Wednesday, January 5th, 2010—Bar 360

Day 360—Tuesday, January 4th, 2010
The Abbey Pub
More cash donations alert! Two men who have had the luckless task of being my manager at my night job are Frank Scott and Decker Decker. They’ve both been very supportive of this bar crawl and I appreciate it. And what I appreciate even more is that both of them generously threw twenty bucks apiece into the bar crawl till yesterday, check it out below (that’s Frank on the left and Decker on the right):
Thanks, guys! Sheldon Levine would be proud of both of you.

One of the things that was difficult on this bar crawl was to find different types of bars every night that would be entertaining not only to go to, but for people reading the blog to look at. I always tell people that doing this was kind of like doing an improv play, because you never know what’s going to happen. If nothing interesting happens with people, you need the bar to fall back on to get some good pictures of and tell about the history of the place. Sure, there’s thousands of bars in New York, but so many of them are what I like to call “cookie cutter bars” that have no personality whatsoever. So I always appreciated people suggesting bars and no one has suggested better bars than the man I refer to as my co-pilot, Al Rizo all the way down in Miami. Since the remaining nights are now in single digits, I emailed Al and asked if he had a last minute request and he asked if I would go to The Abbey Pub on the Upper West Side. You asked for it and you’re going to get it Al! Next stop, Abbey Pub. Well, actually the next stop is Penn Station, this place is way uptown, so we’re subway bound. All aboard!

Attention Penn Station: The holidays are officially over, time to take that fucking shit off the walls. Thank you.

Here's the train and once again to quote Fat Al, lean back, motherfuckers!

Look at everybody hypnotized by their texting devices. Hi, assholes!

It's freezing out and the streets are empty up here.

Here we are, the Abbey Pub, let's go in and have a drink or three.

There's lots of people in here for a Tuesday night, but I see a spot at the end of the bar, let's grab it.

And no sooner do I sit down, than the lovely and friendly Francis serves up an ice-cold Corona.

Bottles behind the bar surround the vintage cash register.

Natalie and Dan were seated next to me and wished me well on the last stretch of the 365 journey.

A quick glance above reveals what all classic bars have, a tin ceiling.

Francis and I toast to the 360th night in a row. Cheers!

Free popcorn!

A line of stools are lined up to sit at when the bar is full.

There's seating rooms to the side and back of the bar.

The wooden booths look a little like church pews. "Our Father who art in Pabst..."

There's also tables and chairs to relax at and hoist a hearty brew.

Which is exactly what Kayla and Kevin were doing back here.

Here's someone working the room, let's go say hi.

It's Heather who's a pretty waitress at the bar. This Sunday Heather's taking part in the No Pants Subway Ride of 2011. Check out the details here: NPSR of 2011.

Meanwhile life goes on back at the bar.

I was going to take an obligatory bathroom mirror shot here, but there's no obligatory mirror in the bathroom. Uhh...well...umm...goodnight, everybody!

Review
The Abbey Pub has stood tall on the block for over 50 years. It’s a low-lit bar with brick walls, a long wooden bar and tables and large wooden booths off to the side. The bartenders are friendly and the crowd is a mix of neighborhood locals and Columbia students. The regulars tend to hang at the bar leaving the booths and tables to the rowdier Columbia kids.

There’s a full bar with a nice selection of inexpensive beers and drinks available. The food is your basic bar choices including burgers, chili and fish and chips. The kitchen is open till 11:30pm during the week and till 1:30am on the weekends. Happy Hour runs Monday through Saturday from 4pm to 7pm and on Sundays from noon to 7pm with one dollar off beer, wine and well drinks. There’s also nightly drink specials available at the bar.

The Abbey Pub
237 W. 105th St. (Near Broadway)
212-222-8713

Cheers to Al Rizo for picking another winner! (Al co-pilot artwork by “Boris.”)

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Bonus Photos From Clacky’s Bunt Custer’s Bar: Part II—The Search For More Booze And Bird Flippage!
Yesterday we featured photos from the opening night of our Aussie friend and 365 commentator, Tim “Clacky” Clack’s Bunt Custer’s bar. And now here’s part II, with captions provided by Clacky. Oh, Clacky...

Umm...this raunchy removal of clothing was stubbornly denied in the following days.

Who's the stud? Why it's Bunt Custer himself!

Here's Chris and Mick Hogarth. Chris is a great chef and Mick is Chris' dad. He and wife Julie we're visiting from Tasmania.

As you can see Bunt's is friendly to Dogs and feet.

Some fine fare cooking up behind the bar.

And the wonderful aromas attract some unwanted attention. This is my dog. her name is Baps and that's Chris's dog Dio named after the late great Black Sabbath singer.

For those about to drink....We Salute You!

