New York City Bartenders & Patrons

Get ready for St. Patrick's Day! In a brilliant PR move, The Town Tavern (134 West Third Street) created a viral video of the action from 2007 to send around town to get people into the bar in 2008. The wild bar in the West Village is notorious for huge parties at big events like these.

With Paddy's Day falling on a Monday this year, it means the serious drinkers will be out in force. Or else, a 3-day weekend?

Thanks to Katie for sending NYCBP the video.

Labels: bars, west village

Sad news for the Upper West Side. Time Out was closed for good today. The plug was pulled on the venerable sports bar on Amsterdam and 77th Street early today. The staff was not notified in advance. At this time there is no plan for a “last night” party. The doors are locked.

For almost a decade, Time Out filled the space that was previously Boomer’s. It was a regular stop for anyone going to watch the big game (even with the worst TVs in town). Time Out was a terrific place to hang out, and had some of the best bartenders in the city. The longest-serving, Camit, had been on staff since September 2000.

This is a business, and for loyal regulars, the writing was on the wall. Just a few years ago the bar was busy seven nights a week and the upstairs was filled with people on a regular basis. But for some time now, the upstairs has been closed during the middle of the week, the bar has been not as busy as it once was.

The staff (five bartenders) is now out of work. If you know of a bar that is hiring, let me know, and I will pass it on to them.

I spoke to Carmit. “I’m sad,” she said. “These were my friends, all of my friends, and I’m going to miss them very much.”

We’ll have to plan an NYCBP party for Time Out soon, maybe at Yogi’s.

Post messages on the message board.

Labels: bars, news, upper west side

Tracey of Double Down Saloon

This was sent out today from the Double Down Saloon, 14 Avenue A:

Breast cancer benefit and burlesque show: sunday sept.16. Come on out for an all-star burlesque extravaganza.

Ken has organized the no-cover entertainment and will be passing the boot to raise money to donate to the Avon Walk to Beat Breast Cancer.

Suggested donation is $10, but any amount helps. Larger donations are encouraged, but all donations are tax deductible, regardless of the amount.

We'll be cooking out from 2pm, at the Sunday Cheap Meat Cookout. Ken will start taking donations around 5pm, and the show kicks off about 7pm, so come on out, grab a bite to eat, get yer drink on and see a great show, and support a worthy cause, all in one afternoon... That's quality time. it'll be a hoot.

Labels: bars, events

I was amazed to read this story from Idaho. This outfit will go to your bar and weigh the bar's booze bottles. This way they can determine how much the bartenders are giving away, or selling.

Russ and VanTassel say they do three secret audits of a bar without the bartenders knowing. After those audits, they can tell how much liquor is being wasted.

It seems sneaky to me. Read it and see for yourself.

Labels: bars

The Times has a good story today about firefighter bars in the city. Apparently, the two firefighters who died last week downtown both tended bar on the side: Firefighter Joseph Graffagnino at the Salty Dog on Third Avenue in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn; and Firefighter Robert Beddia at Chumley's, which is now closed.

It is an interesting article, and ticks off a number of places in the city that are either part-owned by FDNY members, or else have firemen as bartenders working part-time. The article mentions Walker’s, a restaurant and bar on North Moore Street in TriBeCa, and Farrell’s Bar & Grill in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn. I also learned why there are no cop bartenders:

While the police also have a long-established bar culture, officers are prohibited, by their department and the New York State Liquor Authority, from working in establishments that serve alcohol. There is no such rule for firefighters. Firefighters do not need special permission to take bartending jobs, and are allowed to work within the districts covered by their engine or ladder companies, though they are expected to cooperate if, say, their bar or club becomes overcrowded and the Fire Department is called.

A couple others they forgot to mention are the Ear Inn, which is near the NYC Fire Department Museum, and Firehouse, on the Upper West Side.

Labels: bars

Theresa rocks the house Tuesday nights.
The very best thing about running NYCBP is the people I meet. Since I started the site in 1998, it has led to more friendships and relationships than I can keep track of. One that I value very highly is with journalist and broadcaster Eddie Goldman. He usually writes about boxers and fighters. But when it was rumored that Yogi's, that venerable dive bar we love on the Upper West Side, is possibly doomed, he had to act. Today he e-mailed me this story, which I am proud to present here.


