Reading New York magazine about the new LES bar Doghouse Saloon, it says they will have beer pong. Didn’t this get outlawed or banned by the State Liquor Authority? I don’t think I’ve even seen beer pong since Time Out folded a couple years ago. Does anyone know of beer pong bars in business?

The Doghouse sounds like an interesting place. Has anyone been there yet?

Jimmy Duff, proprietor of Duff’s Brooklyn, posted this to his Myspace page today, following the reported death of Peter Steele,  Brooklyn-born singer for Type O Negative:

Since Josh has publicly confirmed the passing of Peter, it’s now appropriate to comment on this very sad loss.

First of all, my sincere condolences go out to Peter’s family, as well as Johnny, Kenny and Josh, Paul, Steve and Joey. I extend the same to all of  Peter’s friends and fans worldwide at this very difficult time.

Peter was an amazing artist, a true friend, and one hilarious character. He was a tortured soul as well, but that’s part of what ultimately made his art so compelling. He’s at peace now so that’s the one consolation. That and the music and memories of good times that will always live on.  Thanks for all the music and laughs Peter, you will never be forgotten, and always missed.

J. DUFF

Well I have not blogged in a long time, so let’s start off with a long-overdue post. And why not talk about some dive bars we go to a lot: The Patriot and the (new) Cheapshots. I would talk about The Duck too, but since I was on “hiatus” and not blogging, the bar closed. That’s a drag, because I loved the place. Not to death, but I did love going there.

So, where to begin? The Patriot.

First, why are so many of the bartenders so horrible? There are some great ones, and I am going to ask for the regulars to post their names below in the comments section of the blog (a novel concept, I know). Since I only get to The Patriot once a month, I can’t speak to who the great ones are. But when I’ve been there with Bass Ale Man and PaulKatcher.com, there have been a few that are considered starts. The longtime veterans seem to have all been fired. But I am particularly peeved about the newcomers.

Hiring some rookie who just moved to New York is fine with me. But if the bartenders have no experience or pizzazz, what’s the point? Too many bartenders at The Patriot just stare at you, like they have no idea how to interact with a customer. This is definitely not how Tommy used to run his bars, which were 100% about customer interaction. Dare I say it? Most of the bartenders are afraid of the customers.

A few months ago, Tommy took over Cheapshots, which is a stone’s throw from Coyote Ugly. I admit I only went to Cheapshots to see Carmit on Friday afternoons. When Tommy took over he cleaned house and canned everyone. That’s his business. But the staff, from the reports, is that these are the same minor leaguers who come over from The Patriot. Has anyone anything else to add to this?

It’s a sad thing about The Duck closing. However, it seemed to be inevitable. There is only one real factor, and that’s the location. Being in El Barrio, it was just a little too sketch for a lot of Tom’s crowd to venture too. Sure, you had to be a real pussy not to want to walk from Lexington Avenue to Second Avenue, but if you are plastered, that’s not smart in any neighborhood. But I think the location turned a lot of people off. I did like the setup, with the 2 bars. Every time I went there I had a blast; the highlight being the World Series victory last year.

I hope this gets some of you talking about how the bar scene is going in the world of dive bars. Comments are welcome.

Little Michele & Kal of Blue Ruin

The last 18 months have not been good for drinkers who like their bars dirty and their beer cheap (and served by sexy women). There have been so many closures it boggles the mind. So I was extremely eager to attend the grand opening of Blue Ruin (538 Ninth Ave. between 39th & 40th) on Friday night. After a fantastic evening, here is my take: I predict every “Best Of New York” bar list for the next ten years—from Time Out to New York magazine—will feature Blue Ruin in the Top 5. Every time.

