Sunday July 11th, 2010—Bar 182

Day 182—Saturday, July 10th, 2010
Knuckles Tiki Bar
Okay, today we’re going to do something a little different. We’re going to a backyard bar in Long Island. John Nichols, a co-worker and friend of mine was telling me about a tiki bar he set up in his backyard in Long Island and he agreed to let me bring the bar crawl there and have a barbecue and some drinks at his bar. I thought this was a great idea and a chance to take the crawl on a little different direction and break things up a little bit. So it’s a travelling day on the bar crawl! All aboard, next stop, Knuckles Tiki Bar in Long Island!

Here we are at the port of call, Penn Station.

The escalator goes down...

And the Long Island Railroad is that-a-way.

Here's the ticket counter.

I've got a little over an hour to kill, hmmm, what to do? Oh I know, why not go to a bar and that way it'll kill any naysayers who complain I'm not going to a "real bar" today. Let's go find one.

AAAAAAHHHHHHH! Run and hide! Let's check upstairs, no way am I drinking at a T.G.I. Fridays.

Jesus Creeping Christ, there's another one upstairs! Help me Mr. Wizard!

Thank you Mr. Wizard! The name's a little corny, but this place looks okay.

Wow, it's a long bar, but there's always got to be some asshole yakking on his cell phone to ruin the mood of the joint. Hi asshole!

And the beautiful bartender served me up an ice cold bottle of Budweiser. I forgot to write her name down, so she'll be forever known as the beautiful bartender who served me up an ice cold bottle of Budweiser.

Okay, time to board the train. Wow, a lot of people, all pushing and shoving, thank fuck I don't have to do this every day.

Goddamn, it took me seven cars to find an empty seat and it's noisy with people yakking to each other and on their cell phones. I hope I never lose my apartment in the city.

And we're off. Obligatory train shot.

And through the magic of the internet, here we are an hour later.

Hello Long Island!

And here's my ride. The first backyard bar crawl is about to begin!

And so it begins! Here's the Knuckles Tiki Bar proprietor and bartender John Nichols greeting me with a can of Budweiser! Looks like the start of a good day and night.

And here's the other patrons of the bar, from left: Tony Chester, John and Charles Karen.

What time is it?

Why it's time for Happy Hour to begin, sounds good to me.

It's a well-stocked bar here at Knuckles Tiki Bar.

Of course there's a dart board.

And some nice neon as well.

Okay, it's official, the tiki bar is open!

And for once I get on the other side of the bar, cheers!

Here's Flo, the tiki god of Knuckles bar, she watched out over us all day and night.

Tony was the grill master of the evening and he did a great job. Everything was delicious!

Check out the chicken, not too shabby, huh?

Here's Tony, Charles and John chilling with beers and drinks at the bar.

It's cheeseburger Saturday night so Tony cleans off the grill to make things right.

Okay, it's officially Cheeseburger Saturday night, a great burger, grilled to perfection by Tony.

Okay, some time has lapsed due to the fact I wanted to hang out and relax and booze it up with eveybody, but now the camera is back out and night has fallen on Knuckles Tiki Bar. Bobby joins the party as Charles pats himself on the back.

Tony and Bobby are thinking, "Doesn't this asshole ever give it a rest?"

John and Tony work on the final course of the barbecue.

Sliced steak. John marinated it with his own recipe and Tony grilled it to perfection, really a taste treat!

And Charles brought the dessert, Entenmann's cakes. You gotta love the Entenmann's!

And now it appears to be closing time at Knuckles Tiki Bar. Goodnight, everybody!

Review
Knuckles Tiki bar is a backyard hideaway and paradise all in one. The bar is horseshoe shaped and the owner and  bartender, John Nichols is friendly and fast with a cold beer. The clientele is a friendly mix of John Nichols and the occasional bar crawl that stampedes through on a Saturday night. There’s a full bar available and the beers range from whatever is in the refrigerator and what you bring. There’s a good selection of whiskey and tequila in the cupboard and when the grill gets fired up the food is amazing. Especially if you have Tony Chester on hand to be the grill master.

