What are the most memorable and/or most famous bars in which you've ever partied?

[SeaPA]

Famous...
Sloppy Joes, Hogs Breath, Captain Tonys in Key West
Lafittes Blacksmith Shop, Pat Obriens in New Orleans
Warren Tavern (oldest bar in Boston)
The Soggy Dollar, Jost Van Dyke BVI...claims to be originator of The Painkiller
and Foxys on Jost Van Dyke; great beachside restaurant/bar, live music nightly, Foxy himself used to get up & belt out some Marley tunes

Most Memorable:
The Willy T - an old sailboat that was converted to a bar/restaurant, anchored off the coast of Norman Island in BVI. The original was destroyed in a hurricane in 2017; it was replaced, but the local government initially would not let them return to the original location. They moved to a nearby island, but from what I've heard a few years ago the government changed their mind & allowed them to move back to the original location. The original was awesome; included a plank, from which you were welcome to walk, dive, or jump in. Added benefit - females who did so topless were given their choice of a free drink or a free t-shirt.

Sundowners, a beachside bar on the sandy shores of Half Moon Bay, Roatan Honduras. Immensely popular with the scuba diving crowd, where you drink Salva Vida & relive the day's dives.

Bucket o' Blood, Utila Honduras. For many years was the place for late night drinks & dancing after a day of diving on that small island. Closed after the owner ended up dying in a puddle of blood after being stabbed.

 

[Moral]

The most famous place I have been to is Applebee's. I ate good on the neighborhood that day.

 

[McLovin32]

Hmmm, probably The Shack Tavern in Cedar Rapids

 

[jellyfish10]

I don’t remember.

 

[Bonerfarts]

I got hammered at Caesars Palace. Not sure I can go back.

 

[thewop]

Ice bar, London.

 

[hawkeyeandy]

Miles Inn, Sioux City, Iowa.

 

[LuciousBDragon]

Miami - 2005 - Cannot remember the name but our group set up bottle service in the VIP and then 15 minutes later a few NFL linemen just make their way into our table and squeeze us out. No refund. **** the ‘05 Bengals for life.

Same trip - Shore Club. Lindsay Lohan hosted party (before she jumped the shark). Lots of fine poo-say that night and heard Paris Hilton was there as well but never saw her.

Sloppy Joe’s - proposed to my wife in Mallory Square at sunset and then we celebrated at Joes where I’m pretty sure some swingers overheard our nuptial news and tried to convert us.

LA - sunset strip places like Whisky and Viper Room early 00’s. Total tourist trap BS.

Gold Club - San Francisco. Several times. IYKYK

Cabo Wabo - too many times doing too many stupid things. Too old for that nonsense now.

Mykonos - some supposedly great place a drunk Mrs. Dragon talked her way into. I was told I had a good time and passed on the drugs and gay men.

 

[ConvenientParking]

Ummm. The Other Place? Sharky's? The Union? Sports Column? Ricky Stanzi saw me chewing beef jerky chew at SpoCo after Purdue win in 2008 and said no way bro and handed me the last of his Grizzly Mint. Mons Venus I think had alcohol but I was under 21?

 

[Fijimn]

The Whiskey (Whiskey A Go-Go)

Balinese Room, Galveston - it was just a restaurant and bar when I went. Nothing like the infamous place in ZZ Top's song. The historical society of Galveston found a bunch of old search warrant affidavits for the Balinese room and Old Man Maceo

Bar at the Menger Hotel - where Teddy Roosevelt recruited the rough riders. Pro-tip to hang out at the Menger while friends and family tour the Alamo in the heat -- the Menger is much more enjoyable.

 

[BelemNole]

Ummm. The Other Place? Sharky's? The Union? Sports Column? Ricky Stanzi saw me chewing beef jerky chew at SpoCo after Purdue win in 2008 and said no way bro and handed me the last of his Grizzly Mint. Mons Venus I think had alcohol but I was under 21?

Which Sharky's? I've partied in a few.

Key West bars of course.