The Future of Yogi’s
by Eddie Goldman

I have been going to bars for some four decades now. I’ve been to sports bars, college bars, dive bars, hotel bars, redneck bars, Irish bars, Black bars, Latino bars, Asian bars, titty bars, and countless other variations. I’ve been to bars in numerous states in the US, as well as in Canada, Japan, Brazil, and Mexico. I’ve seen a few things in my time and also done a few things, most of which I remember.

Number one on my long list of favorite bars is Yogi’s, at Broadway and 76th Street. I first went there in the 1970’s when it was McGowan’s, an Irish bar with few Irish regulars that had become a local jazz bar. It also had one of the most diverse crowds I have ever seen anywhere, with a New York mix of ethnic groups, nationalities, ages, and classes. It was a wonderful step up from the college bars around Columbia like the West End, which had been my main haunt back then and was where I had learned how to drink.

McGowan’s and a similar bar, Clifford’s on 72nd Street, are no more. McGowan’s went through its Dark Ages as the Bear Bar before being hit by the redneck Enlightenment courtesy of the rotund impresario, Tommy McNeill. Clifford’s is no longer any kind of bar, and I even forget its exact address. I miss them both, and the people who frequented them and worked there.


Jenn & Patience are together every other Friday night.
But Yogi’s succeeded in combining the camaraderie of those old places, while exposing me and no doubt many other Yankees to the soundtrack of redneck and blue collar America. Between spending many a night at both Yogi’s and the Village Idiot, I converted to country music, yesirree I did.

Now, as I’ve grown a bit older and am less adventurous than before, and don’t have a lot of time to scour Manhattan for new bars, I prefer spending what drinking time I do have at places I know and love, such as Yogi’s, Doc Holliday’s, and, when I can make it down there, The Patriot.

The Idiot is still sorely missed, and we really don’t want any of these other landmarks to be swallowed up by some real estate sharks or android corporations. Thus, when rumors began circulating that the days of Yogi’s were numbered, I was more pissed than I get after two pitchers of MGD.

But I also hate rumors about as much as Toby Keith hates the Taliban (or, conversely, as much as Merle loves the workin’ man). So I didn’t comment much on this except to express some generic outrage at creeping gentrification and the turning over of more of the city to such monied creeps.

Now I have some data, y’all.

Tuesday morning, as it turns out, I happened to be downtown. While strolling down First Avenue, I noticed a rather large, familiar figure walking uptown. Out of the sunlight came the man himself, Tommy McNeill. I hadn’t seen him in some time, and the last couple of times I had was in his bars when he was drucking funk. Tuesday, however, he was as sober and calm as the summer air.

After some brief, bemused greetings, I asked him about the future of Yogi’s. He said it looked good, but that there were still obstacles. He explained that although they have a valid lease for some time to come, the Duane Reade store almost next to Yogi’s wants to expand (like there aren’t enough Duane Reade stores already in Manhattan, like 79th and Amsterdam, 69th and Broadway, etc.).

He said that Duane Reade was trying to pressure their landlord to get them out. But he added that they had “won round one.”


Saturday nights are for Megan fans.
Still, this fight is not over, and he is already looking for a new location very nearby the present one to relocate Yogi’s if necessary. Tommy said he wants to get the crowds coming out of the Beacon Theatre, which he acknowledged sometimes irritates the regulars but is good for business. He doesn’t have an alternative spot pinned down yet, and of course hopes to stay right where Yogi’s has been for over a decade.

Whether a new Yogi’s near the current one can duplicate the unmatched ambiance, mood, and fragrance of the original one is unknown. Hopefully we won’t have to find out.

For now, it does appear that there will be a Yogi’s for the foreseeable future. But just in case, make sure to stop by the original one when you can.

Just buy your antacids and rubbers somewhere other than that place a few doors down.

Eddie Goldman sites:
No Holds Barred blog
No Holds Barred podcast
No Holds Barred on MySpace.com

Thanks, Eddie. If you care, on Friday night we are having an NYCBP Village Idiot Reunion, to be held at Yogi's. The bartenders are Jenn and Patience. Show your support for dive bars by being there.

