ve been up front about on the menu because sometimes I like a smokey sausage-type thing. However, this was not a smokey sausage-type thing tour. Also, it was clearly in sandwich form and not in hot dog form. Plus, it was so big that John and I had to share it and that was embarrassing.
On the plus side, we also had some Pliny the Elders and these herbally things that are supposed to help aid digestion. After all these hot dogs, we needed all the help we could get.
SCORE: 3 Points
5. The Hot Dog Lady over by Light Rail on O Street
Sorry that I don’t know if she has a real business name or not, but the Hot Dog Lady over by Light Rail on O Street serves up a respectable enough street dog, but nothing spectacular. She offered a variety of dog and bun options, which is nice in a way, but provides a bit too much time to fill with awkward small talk. This lady must talk about the weather 200 times a day. Yes, we get it, it’s hot.
Anyhow, the dog was big and beefy and she offered kraut. Maybe it was because I had just eaten a hot dog 2 minutes earlier, but I found this one filled me up in like one bite. Also, even though it looked beefy and was a labeled as a Hebrew National, it didn’t taste like anything – just kind of a meaty mush in my mouth. I feel like maybe the dog left all its flavor in the hot dog water…which would’ve been great to wash this thing down with.
I think it was $3 and the dog was huge, so I guess it’s still a good deal even if it tasted like wet dust.
SCORE: 4
4. The Hot Dog Lady on 9th & Capitol
Perhaps this dog benefitted from being the first dog on the tour, but I thought it was pretty tasty. It was a nice steamed dog – one of those long skinny ones. I like a long skinny dog. John prefers the stubbier. To each his own, I guess. She had some decent condiments (two kinds of peppers) and a sassy attitude to go along with it, so I was pretty happy.
For under $3, it’s hard to argue with this weiner.
SCORE: 6
3. Raley Field and the River Cats
Nothing tastes better than a dog at the ballpark. Of course, there’s a chance that if you were to take the delicious Raley Field dog out of the ballpark environment and to, say, Urban Dog that it would be the world’s worst dog.
But on a warm summer night, there just ain’t nothing better than a dog at the ballpark.
See how happy I am:
Also, it was dollar dog night at the park when I went (Fridays) and even the smaller, sadder, cheap dog tasted great too. Sure, I had put down a few margaritas at this point, but I think it was actually good. This is not always the case. Sometimes the bun on the $1 dog is crunchy and the weiner is tasteless, so it’s kind of a crapshoot. But, hey, for a dollar you can afford to roll the dice.
SCORE: 8.5
2. The Weinery
I love this place. It’s been there forever has built up a good clientele of cool old people. They even survived a change of ownership recently without the place changing too much.
The restaurant itself is tiny and can barely contain the well-loved countertop which dominates the café. From the seats at the counter, you can watch the hot dog chefs work their magic. They actually have these little wooden paddles with pegs which are designed to hold up to 5 hot dogs in place for quick topping (Learn something here, Urban Dog).
The dogs are steamed weiners that you can top with a ridiculous amount of condiment options. I went with the Pastrami Dog and could not have been happier. Oh wait, I added a frosty mug of beer (or root beer) and I actually did get a little happier.
Here’s a little thing they call the Double Dinger. Yowzah!
This place just makes me happy and I’m never happy. Hooray for the Weinery!
SCORE: 9
1. Capitol Dawg
This is dog heaven. The owner of this joint is a true Chicago hot dog purist. He sat down with us and talked wieners for about 20 minutes. After that, we talked about hot dogs (Please note, this is the only weiner joke in this whole post). I couldn’t believe there was so much to know about meat, buns, condiments, etc. He is very proud of his product and one bite into the Governator Dog, it was pretty easy to see why. I got half a Governator and half a Chicago.
There are about a million combinations of dogs you can get here. The aforementioned Governator is a deep-fried, bacon-wrapped weiner covered in cheese sauce. It was the most delicious dog I had on the tour or possibly in my life. You put that hot dog in a ballpark and my head would explode with happiness. The Chicago Dog was delicious and, as an added bonus, the pickle was parallel to the bun as it should be.
