Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010—Bar 346
Day 346—Tuesday, December 21st, 2010
Whiskey Town
If you have access to a radio or a computer on Christmas, check out the Christmas party at WFMU. Jon and Karen who are the masterminds behind Grade “A” Fancy are going to be guests on the show and it’s sure to be a walloping good time. You can read the details here: Holiday Cheer from Grade “A” Fancy.
Okay, Tonight I’m going to a bar that Gene from the BBC discovered in his travels last weekend. It’s called Whiskey Town and we stopped in for a drink and wound up having two. I told the bartender I’d be back to do the 365 thing in there and he said he’d be on duty. Like a dumbfuck I can’t remember his name, so let’s go find out what it is and more about Whiskey Town.
There's nothing better than when a bar has pure advertising such as this.
It's Tuesday, so there's plenty of seats at the bar.
And bartender Peacock is quick on his feet with an ice cold can of Budweiser. In a beer koozie no less!
Cheers and beers to you all!
The lights that hang above the wooden ceiling that illuminate the bar.
The bar from my perspective.
Oh Christmas tree...hey what are those ornaments?
Cans of Bud Light, how seasonal!
Peacock bought me a pickle-back shot, which the bar is famous for.
Seth took the photo and in return Peacock bought him a pickle back shot.
Seth gives the drink the thumbs up.
I don't know, but I'd like to think there's a little miniature of whiskey in each and every one of those stockings.
A longshot of the candle-lit bar.
I love the vintage cash register at the bar.
I snapped a photo of regulars Dan and Jordan on their way out.
Let's check out who's Peacock talking to...
It's Adem and Lauren. Adem runs a bar nearby and I've totally lost the card he gave me. Send me directions if you see this post, Adem!
The bar has a signature vodka, Tom Lawless, which is named for the owner's grandfather.
And here's me sampling the whiskey in a lemonade drink.
Peacock gave me a t-shirt featuring the name of the whiskey and here I am pimping it. Yes, I can be bought for a t-shirt.
This doll in a store front scared the shit out of me on the way home. Mama! Goodnight, everybody!
Review
Okay, I’m getting ready to catch a plane to Peoria, so I don’t have time to write a review. I’ll let Whiskey Town tell its tale from their website. Oh Whiskey Town...
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Whiskey Town opened on July 10, 2007 by 2 brothers, George and Justin Ruotolo. Between them they have 15 years of New York Bar / Restaurant experience. They have opened, operated or owned: The Vig Bar, Tribe, W8th, PS450, Vig 27 and Punch and Judy. They ventured out on their own to open a true East Village Bar, and Whiskey Town was born.
Their philosophy is simple: well poured drinks, reasonable prices, good music, a comfortable setting and great service. One if not both of the brothers are at Whiskey Town every night.
Whiskey Town is a true East Village Bar.
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Whiskey Town
29 E. 3rd St. (Near Second Ave.)
212-505-7344
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Bonus Photo and Christmas Gift!
365 commentator Kari sent me a nice Christmas surprise, a bag of homemade toffee (some of it chocolate covered) and a nice Christmas card and a picture of her and her son Will. Check it out!
Here's the card and the toffee.
And here's Kari and her son Will. Thanks again, Kari, happy holidays!
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Bonus Biff Bar Crawl!
365 commentator and frequest guest star Bifferoonie recently went on a bar crawl and she documented it for us. I’ll let her take over now. Oh, Bifferoonie...
Betty's Fine Food & Spirits (680 N. High Street, Short North, Columbus, OH) www.bettyscolumbus.com
Betty's is a small eatery and bar located in the heart of Columbus, Ohio's Short North Arts District. Filled to the rafters with tchotchkes, knick-knacks and posters of pin-up girls, it provides a fun, cozy place to sample some eclectic food fare (try the mac and cheese with poblano chiles and spicy sausage, or Marge's meatloaf for old-school comfort), or sip on a draft beer (currently at 17 on tap) or quirky cocktail. If you're into saving your environment one beer at a time, this is your place, as many of the draft options are pegged as Ohio-brewed, sustainable and organic; and the Betty's family of restaurants was a leader in providing biodegradable to-go containers. Open 11 AM to 2 AM, daily.
