Thursday, Sept. 23rd, 2010—Bar 256

Day 256—Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010
MacDougal St. Ale House (Originally headed for 124 Rabbit Club)
The PayPal donation bell has been rung and it arrived in my mailbox. Dan London sent me a crisp twenty dollar bill and it arrived today. I know Dan from his days at Hulu where I published my book, The Boy Who Would Be A Fire Truck.  Dan was the director of Search Engine Marketing there and he also interviewed me and did a great job. Here’s the interview: Dan London interview with me. These days Dan is a promoter, organizer and speaker at Fizzled Durham. You can read more about Dan by visiting his website right here: Dan London. Dan is pictured below enjoying a day at what looks like paradise (if only it was dark outside) with a perfectly placed bottle of Miller Lite sure to make Biff more than a little jealous. Thanks for the donation and all your support, Dan! I truly appreciate it!
I’ve been wanting to go to the 124 Rabbit Club for awhile, but I’m a little reluctant because it’s set up like a speakeasy and you have to find the bar and then press a buzzer to get in. The point being, they want it to be a somewhat hidden bar. What I’m afraid of is they won’t allow me to take pictures in there and do my 365 bar thing. But, what the hell, the only way to find out is to hop on over. Get it? Rabbit Club...hop...okay, whatever, let’s just go.

Okay, here we are at 234 McDougal Street. Let's go up and see which buzzer we need to press.

Shit, it's all residential names. Is there some secret code I don't know? Am I at the right address?

Yeah, I'm here, I wrote the address down in my notebook.

As I'm standing on the stoop, I see this place next door. Time to imporvise.

It's a nice dark basement bar. I think this will do. Let's settle in to bar number 256.

And what's looking even better than the bar is the lovely bartender, Gabby who's quick with a cold bottle of beer.

And I'm going to resist to use some Harry Nilsson reference about the lime in the beer.

Nate was seated next to me working on a crossword puzzle. I always respect a man who does the crosswords in ink. No turning back there.

Here's a shot of the lit-up, brick-walled bar from my perch.

There was a birthday party in progress at the bar. From left: The birthday girl, Liza, Lauren and Jay. And Liza wants everyone to know her name is Liza with a fucking Z! Let's all wish her a happy birthday: Happy birthday, Liza, with a fucking Z!

There's wooden tables opposite the bar that lead to a back room.

And back there are two proffesional styled dart boards.

Meanwhile, back at the bar...

Gabby is having a discussion with this gentleman. Let's see who he is.

It's the bars bouncer and doorman, Hansel. Hansel's an event host and you can read more about him here: Hansel.

There's a pool cue rack and stools in the front of the bar opposite the pool table.

And speaking of pool, Nate has switched over from crosswords to billiards.

And now it's time to walk out and close out another chapter on the 365 bar crawl. Goodnight, everybody!

Review
On a street lined with college and tourist bars, the McDougal St. Ale House stands out for not trying to stand out. It’s a low-key basement bar with no frills and no attitude. The pool table is king here and most of the action happens up front at the ample sized bar and wooden booths that line the brick walls of this Greenwich Village Tavern. There’s darts in the back, the bartenders are friendly and it’s a nice place to hang and have a beer or five.

There’s a full bar with a good botted beer selection and 12 beers on tap including: Blue Moon, Newcastle, Samuel Adams and Stella Artois. They have a seven day a week happy hour from noon to 7pm with three dollar well drinks and three buck pints. There’s also different drink specials every night of the week.

MacDougal St. Ale House
122 MacDougal St. (@Minetta Lane)
212-254-8569
-------------------

Bonus Photos

A nice fellow was seated next to me at the bar and he politely declined to be photographed, but offered up something interesting. He's a medical marijuana user due to insomnia. Here's a couple things he showed me.

It's fuzzy and you can't read it, but what do you expect of a medical marijuana I.D?

Here's the Medical Marijuana smart card that you get along with government grown weed.