Here I am kissing up to the owner:
Plus, the dogs come out super-fast. Capital Dawg could make about 100 dogs in the time it takes Urban Dog to make one.
So Capitol Dog takes home the Nick on the Town Weiner Crown.
SCORE: 9.5
So there it is, the Nick on the Town Hot Dog Tour. Okay, so maybe there aren’t as many hot dog places in Sacramento as there are in Chicago, but we’ve got Capital Dawg and the Weinery proudly carrying the weiner-torch here in Sacramento. It was almost a draw between Capitol Dawg and The Weinery, but Dawg eked it out in the end.
I’d say, the Weinery feels a bit more homey and like a neighborhood joint, whereas Capital Dawg is the kind of place you send hot dog snobs who think they can only get a real hot dog in Chicago. we’ll show them. Now get out there and eat a weiner!
Note: When word of the weiner tour got out, I had a lot of folks recommend the dog at Costco. Hey, I’ve got nothing against a huge $1.50 hot dog if I’m out stocking up on discount groceries, Dockers and home electronics, but I just can’t include it here with a clear conscience. That goes for Home Depot too where I’ve had many a delicious dog. Sorry, Costco folks. Perhaps I’ll do a tour of snack bars at big box stores and include them on there (Ikea is the front-runner already though).
Sacramento Hot Dog Tour
In an effort to provide the public with the information they depend on, the Nick on the Town team attempted to survey 10 hot dog establishments in one day last Friday.
It’s hard to call any day where all you did was eat hot dogs and drink beer a failure, so I’m not going to do it. However, we were unable to complete the task.
Mostly, we couldn’t get it done because some hot dog places choose to close at like 3:30 and we just ran out time.
Anyhow, we will resume the Sacramento Hot Dog Tour 2011 some time this week and get you the facts you need in order to make an educated hot dog choice.
In the meantime, here are some photos from Friday to whet your appetite.
My Weekend
Don’t know what to do this weekend? Well, here’s what my schedule looks like. Depending on your feelings towards me, this could help you either seek me out or completely avoid me.
Friday, June 24th
8am – Arrive at work.
8-5pm – Work diligently with no innappropriate breaks, facebook time or illegal online gambling.
6pm-9pm – Attend Annual Capital Public Radio Record Sale at Howe ’bout Arden. Stock up on old-timey albums no one will like except for me. Like maybe this one:
9pm – Go back home and listen to said albums.
Saturday, June 25th
10am – Attend the shorts program at the Sacramento French Film Festival.
Noon – Go drinking and mini-golfing at DeVere’s Albie Puttin’ Pub Crawl to benefit the Albie Carson Breast Cancer Foundation.
3:00pm – Take wife to airport.
3:01pm – Practice banjo without annoying somebody.
4:00pm – If I don’t get sucked in by bad movies on Netlfix streaming, I’ll hit the neighbors housewarming bbq. You probably aren’t invited to this.
9:30pm – Back to French Film Fest for Pierrot le Fou or maybe just stay home and watch MacGyver.
Sunday, June 26th
???? – Pick wife up at airport at some point. (Note to self: Find out what time.)
1pm – Go drinking and eating at the Red Show Crawl to benefit the Ronald McDonald House. (unless picking wife up at airport)
8:00pm – Congratulate myself for scheduling a pretty sweet weekend.
Another Wacky Bike Rack
Chained my rig up to this beauty the other day at East Sac Hardware.
More racks in previous posts here and here. And if you’ve chained your bike up to anything weird lately, let me know.
Sacramento Bars
Here is a list of bars in Sacramento along with my feelings on them. Keep in mind that my tastes are less high brow and more Hof Brau (This is a line I’ve been waiting to use in a post for months. Really nailed that one, right?). Also, I’m sure I’m missing some places, but lay off me, I’m doing my best.