Outside shot.
My friendly bartender, Nate, handing me the first of many draft PBRs ($2.00, all the time!)
Lindsey and Brian, who were standing next to me at the bar and waiting for their world-traveling friends, Kyle and Christin.
Through the magic of the internet, here they are! TA-DA! Kyle and Christin! You can read about their adventures and check out Brian's music at www.kylebutlermusic.
A view from the end of the bar.
Tim and Laura, enjoying a couple of the many drafts featured at Betty's.
A picture of some of the taps.
Karen and Kate, who run the green website www.biggreenhead.com, reduce their carbon footprint by enjoying a couple of drafts.
Fire! (Note to Biff from Marty: Um...that’s electricity, not fire, Bifferoonie.)
Another nice couple who were very supportive of the 365 Crawl, Weston and Krissy.
The bathroom doors at Betty's. The men's room is Johnny's...
And the women's is Betty's.
Julie offers up a cheers to the 365 blog.
I interrupted two lovely ladies, Kelli and Melissa, to give them a 365 card. They were talking about moving to Manhattan, so I told them to look you up, Marty! (You're welcome) (Another note from Marty: Hello ladies!)
Yours fooly with another Marty fan, C.J.
And after all that, we went to see The Katie Todd Band (www.katietodd.com), who hail from Chicago and sounded excellent. If you have a chance to see them live, you should.
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Thanks Bifferoonie, now I have to go catch a fucking plane. Oh and I won’t be online much because my parents don’t have a computer and I can’t access the internet there. I’ll be putting up the daily post at my brother’s apartment, but won’t be online after that, so if you email or I don’t comment back for awhile, that’s the reason. Sneeze you all soon from Peoria, Illinois! Unless my plane crashes, then I won't be seeing anybody too soon.
23 Comments
Reader Comments (23)
Loving the pickle shots, Marty. I likes me some brine, though a shot of sauerkraut juice is even better!
Wow, Biff, impressive bonus crawl. Maybe you should pick up the 365 baton when Marty quits! Can I get an amen?
@Marty: Your plane is not crashing.
Well, howdie Biff and Kari! Beer can ornaments and suspected whiskey miniature stocking stuffers...now that's what I call Christmas Spirit! What a sumptuous and festive post this time, Marty!
If there is a town called Whiskey.. I knew we'd find it!
Reading this, singing "Whiskey in the jar"
It's all good:)
Marty have a safe flight
@Biff!
wow.. love that bar.. I want to come visit now!
my moms name is Bettie...
Really nice bars, both of them!
And the christmas tree ornaments were awesome!
@kari: Nice photo, and, is possible to send some toffee to Brazil? hehe
@Gidget: good sugestion!
What was the other bar Marty went to that served pickle shots? My memory is shot. This was a really good post along with Betty's a pleasure to see these pictures. Whiskey Town looks like the real deal and Biff is no slouch in the crawling and blogging department,,,good job.
Great Crawl(s)!
Whiskey Town AND Betty's!
Thanks Marty AND Biff!
I need to get to Cow Town again soon!
I miss the Surly Girl!
(not too far from Betty's it seems)
Betty’s Spinach and Artichoke Dip is to die for!
Marty, we should converge on Columbus this Summer.
Have a safe trip and if you end up taking the "Big Red Limosine" give me a shout.
We may have a plan in a few weeks, weather permitting.
I remember those pickle shots too (but not the bar). I always liked the band, Whiskeytown, and now I like the bar too. Cool cash register and lit-up bottles, of course. And those ceiling lights remind me of a coalmine! Pretty cool that the owner's grandpops has his own vodka! I should have my own beer...but it'd probably just be Miller Lite with a different label. Anyhoo, thanks for introducing us to this bar, Marty. I look forward to stop next time I'm in town - just keep me far away from that window doll - eek!