This was a fun night on the old bar crawl and I want to thank John Nichols for having me out and welcoming me (and all of you) to the Knuckles Tiki Bar. And thanks to Tony Chester, Charles Karen and Bobby for coming along and adding to the party. A good time was had by all! Cheers!


Knuckles Tiki Bar
Long Island
877-544-4088

Today's Post is running a little late...

Thanks to the MTA running slow (I was in Long Island last night) and a general bout of laziness I slept in today, so I'm just starting to put today's post together. Check back around 2pm and see my post which is a special edition from Knuckles Tiki Bar in Long Island, a backyard bar special edition. In the meantime enjoy this video by the Eyeliners with a special guest appearance by Joan Jett. I have to go get a diet Mountain Dew and a donut now and wake the fuck up. Sneeze ya soon!

Saturday, July 10th, 2010—Bar 181

Day 181—Friday, July 9th, 2010
Puck Fair
Okay, a couple months ago I was met on the bar crawl by Mike and Kathy Bono and we had a great time at the Peculiar Pub. Mike and Kathy own a bar in Philadelphia, so it was cool to hang out with a couple who’s really in the business of bars. Their bar is called, Chap’s Taproom & Sports Grill and here’s a picture of it:
It turns out that Kathy’s birthday is this weekend and they’re in town to celebrate it. They wanted to join me on the crawl tonight, but their time is tight. They’re going to a party at The Bowery Hotel, so I decided to go to Puck Fair, a bar I’ve been meaning to stop in at and it’s handily located near the Bowery. Will Mike and Kathy show up? Fuck if I know, we’ve got to forge on and see.

Here we are, Puck Fair, I can hear the noise inside already, I hate Friday nights!

Wow, it's packed and a DJ is blaring music. But it does look like a cool bar, so instead of any meet and greet photos, I'll just take you on a photographic tour of the bar tonight.

Well, since the bartender is so cute and friendly, I'll make an exception on the meet and greet photos for her. Meet Rebecca, everybody!

And now for a beer or three before we begin the tour. Cheers!

The bar is huge in here, this is just one third of it.

Some of the beers on tap, note the fancy tap presentation.

Some of the beer and food specials for the evening.

This photographic mural stretches out along the entire back wall of the bar.

Lots of bottled beers to choose from at Puck Fair.

The large wooden booths and brick walls add to the Irish feel of the place.

And there's an upstairs area as well. Let's check it out.

There's candle-lit tables and stools and it's not as hectic up here.

Here's a bird's-eye view of the Friday evening at Puck Fair.

And here's the DJ, sequestered off in a lonely upstairs corner. Poor little lonely DJ!

And now the obligatory bathroom mirror shot. Goodnight everybody!

Review
Puck Fair lives up to its name. It’s an Irish carnival of a bar, with three levels of festivities, food and drink. The ground level has a long bar with cubicles built in the middle for private parties at the bar. There’s large wooden booths along the side walls and a high wooden beamed ceiling with skylights adds a nice ambience to the Irish flavored bar. The walls are brick and there’s tables upstairs and a DJ on weekends. In the basement you’ll find more tables and a smaller, yet full bar.

The bar has an impressive beer selection with 50 bottled beers and 20 rotating draft beers and ciders to choose from. The draft beers are kept at perfect serving temperatures via their state-of-the-art tap system. In addition to the generous beer selection, there’s a large menu of Irish influenced food to sample. Some of the lighter fare includes: chicken, shrimp and beef skewers, Irish smoked salmon, rustic pate and brie plate and sausage rolls. The heartier fare offered up includes: Irish bangers and mash, Guinness battered fish and chips, steak and fries and a full Irish breakfast.

Mike and Kathy never did show up, but I knew their schedule was tight and I appreciate them checking in with me. I'm sure our paths will cross again on the old crawl, in the meantime, Happy Birthday, Kathy!

Puck Fair
298 Lafayette St. (near Houston St.)
212-431-1200