Bars and beers Latest Topics

Save Our Bars (SOBs)

Tue, 30 Sep 2025 22:14:21 +0000

Good God, Siberia is back. And Tracy still runs it.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/10/06/as-siberia-gets-another-round-fallons-a-no-show

In the words of Alex Russo, "Did not see that coming."

what beers are you drinking? (post-apocalypse)

Thu, 07 Sep 2023 01:50:11 +0000

three floyds munsterfest oktoberfest style lager - 6.2% abv. this is a the kind of old school beer that you’d expect three floyds to knock out of the park. this is towards the darker end of the oktoberfest spectrum and tastes every bit as malty as it looks. there’s a terrific mixture of caramel and good dark bread, which are followed by a decent amount of grassy noble hops and a little bit of sweetness. this is a lot hoppier than most festbiers, but it’s balanced and very quaffable. recommended.

The $15 Cocktail Is Back (Is It)

Mon, 07 Apr 2025 20:00:23 +0000

If it is, thank the fucking lord. Because according to Robert Simonson, one of my favorite writers about drinks and drinking, it is. Sort of, I guess.

Quote

In an era of $22 drinks and cocktails designed to taste like pizza, roast chicken, or hot dogs, there may be a correction coming: A handful of seasoned owners are putting the brakes on the ever-accelerating cost and cleverness of the average mixed drink, leaning instead into familiarity, accessibility, and value.

One of the names embracing this new austerity might be surprising: Death & Co — among the city’s most prominent neo-speakeasies and now a national chainlet of high-end bars — is introducing a “fast-casual concept” called Close Company that will open in Nashville, Atlanta, and Las Vegas in the coming months, with a New York outpost in the works. Drinks there will hover around $15, and the spaces will do away with many of the hallmarks of the modern cocktail bar. There will be no host greeting guests, no seating-only setup, and no reservations needed. “It will feel a little less precious, a little more fun,” says Dave Kaplan, one of Death & Co’s founders. “It’s this idea of a cocktail bar that is more of a neighborhood bar.”

As someone who pretty much only orders classics, I welcome the day. I am in no need of some bartender's fantasy of what might taste good.

https://www.grubstreet.com/article/new-cocktail-bars-with-cheap-normal-drinks.html

"Great Bars of New York City"

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 17:31:38 +0000

Oddly, I can't see a date on this book, but it just showed up in the library so I guess it's new. The work of photographers James and Karla Murray, text by Dan Q. Dao. Not the first such book I've looked at, but it can be a pleasure to see which bars got chosen and what is said about them.

The photographs here are absolutely gorgeous. The text is an ocean of stupidity.

First up, reasonably enough, McSorley's. Dan?

Quote

Today you can pull up a seat at the bar to enjoy its two styles of house beer [...] It's recommended that you bring at least one friend, since the bar has a tradition of serving beer in a pair of small mugs called schooners, as opposed to a single pint.

You cannot pull up a seat to the bar. There is no bar seating in McSorley's. Never has been. I guess you could pull up one of the chairs from the tables around the room which would put the bar around your eye level. And "small" mugs, small, why would you need a friend?

Reads like he has never been there. His bio says he's been in the city twelve years and has even bar-tended. But this is just junk.

But wait, surely he can pull history from a reference book. Only very gingerly:

Quote

McSorley's is most frequently said to have been opened in 1854, by Irish immigrant John McSorley.

Emphasis added. I'd love to see some of the less frequent alternative narratives.

Serious Cocktail Bars - Does Anyone Still Go?

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 14:21:48 +0000

Prior to attending this book event last night, I stopped into Scarlet, the new cocktail bar opened in some way, shape or form by Michael Imperioli.

Was packed at 6:15 (I couldn't get a seat at the bar, but was seated at a counter-type spot) , but other than about 100 bars within a few block radius, what else is to be found on Amsterdam and 82nd Street?

My $28 (after tax and tip) Manhattan was fine, and served in nice glassware. It just made me miss Pegu all that much more.

Hoptimist

Wed, 25 Oct 2023 12:32:40 +0000

Finally got here - it's on Amsterdam between 80 & 81. They only feature craft beers and ciders brewed in New York State. At any given time they have about 10 items on tap that rotate and then a wide selection of bottles and cans. Staff is knowledgeable and offers small tastes before you order. You can do do a flight of four 5-oz pours for $15. The best part was that they kept the music low enough that you can actually have a conversation.

Hoptimist