Tuesday, December 21st, 2010—Bar 345
Day 345—Monday, December 20th, 2010
Julius’
I’m near the end of this journey and I just got a Christmas donation from the 365 Canadian correspondent, Lex. She sent in a generous donation of fifty dollars. In case you weren’t following the blog, Lex was in town last September with her in-laws, Mary Ann and Morley and they joined the bar crawl when we went to Hurley’s. And Lex not only sent in a nice donation, she sent me pictures from when she was at when she and her family were on vacation in Revelstoke, British Columbia. Lex sent in some photos of a bar she got trashed in nightly visited a few times. The photos are down below in the bonus section following the review. Thanks for the donation and photos, Lex, have yourself a merry little Christmas!
Okay, on to the bar crawl. I’ve been meaning to go to Julius’ bar for awhile now, and since there’s just 21 days, I’ve decided I better go tonight, before this thing is over. Julius' is important to Manhattan’s rich bar history because it’s the oldest bar in Greenwich Village and it’s also the oldest gay bar in the city. The bar has been in operation since 1864. According to their website, the bar started getting a gay crowd in the ‘50’s and in 1966, four activists staged a “sip in” at Julius’ to challenge the NYS Liquor Authority’s regulation that prohibited bars and restaurants from serving homosexuals. From what I’ve read, this place is not only New York’s oldest gay bar, it also sounds like a classic dive bar. Let’s go dive in to Julius’.
Here we are, it looks nice and dark inside, let's go check out Julius'.
It's late on a Monday night, so there's plenty of seats at the well-worn, long wooden bar. Let's settle in.
And Scott, the friendly and hospitable bartender quickly serves up an ice-cold beer.
Cheers from the 345th bar. Only 20 more to go!
A shot of the lit-up bottles behind the bar.
There's circular wooden tables opposite the bar, with a nice view of the street outside.
The vintage cash register is adorned with some Christmas ornaments and decorations.
Here's Greg with a dancing doll. We named the doll, Santa Julius.
Vintage photos line the dark, wooden walls. Walter Winchell tells you why to go to Julius'.
There's a brass dachsund foot rail beneath the bar to rest your dogs on.
David was seated at the end of the bar. When he found out my hometown is Peoria, Illinois, he told me he was stationed in nearby Champaign, Illinois for year when he was in the air force.
Vintage horse photos hang atop the festive, lit-up bar.
Here's the kitchen that stands opposite the bar where the legendary Julius burgers are made.
Karen was the chef on duty for the evening and we had a nice talk about the whole 365 journey.
They have a great jukebox here stocked with everything from Barbara Streisand to the Animals to Liza with a "Z", to my favorite, Joan Jett.
Single antique lamps hang overhead and illuminate the bar.
A long shot of the etched wooden bar.
Thomas was seated next to me and raised his glass for the 365 camera.
For five dollars you can buy your very own Julius shot glass, which I did, and then I had Scott pour some whiskey in it for my nightcap.
One final glance out the window and it's time to hit the road. Goodnight, everybody!
Review
Julius’ is a true dive bar. A gay dive bar, but as far as dives go, this fits the bill. It’s dark and the long, well-worn wooden bar has been there since prohibition ended and is carved with initials and memories from days gone by. Dim antique lights illuminate the bar and there’s circular woodend tables and chairs opposite the bar. The walls are lined with black and white photos and old reviews of Julius’.
There’s a full bar at Julius’ and you won't have to go on payday to enjoy a few drinks in here. Everything’s inexpensive and there’s a generous happy hour from 4pm to 9pm with half-price beers and well drinks. Sunday is the day that they have an all day beer blast with half-priced beer all day long. There’s not a huge selection of food here, but they’re known for their hamburgers which are just five bucks. There’s also hot dogs, grilled cheese, french fries, onion rings and assorted sandwiches to be had from the kitchen which operates directly across from the bar.
If you’re looking for a slice of New York history, go have a drink at Julius’. It’s a gay scene, but you’ll enjoy it if you’re straight, slightly curved or even a hexagon. It’s a friendly place filled with nice people and it’s a true New York City landmark.
Further reading: Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York, Edmund White in New York magazine, Julius’ Wikipedia entry.