Closing time at Old Bunt's.

Tuesday, January 4th, 2011—Bar 359

Day 359—Monday, January 3rd, 2010
Formerly Bill's Gay Nineties
Okay, first things first, a live donation has been made by my friend and co-worker, Dorothy Niemczyk! Dorothy contributed a generous twenty dollars for the last night of the bar crawl and here she is presenting it to me below:
Thanks, so much, Dorothy, that’s very nice of you. And in a work-related message: Your proof is done and on the table in the ink jet room.

Alright, on to the crawl! If memory serves me correctly (and it often does not), Bill’s Gay Nineties Piano Bar was one of my co-pilot Al Rizo’s earlier suggestions. I filed it away and people keep mentioning it to me and I was originally going to meet Paul Scanlon, who we met yesterday at Bill’s, but that didn’t work out so we met at Mumble’s. Well, I’m just about out of days here, so I better get there while the bar crawl is still crawling. Ready, set...crawl!

Here we are, Bill's Gay Nineties, let's go check it out.

Here's Rita, the lovely coat-check woman and hostess. She pointed me to the direction of the bar.

Which is right throught the swinging saloon doors.

It's Monday, so there's plenty of seats at the bar, let's settle in.

And here's beer number one, served up by the friendly and hospitable bartender, Marc.

A shot of the festive bar.

Bob and Tony were holding down the end of the bar and posed for the 365 camera. Cheers, guys!

Vintage photos line the walls in here.

Many of them are old-time sports photos, like these two baseball players.

Here's a wall of antique boxing photos.

And a photo of a horse, of course, of course! Even if that horse isn't the famous Mr. Ed.

A long shot of the dark wooden bar.

The lone chandelier that illuminates and hangs over the bar.

There's tables for dining opposite the bar.

Which is where I found this party enjoying drinks and the ambiance at Bill's. From left: Molly, Carrie, Tony and Ashely.

There's a piano player on duty every night at Bill's, let's go check him out.

It's Elliot Paul and he's quite the entertaining Piano Man. Billy Joel would be proud of this guy!

Here's Elliot in full swing.

And now he's got some of the crowd up on there feet dancing.

It looks more like Friday night than Monday in here.

But, alas it is Monday and I have to hit the road to get my beauty sleep for the last few nights. Here's a parting shot with everyone from the bar. Goodnight, everybody!

Review
In 1924, Bill Hardy opened up Bill's Gay Nineties as a speakeasy and it became a roaring success, housing three floors of rotating entertainment. After prohibition ended, the shutters came off the window and you know longer needed to know the secret word to get in the door. And today the bar pretty much remains the same, which is nice in this era of cookie cutter sports bars that get thrown up and then go out of business just as soon. The bar is classic old school New York from the well worn bar itself to the blue-checked table-clothed tables and chairs opposite and in front. The walls are lined with vintage photos from the past and you could spend the evening perusing them and not see every thing in one night. It’s a true classic New York bar in here.

They have a full bar at Bill’s with friendly and expert bartenders who can handle any drink selection you throw at them. Bill’s has a lunch and dinner menu and the kitchen is open till 11:30pm. All entrees are served with a potato and vegetable and here’s a few selections from the menu: Pan Seared Maryland Crab Cakes; Broiled Filet of North Atlantic Salmon; Shrimp Scampi sautéed with Garlic and White Wine and Bill’s New York Strip Steak.

Bill’s is one of the last original piano bars in town and there’s three pianists on duty Monday through Saturday. The piano gets fired up around eight o’clock at night. Feel free to request a tune, and while you would think that “Free Bird” isn’t in their repertoire, request away, you might be pleasantly surprised.

Bill's Gay Nineties
57 E. 54th St (Near Madison Ave.)
212-355-0243

Mucho Thanks as always to my Co-Pilot, Al Rizo for suggesting this place months ago!

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Bonus Photos From Clacky’s Bunt Custer's Bar!
Our friend and commentator Tim “Clacky” Clack in Australia has opened his own bar in his backyard and sent in some photos from the opening party. Here’s part one of the photos from the celebrations from his bar, fondly known as “Bunt Custer’s.” Take it away Clacky!

Opening day at Bunt Custer's, Maryville, Newcastle.

The Cliff Richard "Wired for Sound" memorial corner...Is Cliff even dead?

Party ready to go!

Shan does first drinks. Margarita time!

This happy chap is Dr. Nay Field. Doctor, beer drinker and co-builder of the Bunt Custer's Bar.

Things got lively when Gerant rocked up in a dress and Nay put on a Mexican wrestling mask.

Hey it's a 365 salute all the way from Australia! (keep in mind Shots of tequila had begun buy this point.)

Thanks for the photos Clacky, stay tuned for Part II, tomorrow!