Labels: bars, upper west side

I was reminded by a hilarious piece in The New Yorker about the Hawaiian Tropic Zone about what a truly horrible bar it is. I have been there exactly three times, which was two times too many. I even went with my wingman, my cousin Joe, who normally would love bikini girls. This place sucks in a lot of ways: and that does not take into account that the bar DOES have gorgeous girls working there.

First, since NYCBP is a site about bartenders: they have terrible and slow bartenders. My GOD, 90 percent of the people there were ordering bottle beer. So what takes so freaking long? It was like they moved with weights tied to their ankles. The other thing about the bartenders was that they made zero attempt to be nice or friendly. Why would I go back?



Second, the bar is set up like a waiting room to get to the tables. I was not there for $20 chicken fingers. I wanted a Bud, at the bar, and to look at the girls. As you can see, they do have babes on staff. There is really only one good feature about the bar: there is a runway over it, so that a couple times a night, the waitresses walk across it. The New Yorker had a funny comment about that. It sounds better than it really is.

If you think it is like Hooters or Scores, than you are doing those two fine establishments an act of slander to include them in the same league. HTZ is some kind of tourist-savvy, flashy, glossy, sports place. It does not work as a bar.

I am going out on a limb here: This place will be closed within 12 months. Maybe Lil can take over the lease, and move Coyote Ugly into the space.



When I was there, they had one bikini bartender, and two guys, behind the bar.



If you are interested, there is an Earthcam in the place.

Labels: bars, bartenders

Yesterday I wrote about Chumley's being on the edge of oblivion. This follows a wall collapse inside the landmark saloon. The press today was pretty much in agreement that the future of the bar is uncertain, but it does not look good.

What is a drag is that this didn't need to happen. The owner of the bar put in a building request, but went ahead and started working on the building without the city giving the OK papers. So now the owner has 3 violations, and the whole building is shutdown. If the inspectors find that the building can't be shored up and saved (this thing dates to 1830!) then it will probably get knocked down.

Any other landmarks near there that are also in danger?

Labels: bars, village

I finally got around to getting some questions sent to Johnny Wacko, one of the guys who works at Red Rock West Saloon. If you want to meet one of the more interesting people on the bar scene, chat him up. He always has a story to tell. I thought that it would be a good idea to do a quick Q&A with Wacko via Myspace. Here we go...

1. What are you thinking when you are working the door? Are you looking for potential troublemakers? Hot girls? Just counting down the minutes until you can go home?

I really never count the minutes to go home at The Rock. I am always so busy, time flies... Always looking for potential troublemakers, that never stops... I am not all about the Hot Chicks. I think some regular looking chick with a cool personality can be 100 times hotter then a smokin' chick with a silver spoon stuck up her ass.

2. What is one thing barflies don't know about that guy at the door?

I would say the four piercings in my balls, but they probably already know... I have a huge comic book collection. And I jerk off righty.

3. When you were a little kid, what did you want to grow up to be?

A bouncer.

4. What music are you listening to right now?

I went to see the sold out Black Sabbath at Radio City Music Hall on Friday. The old school Sabbath with Dio. I am going to see Lacuna Coil and Stone Sour tomorrow... And I don't plan on missing Wierd Al Yankovic at the Westbury Music Fair this summer (20 Plus costume changes, the man's a genius).

5. Who would win this fight: the guy with nunchucks & martial arts moves, or the guy with a baseball bat and speed?

The dude packin' 9mm of metal, who knows he is paying attention too. I would say it all comes down to heart. Even the biggest and baddest have the potential to get their asses kicked. The average street fight is over in 30 seconds unless they are pussies.

Thanks, Johnny. See you at the bar.

I would like to thank all the amazingly awesome people who have been regulars at Red Rock over the years. That place would have been nothing with out you..

And to this day some of my best friends in the world have been the bartenders who have worked there they have shared the good times the bad times and have been a huge part of my life I am proud to call these ladies friends. Ms Tracy,Ms Jessica,Ms Noelle,Ms Allison,Ms Alicia,Ms Rachel, Angela,Ms Mellisa,Ms Michelle,Ms Amanda,Ms Ali,Ms Kate,Ms Melony,Ms Annie,Ms Erin,Ms Jenny,Ms Heather,Ms Kimmy,Ms Melina,Ms Trish,Ms Halia,Ms Amy,Ms Marney,Ms Ruth Ann, Ms Shana,Ms Tia,KIM O. I feel when a Red Rock bartender has mastered her craft and they get in my phone I put a Ms in front of their name :)

And some awesome Bouncers who have kept my fat ass from being broken into pieces and taught me the trade: Rocco, Tatonka, Marcel, Larry-junior (My Brother),Big Chris, little Mike,Steve from Harley and Steve from the Roxy, Mike the Marine, Rodney, Fireman Mike, Phil, Repo, Biker John, Phil and his Brother Anthony, little chris, Archangel, Richie, and lets not forget Wayne... Spanky, Iggy and Prince.

and one more person to thank John Yonkus for having a bar that is so unique that is could mass this vast array of talent....