Alley Katz – It took a lot for me to even give this place a chance because of the awful name, but I’m glad I did. The room is nice and the beer selection is crazy. I think removing their sign after being open for only like a month was an odd choice, but it has neon sings in the window so, at least, you still know it’s a bar.
Backdoor Lounge – Old Sacramento’s best bar. I love any bar with velvet wallpaper and a real jukebox.
Benny’s – Benny’s was great when I was working at the Bee because it was right across the street. Now that I work elsewhere, I also drink elsewhere. Cheap drinks, but the crowd is rough sometimes.
Blue Cue – I haven’t been to the Blue Cue for a long time, but I’d like to get back. I’m assuming it still has pool tables and drinks…and I like those things.
Bonn Lair – This is a good neighborhood pub, but it’s kinda small and they don’t have liquor. Still, it gets a thumbs up from me. Plus, it’s across the street from Big Spoon.
Brownie’s – If you find yourself south of Land Park (SoLaPa) you can’t go wrong with Brownie’s. The place is old school and every time I’ve been they have some kind of free food.
Bulls – If you like to mix your drinks with potential personal injury, then head to Bulls where you can take your shot at riding the mechanical bull. It’s a stinker though and if you find my thumb on that mat, please return it to me.
Chargin’s – Chargin’s gets into the mix from time to time because it’s a dive bar that serves breakfast. This is a real bonus on certain days.
Cheaters – Say what you will, but Cheaters is still my favorite sports bar in town. Great bartenders, cheap drinks, every sports package known to man and a million tvs. Plus, it’s on my bike ride home from work.
Club 2-Me – Back in the day this place was packed every night. Then the ABC wouldn’t let folks drink out back any more and the crowd died off a bit. Still, if you haven’t ever been here on the night before Thanksgiving then you can’t really call yourself a Sacramentan.
Clubhouse 56 – I come here to totally dominate Trivia Night on Tuesdays…at least, I do when it’s not softball season. Can’t go wrong with the 2 tacos for $3 happy hour deal. Also, their wings faired well in the Nick on the Town Wing Tour 2010.
Delta Lounge – This is the bar on the Delta King and it’s pretty awesome. It’s on a boat fer crissakes! Nice old wood bar, live music and river views. What more do you want?
The Depot – Just another packed bar in Lavender Heights. I haven’t actually had a drink here, but I did go in and use the ATM once. Darker in there than I thought….
DeVere’s Irish Pub – One of the most popular recent additions to town, DeVere’s has quickly settled in as a Sacramento institution. The bar was built to last and it looks like it has staying power. The food is good too. Also, they do about a million charity events each year and I’m all into that. Big thumbs up for DeVere’s even though I don’t get in there as much as I’d like.
Dive Bar – I was skeptical when this place opened up thinking it would be packed with a bad crowd and pricy drinks. It turns out that every time I’ve been, it’s been super laidback and the prices are totally reasonable. Of course, I haven’t been during prime mermaid time, but still so far so good.
Eastern Empire – This is more of a Chinese restaurant than a bar, but it serves the flaming tiki drinks that I like so bad, so I thought I’d list it here. Where else can you get a Zombie, Fog Cutter, Suffering Bastard or Flaming Volcano?
Elixir – One time I was here and I guy tried to fight me over a chair. Other than that, it’s ok though.
Espanol – Also more of a restaurant, but the lounge side of the place is one of my favorite bars in town. Dark and friendly with a jukebox that plays 45s, it’s the perfect place for a dirty martini and a bowl of minestrone.
Faces – The cornerstone of Sacramento’s gayborhood…unless you count Cornerstone which is across the street.
Fanny Ann’s – I know Old Sacramento bars sometimes bring in a weird crowd, but I’m a fan of Fanny Ann’s. It’s hard to get around, ordering is difficult and the prices aren’t great, but I’m still going to stand by them because I’m a sucker for a place with wacky crap on the walls and delicious wings.