Monday, January 3rd, 2011—Bar 358

Day 358—Sunday, January 2nd, 2011
Mumbles
A couple weeks ago I was featured in a Q. and A. on the fine blog, Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York. I got some nice emails after it ran and one of them suggested I go check out legendary Bill’s Restaurant and Piano Bar in midtown. The email was signed, Paul Scanlon. The name rung a bell and then I remembered the name from the Rolling Stone masthead from the ‘70’s (yes, I’ve always been a masthead geek) and from books on Rolling Stone and Hunter S. Thompson. I wondered if it was the same guy and then I looked at where his email came from and sure enough, it said wennermedia.com. As In Jann Wenner. As in Rolling Stone. After a couple of emails I found out that after being the managing editor of Rolling Stone from 1970 to 1979, Scanlon moved over to editorial duties at GQ, then went on to book editing and other projects and now he had come full circle and is back at Rolling Stone working on a couple projects there. Because of the holiday craziness we never did get to Bill’s, but we made plans to meet at Mumble’s, a joint nearby where I live. I'm looking forward to meeting him, you know he's got some good stories to tell. And so it’s off we go!

I told you it was close by, here we are already.

The bar is crowded for a Sunday afternoon, but I spy on seat at the bar. Let's go snag it.

And no sooner am I seated, than Hal, the very friendly bartender serves up an ice-cold beer.

Cheers, seven more to go (pretend I have two extra fingers on my hand.)

Joe and Carolyn were seated at the end of the bar and we had a nice chat about my 365 journey.

A view from my perch at the bar. Wow, that TV is bright, someone needs to tone that down a bit!

Some of the drafts available at the bar. As you can see, there's a TV on either side of the bar, Gene, you'd like it in here!

Lou was seated next to me and he's a somewhat regular in here who lives nearby.

There's a long wooden railing and stools opposite the bar to hang out at.

And behind the railing are some tables to sit and dine at.

And the main dining room is located to the left of the bar.

Kimberly, a pretty waitress at the bar waits for a drink that Hal is preparing. Hi, Kimberly!

Speaking of Hal, here he is in action behind the bar.

Carolyn and Joe are enjoying brunch at the bar and chatting with a friend.

Mike took Lou's seat next to me at the bar and we had a nice conversation about modern technology and the horrors of texting.

A vintage Budweiser sign hangs behind the bar, topped with holiday stockings.

Okay, night has settled in and the bar becomes darker, illuminated by round globes hanging overhead.

And here he is, tonight's special guest star, Paul Scanlon. I always tell people, that it's not the bars that are the best part of this 365 journey, but the people inside of them. Well, this turned out to be a real highlight. I knew Paul would have some classic Rolling Stone stories and boy did he ever. I don't have room in this caption area to tell them and most of it were off the record but some of the name's in the stories included, Jann Wenner, Hunter Thompson, Andy Warhol, Chet Flippo, David Felton, Ben Fong-Torres, Mick Jagger, Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Buddy Miles, Cameron Crowe and it just went on and on. Great stories from a great era in journalism that will never be duplicated. Thanks for an entertaining evening, Paul!

By the end of the evening Paul got into the 365 spirit and joined me for a one-finger salute! Goodnight, everybody!

Review
Mumbles Restaurant and Bar is located near Union Square and has a real neighborhood feel to it. There’s nothing too spectacular about the place, but it’s a friendly spot, mainly filled with locals from the neighborhood. The bar is dark and wooden and globe lights hang overhead. There’s dining tables behind it and a full dining room off to the side of the bar.

It’s a full bar with a good selection of bottled and draft beers. Mumbles also has a large and varied menu with a decent selection of burgers and sandwiches. There’s also pasta and four types of pizza available and if you have a big appetite some of the main entrees include: Blackened Pork Chops, Oven Roasted New Zealand Rack of Lamb, Chilean Sea Bass and one of their specialties, “Better Than mom`s” Meatloaf. That’s a pretty bold statement, because my mom makes a mean meatloaf, so next time I’ll check that out.

Mumbles has brunch on the weekend, available till 4pm. Delivery is also available.

Mumbles
179 Third Ave. (@17th Street)
212-477-6066

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Bonus Paul Scanlon Photos!
This morning, Paul sent me a few photos from back in the day and here they are.

Paul with Hunter S. Thompson in the spring of 1973. Paul was one of the first people that Hunter showed the original "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" manuscript to.

Here's Paul with writer Fred Exley, best known for his book, "A Fan's Notes." This was taken from 1978 when they were working on an excerpt from his novel, "Last Notes From Home," for Rolling Stone.

And here's a classic photo of a good portion of the Rolling Stone staff watching Nixon resign. Great photos, Paul, thanks for sharing them!