Used to be a place in DC called The Insect Club. Restaurant by day and club by night. I did eat a few bugs while drinking there.

 

[torbee]

Saw The Replacements here:

 

[SeaPA]

Ummm. The Other Place? Sharky's? The Union? Sports Column? Ricky Stanzi saw me chewing beef jerky chew at SpoCo after Purdue win in 2008 and said no way bro and handed me the last of his Grizzly Mint. Mons Venus I think had alcohol but I was under 21?

You talking about the Other Place in Daytona?

In my high school/college days - early to mid 1980s - there was a bar in Daytona called The Other Place (I believe they had a sister location in St Augustine). The one in Daytona had a brilliant marketing strategy during tourist season, especially Spring Break & big race weekends. They had live music nightly, with fairly cheap cover charge of $5. With the cover, you got a free t-shirt. The shirts were very cheaply made; crepe paper would have been more durable. But they were all extremely bright colors - neon green, pink, orange, yellow...with the bar's logo on the back. In the daytime, damn near everyone on in town would be wearing one when walking from their hotel to the beach.
Many years later, I was in Daytona to play in a golf tournament; my wife brought a friend of hers so she'd have someone to hang out with while I was on the golf course. After dinner, we're driving around & I see the place - still in the same place, still the same logo. We decide to go in for a drink or two. As we're walking in, I very quickly observed that the atmosphere had changed. There were a couple of posters on the wall for upcoming drag shows, and the crowd consisted of my wife, her friend, me, and about 30 or 40 dudes who looked like extras from a Village People video. We sit down at the bar, order a round, and start chatting with the bartender. My wife's friend was recently divorced after 30 years of marriage, and totally oblivious. She looks around & comments, "Hmmm. I like my odds in here." I look at her, then the bartender, and we both laugh. She was offended & said something like, "wow, do I look THAT bad?" Bartender says to her "honey, your odds in here are pretty much ZERO" - then points at me & says "he's cute, though - he could have his pick." After a few seconds, the light went on and she says Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

 

[jasonrann]

Hogs Breath, Carmel (pretty laid-back afternoon, but a cool place)
The Horse You Came in on, Baltimore Inner Harbor
Stag Bar, Newport Beach, CA (10 am cocktails with wifey and Dennis Rodman)

I was definitely a fan of hole in the wall joints that were conducive to day drinking and good tunes.

 

[ICWestfan]

I got hammered at Caesars Palace. Not sure I can go back.

I got an escort to my hotel room after stumbling out of the Gold Nugget by two very nice and considerate police officers. And by escort, I mean through the gaming floor at the D, onto the elevators, and then to my door.

 

[ConvenientParking]

Which Sharky's? I've partied in a few.

Key West bars of course.

Used to be a place in DC called The Insect Club. Restaurant by day and club by night. I did eat a few bugs while drinking there.

View embedded media

College Hill in Cedar Falls. Locals called it "The Shark Tank"

 

[ConvenientParking]

You talking about the Other Place in Daytona?

In my high school/college days - early to mid 1980s - there was a bar in Daytona called The Other Place (I believe they had a sister location in St Augustine). The one in Daytona had a brilliant marketing strategy during tourist season, especially Spring Break & big race weekends. They had live music nightly, with fairly cheap cover charge of $5. With the cover, you got a free t-shirt. The shirts were very cheaply made; crepe paper would have been more durable. But they were all extremely bright colors - neon green, pink, orange, yellow...with the bar's logo on the back. In the daytime, damn near everyone on in town would be wearing one when walking from their hotel to the beach.
Many years later, I was in Daytona to play in a golf tournament; my wife brought a friend of hers so she'd have someone to hang out with while I was on the golf course. After dinner, we're driving around & I see the place - still in the same place, still the same logo. We decide to go in for a drink or two. As we're walking in, I very quickly observed that the atmosphere had changed. There were a couple of posters on the wall for upcoming drag shows, and the crowd consisted of my wife, her friend, me, and about 30 or 40 dudes who looked like extras from a Village People video. We sit down at the bar, order a round, and start chatting with the bartender. My wife's friend was recently divorced after 30 years of marriage, and totally oblivious. She looks around & comments, "Hmmm. I like my odds in here." I look at her, then the bartender, and we both laugh. She was offended & said something like, "wow, do I look THAT bad?" Bartender says to her "honey, your odds in here are pretty much ZERO" - then points at me & says "he's cute, though - he could have his pick." After a few seconds, the light went on and she says Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