Flame Club – The Flame scares away some people due to its uninviting exterior. And I’ll be honest, the inside ain’t much to look at either. But, man, the drinks are cheap, the bartenders are sassy and the food tasty. I’m in to it.
Fox & Goose – The one thing I don’t like about Fox & Goose is that they won’t seat you for breakfast until your entire party shows up. I’m a very prompt person and my friends are lazy, so this results in me having to mill about out front for extended periods of time. Other than that, not a bad British pub and they have good live music from time to time.
Gallagher’s – Remember the old Gallagher’s? Me neither, but I hear it was great. This place is ok. It’s in the lobby of an office building which is a real bonus if you work in that office building. Otherwise, it’s a weird location, but comes in handy from time to time. It’s kinda blurry, but I think the bartenders here are real good.
The Golden Bear – Still going strong after like 7 years, I’m glad things are working out for the Bear. This spot housed a number of short-lived bars prior to the Bear coming along and becoming a haven for Sacramento’s cool crowd.
Harlow’s – As far as live music venues go, Harlow’s has really been knocking it out of the park recently. I’ve never been here just to drink and/or eat, but it’s a great place for a show. Bring back the Old (7s because I missed them last week!
Henry’s – Oh man. I really want this place to be cool, but it’s always Sketch City. Still, if you’re in a pinch, it’s not a bad place to run into, have a quick cheap drink and run back out of before making eye contact with anyone.
The Hideaway – This place has a strong rockabilly feel to it and the jukebox to match. So if you like that…or at least don’t mind that, then you’ll like it here. Also, if you like tasty cocktails and food. However, if you like tv, don’t bother. They think they’re better than tv.
Shenanigan’s – I still haven’t been here yet. It looks like the bands they bring in don’t play my style of music and their favorite sport is MMA fighting. Not really on board with that. Still, I should give it a shot sometime.
Hilltop – This place just keep getting better. I remember coming here years ago and having some Clampers treat me to a real sh*tshow. Now, it’s a cleaned –up friendly neighborhood bar that’s steadily moving up my list. Plus, it’s across the street from OneSpeed.
Idle Hour – I know it’s out of the way for a lot of you, but the Idle Hour is worth it. $3 Jameson on Wednesdays? Come on. You’ll see me here at 10am every Sunday throughout football season. Come on by and say hi.
Kupros Bistro – I was riding high on Kupros when it first opened; the fried pickles were cheap, the poutine was the best thing I’d ever eaten and the bar was beautiful. Well, the bar is still beautiful, but the food has definitely changed. I guess the original chef left. Kinda sad.
Limelight – The limelight was once my go-to bar. Now I avoid it. Of course, now it’s a poker room, so that has something to do with it.
Marilyn’s on K – Marilyn’s is one of the few places that steadily brings good live music to town. I respect them for toughing it out on K Street during some not-so great times and I’ll be back here soon. I wish they’d bring back the Americana Ramble though. I know I was the only person that went, but man, what great tunes.
The Mercantile Saloon – Perhaps the gayest of our gay bars, the Merc is still going strong after all these years.
Mix – If I were younger, dressed better and wasn’t such a grouch, I’d come party at the Mix all the time. The place is beautiful and comfortable, but cover charges and my general lack of coolness keep me at dive bars instead of the Mix’s dance floor. Oh well.
Monkey Bar – I haven’t been here forever, but I’m glad it’s still around. It’s a good middle-of-the-road place where dive bar connoisseurs can mix with more respectable folks in a comfortable environment.
MVPs – MVPs switched locations last year, but it still hasn’t won me over. I like a sports bar, so I really want to support them, but there’s just something off about the place. I think it’s just a floorplan issue.
Old Ironsides – Old I is probably the one bar in town that’s earned the adjective “venerable.” For the past 70-something years it’s just been quietly sitting their being awesome in every way. That is, quiet at lunch when they serve some of the best food in town…and not so quiet at night when it’s featuring the best the local music.