Nice Christmas gift from Kari - and cool photo too!
As for the Betty's post, I'm happy to have done it (even though there's no way I could ever do an entire year of posts - or even an entire week)! I do have to send my apologies to James and Sara Loves Dogs, who both posed for pics, but got lost in downloading. And that caption under very nice folks Kyle and Christin SHOULD read "check out Kyle's music at www.kylebutlermusic.com." Anyway, sorry you couldn't make it to Columbus, Marty, but I'm glad to have had the chance to represent and share a little slice of my great city with the world.
TO COLUMBUS! TO WHISKEY TOWN! And TO KARI! Mmmm...chocolate.
@ Boris: Surly Girl is right up High Street from Betty's and is actually another venture by Betty's owner, Liz Lessner LaRue (as are the Tip Top, Dirty Frank's, and the soon-to-be-revived Jury Room).
A beer koozie at a bar, somehow makes you feel more at home. Nice that they think about the neighbors. That doll looks like she is pointing at the light, somehow makes her more creepy. Amen Ned! I second that Biff could definitely take over the crawl, very nice job. You and Marty make a great team.
Guilherme, toffee is very ship-able :) Seriously, I have extra. Send Marty your address to forward to me and you can have a late Christmas present!
Hope you have a good flight Marty and enjoy being home for the holiday. Can't wait to see if your mom got you socks!
BIFF! You disappoint 365-ers everywhere for refusing the challenge. But not everyone can be the iron man/crazy person that Marty is, I accept that. Do one more before the crawl is history — for your admiring fans.
Whiskey Town rocks the casbah!
all right motherfuckers...365 had that pickle back at sophie's back around september or so ...365 visited a couple bars after... that serves them...but not only am i older but i'm under the influence....blah blah blah...whiskey town...another great stop on the crawl....
kari send me some toffee
biff...nice sub crawl...KOC
rr
I'm on here late, anyone heard from Marty? Nice stop on the crawl and good job, Biff! Looking forward to the Peoria posts!
@kari: Hey, I will love to receive some toffee from you here!! Will be a good christmas present! Send me an e-mail: kzagrande@gmail.com, and I send you my adress! And thanks a lot, you are awesome!
A t-shirt AND a koozie? SCORE! Youre at the home stretch!! Go Marty, go!!
Here's too enjoying time with family! (if thats even possible) great job Biff! Marty is replaceable..who knew????
@Everyone: The plane didn't crash and I'm in a Starbucks in Peoria trying to put up today's post. It's been a nightmare, I'll write about it tomorrow. Like an idiot I forgot my cell phone but I am reachable by email (I'll only be checking it once a day) and you can call me at my parents house. It's listed under G.T. Wombacher. Okay, now I need to try and put up today's post. This sucks, but thanks for all the nice comments!
@Shannon: I don't know how Marty does it. One night out and it took me three days just to figure out how to caption and send the photos! Ol' Wombacher's going to need a spa vacation at the end of this thing!
@Marty: Glad you made it home safely! Tell Starbucks I said to go fuck themselves! HO HO HO!
email sent @Guilherme :) See it never hurts to ask
Biff. what a fantastic contribution. You are a wonderful 365 commentator and bar crawler extraordinare. That looks like a fun bar with very cool friendly people and you can't get any more fun than PBR on tap! Love it! Great job Biff!
Marty. that bar looks very cool and I love the friendly folks there too. "This doll in a store front scared the shit out of me on the way home." Yike I can see why!!
Reminds me of that Twilight Zone episode with Telly Savalas.. Remember that episode of the Twilight Zone where the doll (Talking Tina) threatens to kill him. It is classic...here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSy8Ko1vSKQ
Heeeeeeeeeello peacooooooock ! :D
what! what! I'm getting married but I still can say hello to a cute man I will never meet! right?? ;)
Hi, Tiki Bar Susie! Glad you enjoyed the post! If you ever find yourself in Columbus, give me a ring and I'll take you there!