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.

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!

The Bear is back.

After hibernating for less than four months (real bears don’t hibernate that long), the iconic bear from Yogi’s has moved to his new home on Second Avenue. When Yogi’s famously closed on Oct. 5, owner Tommy McNeil refused to part with the 8-foot tall carved mascot. He stashed it in storage, and now he has a place to put it: Yogi’s 2.

The new bar, located at 1754 2nd Avenue (between 91st and 92nd), is in the former Red Rock Roadhouse space, which went tits up more than a year ago. All that is left of the former bar is the “USE” on the signage. The talk is that Tommy is in the process of getting his liquor license, and the bar could be open in time for St. Patrick’s Day.

This will be Tommy’s third bar in his empire, he of course also owns The Patriot (110 Chambers St) and The Duck (2171 Second Avenue, between 111th & 112th St.). This gives Tommy two bars that are exactly 20 blocks apart; but as any regular of his bars knows, there is no way in hell to stumble 20 blocks in a straight line from one of his establishments. However, there is a nice city bus line that goes between the two…

When opening night draws closer, we’ll have more news about the newest dive bar on the Upper East Side. It is only one block south of The Big Easy, which will make for a nice one-two punch.

It has been two week, so why not revisit the Yogi’s end-of-the-world one more time? I never did link to Paul’s great post, or his photo album, from the last week there. I believe he was there 8 straight days or something. He writes:

It was where I drank with a porn star, a dishwasher, and a trust-fund millionaire. And I don’t mean like over the years. I mean at one time. It was where I met tourists from countless countries, got flashed by bartenders as incentive to not leave (it worked), belted out the words to redneck country tunes, and drank way too much on a too-regular basis with suits, skanks, hippies, degenerates, alkies, perverts, Columbia students, mothers, and the occasional dumb shit who’d order wine.

He also has great photos from the end too. Thanks, Paul!

Can you believe it has been two weeks already? Is it time to get over it?

It took the last night of Yogi’s being in business for a journalist affiliated with a decent national magazine to show up and do it justice. Hats off to George Gurley of VanityFair.com for a great piece from the fray of the last night. He got all the regulars in the piece, including Gator and Eddie. He goes to town:

The vibe is frenzied and desperate. There are huge piles of empty cans and broken bottles everywhere and it’s only 9:30 p.m. Inside the bathroom there’s a hole where the toilet used to be, and now it’s overflowing, creeping outside the bathroom. It’s coming closer, a terrible swirling sea of beer, urine, and solid matter. People are standing, wading around in it and laughing. Nobody seems to care. Nobody wants to admit what seems pretty obvious: it’s the end of the world!

Nice! And this is from a magazine that usually cares more about Brad Pitt than dive bars… One thing that struck me about the piece: He is talking about Elizabeth here. I don’t know where she went either. Did anyone call her Beth?

It is an excellent piece, so read it. It makes me miss the place even more.

Yogi’s may have closed, but The Duck is a worthy sequel to that hit movie. On opening night, more than 70 customers jammed the new bar in Spanish Harlem, located at 2171 Second Avenue, between East 111th and 112th streets. Owner Tom McNeil was on hand, buying shots. “We’re not discovering a new neighborhood,” Tom told me, “we’re ruining another neighborhood.”

I got the first beer. It was served by Bobbie Jean, a Florida gal who used to work Thursday day shift at Yogi’s. Bobbie Jean was called up yesterday morning and told to report to The Duck. Likewise for Kate, a cocktail waitress from The Patriot, who pulled her first-ever bartending shift in admirable fashion in the “back room” at The Duck. The flame-haired stunner served the drinks with a big smile.

Tom was asked about the name. The Duck was just a name he used on his business papers when he was trying to think of a name for the new place. He said it doesn’t mean anything; but recently he found out that a firehouse around the corner from the bar has a duck mascot. Tom is encouraging customers to come in with letter “D” signs for the bar walls. He would prefer they be stolen, and in true Tom fashion, would most like ones that were shot off from “SOLD” signs. OK…

A few hours into the opening night party, after the jukebox started pumping out familiar tunes and the crowd picked up, Tom treated us with a free ribs spread from Green Apple BBQ, an excellent ribs joint at 362 East 112th St. “Try the pulled pork!” Tom told us, as he slapped down a tray of pig. Poor Kate, a vegetarian… it was dynamite food. So far there is only one giant TV in the front bar, but Tom says they are buying more. I hope they do not come from Yogi’s… another great thing, and worth a trip soon, is the bathrooms are pristine. I predict within a week they will be destroyed.

Since I was the first customer, I got the first beer. A Bud Light. Another guy came in behind me and got a PBR. My first shot was Weller Reserve bourbon, on Tom, who said its much better than Jack. “It costs more, but I won’t charge more,” he said to me.

About the bar: It is twice the size as Yogi’s. The front bar is smallish, with an unusual curve design. It has a high ceiling, perfect for dancing. However, it is not long, so it would be hard for more than one bartender to be back there. The back room is pretty long, and has a door that opens to the side street (112th). It has a pool table and lots of seats. The low ceiling would be good for midgets to dance on the bar.

Good news for country music lovers: the same jukebox CDs were moved from Yogi’s. Even the song numbers are the same.

It was a great crowd on opening night. Some of the regulars from Yogi’s came out, such as Paul Katcher (customer 3) and Bass Ale Man.

Expect good things from The Duck.

More photos here.

Such were the instructions of bar owner Tom McNeil, shortly after 2 AM Friday night/Saturday morning, on the next to last night at Yogi’s, to those who were planning to come for the final night of drinking, Saturday, October 4. Presumably he meant only the ladies, but, as we see from some of the photos below, it would not surprise us if some of the Yogi’s men tried to show to the world that they indeed have balls.

I already wrote my Yogi’s epitaph on the chalkboard:

The countdown clock is getting scaringly low:

The lovely Patience was behind the bar:

Plenty of folks jammed the bar for this next to last night:

Nine-to-fivers will disagree, but for us nocturnal beer drinkers, would that the week had many, many Mondays. That way we could go to Yogi’s several times a week to drink with the electric Janet.

I know some of you had to watch those Robin Byrd shows from twenty years ago on channel 35 and then have dates with Five-Fingered Mary, but you’d have been better off postponing such bliss and heading over to Yogi’s. I got there around 1 AM, and you never know who will wander in.

There was some raven-haired girl dancing to the songs next to the bar. I told her if she danced on the bar, she could become famous. She said no way, and that she was already famous. I then asked her how she had become famous, and she said she’d tell me for a dollar. I wonder what 50 cents would have gotten.

Around 2 AM, guess who moseyed on in?