Julius’
159 W. 10th St. (@Waverly Pl.)
212-243-1928
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Bonus Lex Photos!
As noted above our Canadian correspondent Lex, sent in some photos from The Village Idiot tavern in Revelstoke, British Columbia and here they are, take it away, Lex!
Bartenders Adam and Kaylee serve up some mean local brews.
The local brew, before and after!
The menu? Hilarious! as funny as a good comedy show. The food? Well let's just say that we all look like we're about 7 months pregnant!
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Bonus Reader Photo!
Last week Jaws sent in a photo of himself and challenged other 365 readers to do the same. They haven’t exactly been flying in, so I was pleased when I got an email from Guilherme Stecher all the way from Brazil. Here’s what he had to say:
Hey Marty,
Following Jaws idea, I'm sending a photo from a Brazillian fan. I don't do many comments, but I pass through your blog every day.
Cheers from Brazil, and have a Rock'n'Roll X-mas.
Guilherme Stecher.
Thanks, Guilherme! Merry Christmas to you and yours in Brazil. And here’s his photo:
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Well, as well as Fat Al Liked that Joan Jett video, why not play another. Oh, Joan...
And what the fuck, why not announce my complete love for Joan Jett. You are the total rock star!
2 References
Reader Comments (27)
A great historic stop on night 345! Cool that they welcomed you and your camera. A classic stop night as the bar crawl crawls to the end. TO JULIUS'! Oh and nice shots from Lex and Guilherme in Brazil. The 365 crawl is international!
TO JULIUS'!
I hope to see pictures of all you regular commentators before the crawl is over. I'd love to se what you all look like.
What a great and classic bar this is. It has so many pictures that are historic on the walls. I am glad this place made it to the list here towards the end. Also is Joan Jett the greatest female rock and roller of all time? the answer is yes, without a doubt. She just played Miami a couple of days ago.
I can just picture Clacky getting kicked out of the kitchen.
Really nice bar, and will be fun to see how the regulars look like! Nice photos from Lex!
Saúde/Cheers to JULIUS and the 20 more to go!!!!
@Terry: Ha ha ha!
@Guilherme: Thanks for sending in your photo, hopefully others will follow! Cheers to you and happy holidays!
All right, Marty! Julius! You got to have a burger there sometime, they are awesome. Didn't those barrels they have for tables come from a brewery on the block that went out of business a million years ago? Seem to remember that was the story. You can spend hours there perusing the old photos on the walls, in fact I believe I have done that. Can't wait to go back there. What a sweet stop for the crawl.
And a shout out to our Canadian buddy Lex! Nice freelance crawl shots.
In other news, any Grade "A" Fanciers out there should check out the blog today for the dope on an important cultural event happening this Saturday.
@Ned Sparks: I don't know about the tables, but I'll ask next time I'm there. And I definitely have to try a burger there, for five bucks how can you beat it?
Julius is a great choice. Not to mention that Joan Jett version of Dirty Deeds.
20 days left, man. Home stretch.
@Fat Al: Almost there! Thanks for the support over at your fine blog, The Half Empty Glass.
http://therightprofile.wordpress.com/
Nice work again Marty.
I'm about to go on Christmas holidays, so I won't be around for a while (not that I've posted much here lately anyway - things are way too busy).
By my calculations, I'll be back online on Monday the 10th of January, so that will give me a couple of days before you finish your journey. Hopefully you can add another Aussie bar before you wind up.
I will be spending a week and a half in a little seaside town called Carrickalinga, which is about an hour south of Adelaide (the capital city of South Australia, which is the state I live in). There isn't a whole lot to do there, which is why we are going. Spending some great time with the wife and kids and going to the beach each day. That's about it - nothing fancy, but that's the way we like it.
Your blog has been a great read over the past 12 months. I'm sure that at times you wondered why the hell you would start something like this, and I'm sure at times you thought of chucking in the towel. A bar each night for a year sounds like a great time, but it would be tiresome I imagine. But you kept at it, and for that I thank you.
You've managed to get some amazing publicity, and have a fan base from all around the world - no mean feat. You're doing something that many of us would love to try, and I know that I'm a little jealous (and I'm sure I'm not the only one).