There is a major reason to get excited about this venue: one of the partners—and Blue Ruin’s head bartender—is Little Michele (just one “L” on that). To speak of Little Michele is to speak of greatness in a 5-foot-tall package of unstable dynamite. It does not do this leather bustier-loving woman justice to boil her drink-slinging career into a few sentences, but I’ll try. A dozen years ago she put Hogs ‘n Heifers on the map; it was Little Michele who got the Page Six attention and made the place famous (it is also where she got her bar name; Big Michelle is the Hogs owner). Then she quit and went to Red Rock West; imagine if David Ortiz quit the Red Sox today and showed up in the Bronx, that was the effect. She also was at the defunct Circus (rumored to becoming a gay bar soon). Little Michele is the archetype of the classic NYC roadhouse bartender: lightning fast, filthy mouth, sexy as hell and always remembers what you are drinking.

Before going too much into what Little Michele and Rachel, another Red Rock alum, had in store on Friday, let me tell you about the bar. It is located in the spot formerly occupied by the legendary Bellevue Bar (and the lame Why Not?). None of the Bellevue fixtures are left; the new owners started with practically a clean slate. Blue Ruin is still in the process of being fixed up, but here are the important details:

All female bar staff.

It is open 7 days a week, 11 am to 4 am, except Sundays, when it opens at 1.

Happy Hour is every day from 5 to 8, with two-for-one drinks.

A draft of Bud Light (my drink) is $4.

PBR in a can $2.

Great buyback policy.

Pool table.

All female bar staff.

Michele told me the philosophy of the bar. “It is all about New York,” she said. “If you want to watch sports, stay home with a six-pack. If you want to go to a bar with girls with their tits out, come here.” The partners are going to decorate the place with a New York theme of old photos and mementos; it currently does not have any TVs but those may come (“for New York sports only”).

I met Kal, who is the other principal owner. He runs Kabin downtown, another hit bar. He wanted Little Michele’s attitude. His wife came up with the name for the bar, which is a Prohibition era nickname for bathtub gin. This makes sense, because the whole bar has a speakeasy vibe. It is all exposed wood, metal, and a reproduction tin ceiling. It already looks 50 years old. Part of this has to do with the care these two took in getting the place ready, which knocked me out. It is some story.

The floor, which I usually only notice if I am spread out on it, is made of gorgeous wide wooden planks. It turns out these came from the old Pepsi plant in Queens, and the wood that was salvaged is 100 years old. They hauled it over to Hell’s Kitchen and Michele helped plane the wood! She was very hands-on with the bar construction too; Michele said the wood for this came from a guy on eBay for $10. It is Spalted Siberian Elm and she helped install it. She also got her hands on a blowtorch and assisted in the welding of the custom light fixtures. The overall look of the bar is like a speakeasy; it would be easy to picture this place in the basement of a brownstone in 1920, and not just in the shadow of the Port Authority, next door to a porn store.

The jukebox is eclectic; I can’t say I’ve heard a more diverse mix lately. I heard, in no particular order, The Ramones (“Sheena Is A Punk Rocker” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School”), Arthur Conley (“Sweet Soul Music”), Tony Orlando & Dawn (“Knock Three Times On The Ceiling If You Love Me”) and the ultimate one-two punch: Glenn Miller’s classic “Pennsylvania 6-5000” followed by Gun ‘N Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle.” Michele said, “The jukebox is work in progress… it will be all New York music… you will never hear fucking thrash metal in this bar.”

Kal said the best is yet to come for the bar, which it is still being ramped up. It will take time to get it just right, but I advise checking it out now. If anyone has a stuffed lion or tiger head, please bring it in for these guys.

Little Michele is hiring more bartenders in her mold: tough and fast. But it would be extremely hard to find a bartender with a dirtier mouth, which is another one of her bad habits. “My tits keep flying out,” she told me as she tried to shove her girls back into her bustier. You need to have her drop the F bomb on you a few times.

It was a great scene to watch Little Michele and Rachel behind the bar. Rachel is a spicy blonde who always, always, always looks like she is having fun. She has been out of the game for two years, but you would not know it from seeing her in action. I don’t think Rachel will be there too often, but if she is on duty, you’ll have to catch her act. For now, Little Michele will be there most nights except Thursdays.