And the back side of the card. "Remember what they say," we know you're stoned out of your gourd, but please make this extra effort. Dude!

And to go with the bonus photos, here's NRBQ with "Wacky Tobacky." Enjoy! And stay high and let your freak flag fly!

Sunday, September 12th, 2010—Bar 245

Day 245—Saturday, September 11th, 2010
8th Street Winecellar
Okay, if you’re a regular follower of this blog, you’ll remember last Thursday I tried to go to a wine bar on 8th Street called, 8th Street Winecellar. The joint was packed and I ended up at a nearby bar called Affair On Eighth. I met a fellow named Jonathan Kravetz who told me he had written a play that was being performed nearby at the Manhattan Theatre Source and the play is entitled, “Better Lucky Than Smart.” Tonight’s the last night of the play and I decided to get a ticket and check it out. And I’ve also decided to try the 8th Street Winecellar again and see if it’s less packed in the early evening hours. And so it’s off we go for a night of drinking, eating (it’s cheeseburger Satruday night) and theater.

It's a nice day out and a lot of people are out and about including these slow-walkers, which I'm trying to get around. Hate the slow-walkers!

You talkin' to me?

Hats!

And here we are at the 8th Street Winecellar once again. Let's travel down the stairs and see if it's a little less crowded than it was on Thursday night.

Plenty of seats at the bar tonight. Let cheeseburger Saturday night begin!

Super-cute and friendly bartender Nikki serves up a Negra Modelo. Yeah, I'm drinking beer at a wine bar, you got a problem with that?

Nikki took a shot of me with the beer and flashing the 365 colors. Check out this jersey and other 365 products at the 365 Bar Store, maintained by resident artist, "Boris."

A long line of wine bottles are above the full bar.

There's a small seating nook opposite the bar.

Here's a mirror shot of the bar from the eating nook.

There's leather banquettes and tables in the back of the brick-walled bar.

Michael Jackson isn't the only man in the mirror.

In addition to an impressive wine list, there's a good selection of bottled beers to be had including Coopers Pale Ale which I didn't see on the menu. Forgive me, Brooksy!

Here's the front of the bar with a nice view of 8th Street.

Meanwhile back at the bar, Nikki's busy taking care of business.

But not too busy to serve up a couple of mini sliders with homemade potato salad.

The little burger is delicious and housed in a bakery-fresh bun. But I was still hungry so I ordered a plate of pigs in a blanket.

And the lovely Katy serves them up with a beautiful smile.

Mmmmm, spicy mustard!

And in the end...hats! Goodnight, everybody!

Review
8th Street Winecellar is a true underground bar. Walk down the stairs to the somewhat clandestine wine cellar and you’ll find an inviting bar with friendly bartenders and an inviting staff. It’s an attitude-free place, so if you’re not a grape-head, feel free to ask for suggestions from the massive wine list. The L-shaped bar seats over a half dozen and there’s tables and chairs in the front and back and a dining nook behind the bar. At night it’s dark and lit mainly by candles, making this a perfect spot for a first date or a place to celebrate an anniversary.

The wine list here is huge and wine is sold by the glass, half bottle or bottle. Many bottles here are under $35 so you won’t go broke while sampling. In addition to the wine, there’s a full bar with martinis and a good selection of bottled beers including: Negra Modelo, Bluepoint Lager, Coopers Pale Ale and Bitburger Pils.

The kitchen has such offerings as small plates of cheeses, meats and oysters or if you’re a little hungrier you can sample Cellar Sirloin Sliders, Pigs In A Blanket and three varieties of grilled panini.

The 8th Street Winecellar’s motto is, “Wincellar isn’t the place where you can drink yourself under the table because you’re already under the floor.” I’ll drink to that!