For me - it will be a little sad to come into the office in the morning, take a look at my RSS feeds and see the "A Virtual Bar Crawl" feed with no updates. I've loved reading it every morning. I feel like although we didn't physically have a beer together, we've had many virtual ones. I hope you keep drinking the Coopers Green. It's a fine drop, and will keep me well hydrated over the next few weeks.
I wish you, and everybody reading this a safe and happy Christmas and New Year. If you're taking a break, then enjoy it and relax. If you're not - then I thank you - if you weren't working then I'd have to.
All the best,
Brooksy.
All right, Julius' is moving straight to the top of my NY burger and bar list! Totally dig the decor in there, from the barrels to the lighting to the coolest footrests EVER (and I don't even LIKE dachshunds)! Plus, the jukebox sounds kick-ass. And the people seem great. And there's football on the tv! TO JULIUS'!!!! And to Santa Julius too.
Nice shots of the BC pub, Lex. It's funny that the place is called the Village Idiot and, yet, it doesn't look a thing like me!
And hello to Guilherme from Brazil! Cheers!
I can't believe we were having such a grand time at Julius' on our Annual Dawn Powell Birthday bar-a-thon that I forgot to buy a Julius' shot glass. Next time. And by the way, I credit the hamburgers for warding off hangovers.
@Brooksy: Thanks for the nice comment! I really appreciate the audience that has stuck with this whole project. Without all of you I would've quit a couple months in. And I really appreciate everyone who's written about this blog or passed along the link to friends. And thanks for turning me on to Cooper's Green, Brooksy! And the bar crawling is over on January 10th, so the final bar crawl post will be up, but I will continue to update this blog, as I have new one that I'll debut a couple weeks after this is over. Stay tuned, mate, there's more to come!
@Biff: "It's funny that the place is called the Village Idiot and, yet, it doesn't look a thing like me!" Ha ha ha! You still gots it, Bifferoonie!
@Grade "A" Karen: They have t-shirts too, but I liked the shot glass better. I added it to my souvenir boxes of things I've collected along the way. It's over two boxes now!
@Terry: Hahaha...! I was just thinking to myself that karen keeps the kitchen pretty clean! I wouldn't need to get kicked out. I can see everything from the counter.
@365: TO 20 more!!!
Is this the first gay bar of the crawl? I'm glad you made it to at least one....having said all that, if you didn't mention it, I wouldn't have been able to tell. Gay, Straight or hexagonal this is another great dive bar. The gay bar in Newcastle (yes, I believe there is only one) is loud and proud with regular drag shows and "it's raining men" on the jukebox (What were you thinking, Paul Shaffer?). It's usually one of the last pubs open on our walk home and they'll usually serve you more beer even if you don't need it.
Say Hi to you folks out in Peoria from Australia!
@Brooksy: Thanks and Merry xmas and HNY to the whole Brooksy clan. Hope the weather is perfect down there. We're scheduled for a wet xmas. I'm working 6am boxing day so I probably wont have time to be thinking about you, but please spare a thought for me while your wading in the beach with a coopers.
@Clacky: When Biff was in town we went to the Cubbyhole which is a lesbian bar (Bar number 296.) I think that might have been the night before you got here, so maybe you missed it. And I will definitely tell my parents you said hi. They'll get a kick out of that.
Wow that's some epic bar-crawl!! I'm very impressed!
@Leaf Probably: Thanks, you're coming in at the tail end of this journey!
Oh man I want their floors! Love the random dog/foot rest. Its the little things. I wonder if I'm a hexagon...
Nice to see Lex back in the mix. And welcome Guilherme! Mmmmm. Merry Christmas Brooksy, hope you have a nice relaxing holiday.
Scott the bartender looks like he could be your long-lost brother!
Wow, only 20 to go. What's the plan afterwards?
@kari: Merry Christmas and thanks for the toffee! Your photos will be up tomorrow!
@Darleya: I'm going to do a new blog that's kind of an extension of this, but I won't have to drink every night. My liver and head need a rest!
@Biff: Hello for you too!! I don't do many comments, but I see you here every day!
@kari: Thanks a lot! And I'll try to be more here at the comments!