If you are looking for a new bar to explore, make tracks to Blue Ruin. It is worth a trip to explore the newest roadhouse on the Manhattan scene.

Word comes in from Brooklyn the Borough of a new bar in Prospect Heights that is by the former owner of Siberia, Tracy Westmoreland. It is to be called Manhattans and opens at 769 Washington Ave.

“Hipsters call the city the Manhattans, the name grew out of Brooklyn,” he said over the phone two days before unveiling the new saloon. “Hopefully when enough people know the bar, when they’re making plans to go out, they’ll say, ‘Wait, are we going to the city, or are we going to Tracy’s bar?’ It’s a perfect circle.”

While the article does mention Siberia, it doesn’t mention Tracy’s bar that he owned before that, which was one of my favorites of all time: KGB. It was located in the 50th Street station on the IRT. You had to actually be in the subway station to get into the bar. It was glorious and one of the greatest dives in the city. When it went tits up, forced out by the MTA, it was alleged that Jimmy Fallon (and my pal Luke) helped Tracy move to Siberia Bar. I think he named the new place Siberia because of the Soviet connection to his old place, which legend had it was a dead drop for Russian spies.

I never fell in love with Siberia Bar, like so many others did. I preferred the much cooler and way more friendly Bellevue Bar, which was around the corner. When Jimmy Duff ran Bellevue Bar, it was heaven. It had the best vibe, best music, and most incredible bartenders. It was always a freakshow. Jimmy moved to Brooklyn five years ago and opened Duff’s, and I believe Tracy was a part-owner of the old Bellevue, which folded soon after Jimmy went across the river. Now Tracy has followed Jimmy to Brooklyn.

So now there is a “new” Siberia, located in Brooklyn. will it take off?

[UPDATE: New York Observer has an interview too]

Tommy with Megan at The Patriot.

Could Tommy McNeill have us drinking again at 457 West 17th Street, the former home of Red Rock West? Our “reliable sources” tell us that Tommy, the fleshy proprietor of The Patriot and The Duck, is about to take over the old Red Rock, which closed amid lawsuits, acrimony and much bad karma in May 2008 after a 13-year run.

This is good news for dive bar fans, as it comes on the heels of word that Tommy is busy with carpenters and electricians to ready his third bar—so far unnamed—on East 92nd and Second Avenue (which coincidently, also held the defunct Red Rock Roadhouse, which shuttered two years ago).

Tommy has been the pied piper of dive bars in Manhattan for 20 years. Without him, there would be none of the early 1990s dives that exist today: Coyote Ugly (he gave founder Liliana Lovell her start in the bar game), Hogs ‘n’ Heifers (he was the brains of the original operation) nor Doc Holliday’s (Tommy was an original investor and co-owner, and came up with the name). When he closed the original Village Idiot on First Avenue and 9th Street in 1994, and moved across town to 14th and Tenth, we rejoiced. That place closed in 2004 and his Upper West Side operation, Yogi’s, closed in October 2008. He has been running The Patriot (Chambers and Church) for five years and The Duck (West 112th and Second Ave) for less than six months. With Tommy, it is cheap beer and Johnny Cash tunes at all times. He has done more for the bottom line of Pabst Blue Ribbon and Jack Daniels in New York than any other person.

Could he pull this off in the shadow of the High Line? Of course. We saw him mobilize the bartenders from The Patriot and Yogi’s and move into The Duck in a matter of hours. He has been hiring new girls like crazy for the past several weeks. As soon as the Upper East Side bar opens—which could be in a matter of weeks—he will have his hands full getting the old Red Rock West in shape to open.

Could we see Dara of The Patriot/The Duck at the old Red Rock? We hope so!

