Day 342—Friday, December 17th, 2010
McKenna's Pub
The holiday season is here and the donations are flying in to help me make the tail end of this year-long bar crawl. First up is Ernest Blackwelder who sent in a generous donation of ten dollars. His message on the PayPal receipt reads: “Holiday greetings from Central Illinois at thesandwichlife.com!” Thanks Ernest, happy holidays to you and yours! Everyone check out Ernest’s blog here: The Sandwich Life. I love the name of that!
Next up in donation-land is our own commentator, raginrr a.k.a. Ray Rogers. We all know him as the late night commentator who dispenses philosophy at the midnight hour after a drink or ten. I always get a kick out of them and he’s sent in a more than generous donation of 25 dollars with his message reading: “In the spirits of the season...you and GENE have one on me.” Shit for 25 bucks, we’ll have more than one, raginrr! Thanks for the generous donation, my friend and keep on commentating!
And just about a half an hour ago another donation came in, contributing to this Christmas magic and it’s from Max Schindler who wishes us alla Merry Christmas and said to have on him. Max generously sent in twienty dollars and I thank you for that and for following the 365 blog. Merry Christmas to you, kind sir!
Okay, tonight and all weekend I’ve got a special guest star on the old bar crawl. Gene from the BBC (Baltimore Bar Crawlers) is in town solo for a change. Smoopy and Terry are in rehab busy and they couldn’t come, so Gene came for one last crawl on the 365 tour. He’s really making time since he’s on his own, I recently heard from him and at last count he’s hit 879 bars and has had 1011 drinks already. Plus, he’s picked tonight’s bar, McKenna’s Pub, which is a bar I’ve never been to and it’s only about three blocks from where I live. So let’s go see this place and see if Gene still has a pulse after all those bars and beers!
Here we are at McKenna's, let's get inside, it's freezing out here.
Holy friole, it's jam-packed in here, let's see if we can find a spot at the bar.
Hmm...the back of this guy's head looks familiar...
It's Gene from the BBC with a live donation of a fify dollar bill from himself and Smoopy! Very nice, thanks to Gene and Smoopy and now let the bar crawl begin!
Gene saved me a seat at the bar and here's the view from my stool.
They had two very pretty bartenders on duty, but sadly, neither would let me take their photo. So here's a generic bartender photo I found on Google. I have to admit I felt a little defeated after not having scored a bartender shot, but I decided to move on.
Sean was seated next to me and was drinking a Pabst and happily posed for the 365 camera.
Tables line the walls opposite the bar. As you can see, it's filled to capacity in here.
Some of the drafts available at the bar.
Here's the lovely Meghan who squeezed in between Sean and I for a drink.
And here's Sean's friend Austin who happily smiled for the 365 camera.
A picture on the wall decked out for the holiday season.
There's a lounge area in the back with couches and comfortable chairs.
And here's Kelly, Isela and Linda chilling out in the back room. Cheers, ladies.
Meanwhile, back at the bar you can see a sillouhette of the mysterious bartenders who refused to be photographed.
I was grumbling about the bartenders not letting me take a photo, when Gene had the genius idea of going next door to Ipanema and seeing if I could get a bartender shot there. Ipanema was bar # 179 and I remember their bartender's had no problems with photos. Here's Gene in front of the bar.
Holy smokin' moley, check out the bartender on duty in here!
The beautiful bartender's name is Gabriela and she was friendly and was happy to pose for a photo.
In fact she even came out from the bar to pose with Gene and I and Kendall in the back.
And then she was such a good sport, she took a photo of Gene and I and two new friends of the 365 bar crawl, from left: J.C., Kendall, Yours Fooly and Gene. Cheers and goodnight, everybody!
Review
Okay, sadly I have to work this Saturday and I have to work and I’m running late, so I’m going to slack and put up a review of McKenna’s from New York magazine.
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The doorway of McKenna’s may be just a kitten-heeled stumble from the Meatpacking District’s velvet ropes, but as far as any resemblance to that overrun playground of $300 jeans and $15 cocktails goes, this no-bullshit Irish pub might as well be in Staten Island. Nothing about McKenna's is meant to impress: The flimsy tin bartop, rickety green glass light fixtures, and worn leather booths—coupled with ruthlessly efficient bartenders—are there to get the job done. A grimy pay phone that doubles as the bar's own landline perches in the far corner next to the jukebox, and the spacious outdoor terrace is peopled by drinkers snagging a cig between pints. McKenna's pricing is about as extravagant as its décor: Working stiffs who've sweated out an 11-hour day can take advantage of the unbelievable eight-hour-long happy hour, where the two-for-one drink special means your belt buckle may give out long before your wallet does. — Jocelyn Voo
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And now...weekend work. Eccch to quote Alfred E. Neuman.
McKenna's Pub
250 W. 14th St. (Near Eighth Ave.)
212-255-2889
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Bonus Photo From Jaws
Jaws the cabbie suggested that the commentators should send in a photo of themselves and he started it off with him in his cab. Here's Jaws!