8th Street Winecellar
28 W. 8th St. (Near Fifth Ave.)
212-260-9463
-----------------------------

Bonus Photos

After the fine time at 8th Street Winecellar, I went to the play, “Better Lucky Than Smart.” at the nearby Manhattan Theatre Source and it was great. I was lucky to have met Jonathan on Thursday because this was closing night and I scored a ticket before the play got sold out for the evening. Here’s a few shots from my evening at the theater.

Playwright Jonathan Kravetz.

Here's the theatre.

Hey, it looks like they knew I was coming!

Here's the set of the play.

And the theatre is soon filled up. It's the final night of the play and luckily I purchased a ticket in advance.

And the play begins. It's a humorous play that centers around people who's lives get entwined because of greed and stupidity. It had a nice surprise ending.

The final bows from the talented cast on closing night.

Hats!

Sunday, August 22nd—Bar 224

Day 214—Saturday, August 21st, 2010

The Spotted Pig

It’s Saturday and we all know what that means: Cheeseburger Saturday Night! One place I’ve been meaning to go and try the cheeseburger is The Spotted Pig in Greenwich Village. It’s a popular place and known for its cheeseburger, so I thought I’d go early and see if I can snag a seat at the bar. So, it’s off we go.

Here we are, there's no official sign, you have to look for the dangling pig overhead.

Let's go in and see what's happening.

It's already crowded in here, but I see a seat at the bar.

Kristen was the friendly bartender and she was quick with a smile and a beer.

A brick archway leads to tables and chairs in the back.

Here's the view from my perch at the bar.

This lovely trio of ladies were seated next to me at the bar. From left: Abbey, Jeanine and Tracy. They came in from Hoboken and Jeanine had read about the 365 Bars website online. They told me about a bar in Hoboken that has great cheeseburgers, so that may be next week's stop.

And here I am with my neighbors at the bar.

Their food arrives and reminds me that I need to look at the menu.

Here's the draft and cask beers available at the bar.

And the proof of a great pub, a tin ceiling overhead.

Their signature ale, the Spotted Pig Bitter.

There's ceramic pigs in the front window.

And there's also pigs to the left...

And a quartet to the right.

These three hooligans were seated to the right of me.

From left: Buster, Andrew and John. They're studying at a culinary school in the neighborhood and stopped by to do some homework by sampling the cuisine.

And speaking of food, mine's starting to arrive. I started out with the deviled eggs. They had a hint of chili oil to them and were a little spicy and a lot delicious.

And here's the main course, the Roquefort Cheeseburger and shoestring fries. It looks great!

And tastes even better!

Now that's a tasty burger!

My neighbors at the bar were getting ready to head back to Hoboken, so Jeanine and I took a parting picture. Goodnight, everybody!

Review

The Spotted Pig is a cozy, two-level gastro-pub. The walls are brick and there are pig ornaments on the bar, wall and hung upside down from the ceiling. The bartenders and staff are friendly and the crowd is a mix of neighborhood locals and tourists who have read about the pub from guidebooks that all give this place a high review.

The owners bill the place as a gastro-pub and as such features two cask beers, Spotted Pig Bitter and Six Points Bengali Tiger IPA. Kelso Pilsner, Harpoon UFO White, Speckled Hen Pub Ale and Guinness Stout are available as draft beers. There’s a good bottled beer selection as well including: Samuel Smith's Organic Lager, Saison Dupont Farm House Ale, Pacifico Clara and Pork Slap Pale Ale. They also have a decent selection of wines and a full liquor bar.

There’s wonderful bar snacks available and some of the offerings are: Deviled Eggs, Marinated Olives, Chicken Liver Toast and Roasted Almonds. Some of the entrees include: Grilled Skirt Steak with Roman Zucchini, Milk Braised Pork with Roasted Trevise and Chard, Pan Roasted Striped Bass with Tomatoes and Saffron and Chargrilled Burger with Roquefort Cheese & Shoestrings.

Stop by and Dig the Pig (and yes, I stole that from Tim Carey.)

----------------------------------

The Spotted Pig

314 W. 11th St. (@Greenwich St.)

212-620-0393