What can we expect? When Red Rock West folded, the staff of about a dozen bartenders scattered to the four corners of the city. A couple found spots at Coyote Ugly (where they had to tone down their antics, sad to say). Others moved to the outer boroughs. In the world of Tommy, he will staff the bar with the same girls that work for him at The Patriot and The Duck. Could it open by Memorial Day for Fleet Week? We hope so.

One big change that separates Tommy’s bars from the now-defunct Red Rock is that he never needs hulking bouncers or doormen, who stood around and intimidated the customers. Tommy hires bartenders that run the bars, do the stocking, and handle all the chores at the bar. So we do not think he will even think about re-hiring any of the bouncers or support staff that worked at Red Rock (and this includes the poor soul who had to guard the motorcycles). I can think of only one male face I want to see Tommy bring back: BOB. That dude was the BBQ master, and his hog roasts were legendary. If Bob is grilling, it will be happy days on West 17th Street again.

Tommy is a smart businessman, and savvy where he picks his bars: his new Second Avenue bar is in a prime spot for the Second Avenue Subway when it opens in six years, and even better, when the High Line park opens, his new bar will be in it’s shadow. It looks like 2009 is going to be a great year for dive bar patrons!

I always hated the Hawaiian Tropic Zone as a bar, a restaurant, and a tourist trap. I went there a bunch of times with the ultimate wingman, my cousin, and it always sucked. Well now comes word in the Daily News that it is shutting down for an overhaul. This is kind of hard to believe, since it only opened in a couple years ago, and now it needs “a lengthy renovation.”

Now a sprawling two-story eating, drinking and ogling destination, the place will reopen as a one-story bistro with the same menu and scantily clad servers. While some managers will keep their jobs, most of the waitstaff will be forced to seek other work.

This is the second time in a week this dump has been on NYCBP; don’t forget the Latin bombshell who is suing the place, one of two pending lawsuits.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkqcsGQM49Q]

Man, this wonderful song is growing on me. I am sure a lot of the story will sound familiar to a lot of us. Just keep your cell phones charged up.

By the way, does anyone know which bar is featured in the street scene?

So we finally heard from Jimmy Duff about what he is doing with his bar in Billyburg. It is moving about a mile next week. The scoop:

Some facts for ya:

The last night at DUFF’S present location is Saturday, November 29. “Last Call at North 3rd Street” (This location at North 3rd will remain open afterwards as Rock N’ Roll dive bar THE BUNKER).

DUFF’S will be opening in our new location the following weekend at 168 Marcy Avenue in South Williamsburg, December 5th and 6th, along with all the DUFF’s employees & jukebox. The new location is approximately 1 mile from the current North 3rd Street bar. We hope you’ll join for some of the best parties of the year, and thank you for your continued support!!

Where to watch the election returns tonight? A bar? Your apartment? There is something about watching history being made in public, like you would have to watch a Game 7 of the World Series in a bar, right? And do you want to be at home, alone, with a big news story like this? As history is being made?

I think going to a bar, with lots of drinks and celebrating, would be a lot more fun. If the election is a big sweep, then it would be a bigger party. If McCain concedes early… oh well.

The Post has some choices, among them Nation on West 45th Street, where bartender Allison pours drinks. According to the Post, there are a lot of places that are ready to see the action…

Not since the Giants shocked the Patriots in the Super Bowl 10 months ago have

Manhattan’s busiest bars been so excited about a contest. But instead of watching touchdowns, these crowds will be watching election returns.

“We’re going to have a big crowd,” said Stanley Meytin, a staffer at Southern Hospitality, a Southern-themed bar on the Upper East Side.

Over on Gothamist, they have some suggestions too.

If you want to have a drink in front of you while watching the results get tallied, there are innumerable of options. SideBAR and the Village Pourhouse are both hosting election day parties…complete with presidential and vice presidential look-a-likes who will pose for pictures with attendees. Obama Mamas and Macallan McCains will be served and an $11.04 Red, White & Blue menu will be available. Bonus: red and blue beer will be poured.

Have a great time tonight watching the election returns!