Old Tavern – If you need a cheap pitcher of beer or a huge plastic bottle of Bud, this is the place to be. Dress down though if you don’t wanna stand out among the tatted-up regulars.
Parlare Eurolounge – I have a pretty hard and fast rule about avoiding “Euro-lounges” at all costs.
Pine Cove – Ahhh, the PC. I know a lot of people they say it’s stinky and rundown and, yeah, they’re right. That said, it’s been a favorite of mine for over a decade now and there’s no looking back now. Plus, they got new carpet and new tvs! Long live the Pine Cove!
Pre-Flite Lounge – The Pre-Flite has been hidden under the Downtown Plaza mall for decades with its cheap drinks, funky jukebox and 1970s decor. There are changes afoot, though, and the Pre-Flite is bringing in new crowds who may not appreciate the old-school charm of the place. We’ll see….
Press Club – I remember when the Press Club had live music and fights every night of the week. Those were the days. It still has occasional live music, but more frequently has DJs and an alternative dance crowd. I guess that’s ok with me.
R15 – Like its Paragary’s brethren, Monkey Bar, this place is a great middle-of-the-road place where everyone should be happy. Happy hour lasts pretty much all day so drinks are cheap. There are plenty of tvs so you can go to watch the game even if you’re with people who don’t want to watch it. Plus, there’s food supplied by Café Bernardo. Not bad.
Shady Lady – Surprisingly, the Shady Lady is still sticking to its 1920’s speakeasy them. I thought for sure they’d throw that out the window early one because it just seemed like so much effort. I feel weird ordering drinks from someone in suspenders or a flapper dress or whatever, but once I settle in with a Dark & Stormy, Horse’s Neck or a Pimm’s Cup, all is well. No tvs here, go to R15 if you want that.
Socal’s – Another place that’s been a favorite for a long, long time. The pretzel bowl is gone after another over-zealous ABC inspection, but there’s still shuffleboard, pool, drink specials and a great neighborhood tavern vibe.
Streets of London – Not quite as stinky as it used to be, I’m cool with Streets. Plus, I was the first person to ever do an Irish Car Bomb here.
Tallac Lounge – This is the closest bar to my house, so it definitely gets a shout out here. Hi Tallace Lounge! See you tonight!
The Chambers Room – If you’re downtown and Henry’s is just a little too much for you to handle, try the Chambers Room. It’s like Henry’s only slightly better.
The Distillery – If you like cheap drinks, karaoke and $13.95 prime rib, the Distillery is for you.
The Park – Mostly, I only drink here during private events when the drinks are free. I recommend this. Again, it’s a bit classy for me on a regular basis, but that’s my bad not the bars.
The Raven – The Raven seems a bit cleaned up these days. Now the not-so-dirty bird might be a little too welcoming for me. Of course, the regulars are still there so I guess that makes it ok.
The Trap – Stuffed badgers and a slanted pool table are the main draws at the Trap. Not bad, if you’re in the neighborhood.
Torch Club – I’m cool with the Torch. The free live music happy hour is one of the best things happening that nobody seems to know about. Also, with live blues almost every night of the week you’ll always have a place to take your dad when he visits. Oh and try not to confuse it with the Flame Club. Yes, I know a torch has a flame, but they are different establishments.
Town House – I’m never sure if this place is really open or not, but I’ve had some good times there.
Zebra Club – The Zebra seems pieced together from different scraps of other buildings, but somehow it’s still there and still serving drinks. The took the bras off the walls like 10 years ago and that bartender that used to pinch my nipples and call me offensives names is gone, so I guess that’s a plus. They open at 6am, so I’ll see you there.
Zelda’s – I know it’s a pizza place, but the bar is fantastic. Outside of the inattentive older gentleman behind the bar who watches tv while I sit with an empty glass, I pretty much love everything about Zelda’s…especially the way it take my eyes about 20 minutes to adjust to the darkness in there. Maybe that’s the bartender’s problem….