Labels: bars, bouncers, Interviews

Earlier today word spread that one of the most venerable bars in Manhattan was doomed due to structural damage. Reports of a wall collapse inside Chumley's led reports to say that the city was going to force the building to be razed. As of tonight, the building is closed and all residents are evacuated. The fate of Chumley's is up in the air.

Chumley's, at 82-86 Bedford Street, is a legendary bar in the Village for many reasons. First, and I hope this makes it into the newspapers tomorrow, is that it has given all barflies one of the most-recognized terms in existence. To be "eighty-sixed" (thrown out) of a bar is a direct connection to Chumley's. The way I was told (and everyone who goes to Chumley's, whoever takes them there, tells the story) is that back during Prohibition (1920-1933) when the law came in the front door, the bartender would yell "86!" which meant for everyone to exit through the side entrance, which is at 86 Bedford.

It also has a literary reputation that can't be beat. The bar is covered on every wall with book jackets going back decades. There are photos of writers all over. But what makes it really special is the staff: all firefighters. It was for this reason that in the time period after 9/11, a lot of people were drawn to it.

Chumley's is a classic old bar, and it would be a pity if it never opened again. Here is to steel support beams, scaffolding, and new bricks to shore it up again.

Labels: bars, village

The long-rumored, much-anticipated Village Idiot Reunion will be Friday, April 20, 2007. It will be held at Yogi's.

The hostesses will be Jenn and Patience, who started their careers at the Idiot, which closed in July 2004.

If you didn't read it, Eddie wrote a great tribute as well as an account of it's last night.

Spread the word to all the former customers and bartenders of the Idiot, and lets have a great time!

Labels: bars, bartenders

I got this from Tracy at Duff's Brooklyn, so I am putting it here for all you drinkers and fans of live music on the LES:

Effective immediately, Manitoba's (yes, the bar owned by The Dictator's own Handsome Dick Manitoba) has been forced to stop all live performances due to a neighbor couple that seems to have ignored the fact they purchased their apartment at an extremely low price because they live directly above a Rock N Roll bar that features live music!!

The bar had a hearing on Feb. 13 brought by complaints from the upstairs douchebags that have been harassing them. The bar lost but they're fighting back and are going to hit these assholes with a big lawsuit.

Live music might return pending a legal hearing, but for the time being the bar must bring it all to a screeching halt. If you see their selfish neighbors, please feel free to throw eggs.

But...YOU CAN HELP!!

They need to find the dates of every day they've had shows there going back to September 2006...that way they can show that the bar's revenue is harmed by the lack of shows, etc.

So, If your band has played Manitobas btw Sept. 2006 and Feb. 2007 send that information to Kevin at barflypro@netscape.net

We don't believe the upstairs douchebags have a chance, but again if you played there during that time, You Can Help!

Let's not lose another live venue, not to mention one of the best places in NYC for free punk shows. Dick's been a great supporter- lets support Him now.

Labels: bars

One of the oldest bars around is the P&G Bar on the corner of Amsterdam and 73rd Street, across the street from the Apple Bank For Savings, and just down the street from Time Out. This is among the greatest bars on the Upper West Side. However, according to the Times, its days are numbered.

The bar has been told by the co-op board of the building it occupies (since World War II) that it is going to lose their lease. The building wants a different kind of tenant. Recently in a show of support, the owner of Rudy's in Hell's Kitchen and some pals went to P&G to sign a petition to save the place. Check out this amazing and funny video of the proceedings:



It would be great to organize an nycbp.com night to go to the P&G, have some drinks, and sign the petition.

Hopefully this classic bar, with one of the nicest neon signs left, is not closed down.

Labels: bars, upper west side