No, I did not go to that The Other Place. The one I went to was on College Hill in Cedar Falls. The locals called it "The OP." After our middle school plays we'd have a cast pizza party at the one in Waterloo.

 

[jellyfish10]

College Hill in Cedar Falls. Locals called it "The Shark Tank"

Still do. I was drug into Sharky’s and Suds a few years ago by some employees. Sadly, I’m old enough that the youngs thought it was cool that I was in both joints.
/csb

 

[jellyfish10]

No, I did not go to that The Other Place. The one I went to was on College Hill in Cedar Falls. The locals called it "The OP." After our middle school plays we'd have a cast pizza party at the one in Waterloo.

OP on the Hill is closed. They did open one on Main in CF.

 

[bdcolt45er]

One Eyed Jakes Iowa City.

 

[SeaPA]

College Hill in Cedar Falls. Locals called it "The Shark Tank"

There was a Sharkys in Daytona, right at the corner of International Speedway Drive & A1A (the highway that runs adjacent to the beach). It was part bar, part restaurant, all shithole. It closed a few years ago. I stopped once for a drink, didn't stay long & no way in hell was I drinking anything out of a glass.
I'm fairly certain about everyone there was either a hooker, prospective john, drug dealer, or someone there to buy drugs. Most were probably more than one of the above.

 

[ICWestfan]

Juliet Cocktail Room at the Venetian in LV. Since we were playing max video poker at the bar we drank for "free". We all won enough that we kicked the bartender a $200 tip. This was many years ago, not even sure they have video poker at the bar anymore.

I've been to all the famous ones in Key West and French Quarter.

Fav in Ocala - O'Malley's Alley. Friday happy hour used to be buy a $2 tallboy and get a half dozen oysters for free.

 

[ConvenientParking]

There was a Sharkys in Daytona, right at the corner of International Speedway Drive & A1A (the highway that runs adjacent to the beach). It was part bar, part restaurant, all shithole. It closed a few years ago. I stopped once for a drink, didn't stay long & no way in hell was I drinking anything out of a glass.
I'm fairly certain about everyone there was either a hooker, prospective john, drug dealer, or someone there to buy drugs. Most were probably more than one of the above.

That sounds about like every bar in Ybor when we did a club baseball spring break trip to Tampa in college. Ybor City might be the greatest city in America.

 

[Derekd3408]

The Viper Room in West Hollywood is definitely the most famous.

 

[bhawk24bob]

One Eyed Jakes Iowa City.

That place was an unrivaled shithole, and I'm just happy it never caught on fire when I was in it

 

[ThorneStockton]

A few memorable ones:

Dan's Cafe - Really divey bar somewhere in DC, the most memorable part was the way they prepared their mixed drinks. If you ordered a whiskey and coke, you'd get a little plastic squeeze bottle - like ones ordinarily filled with ketchup or mustard - filled with whiskey, a cup of ice, and a can of coke. Really effective for the right minded. It was sort of like the dive bar version of Ceres at the Chicago Board of Trade.

Double Down - Another dive somewhere off the strip in Vegas. Couple of pool tables. They sold a discounted shot of a combination of a bunch of liquor that they called "ass juice". They also sold a puke insurance t-shirt, the idea being if you puke in the bar, but you're wearing the shirt you didn't have to face the consequences (clean it up, get kicked out? I can't remember).

Happy Village (RIP 2019/2020) - Was a wonderful neighborhood dive in Chicago. Occupied what used to be a residential building, had a wonderful patio/beer garden, great regulars, the side room had two free to play ping pong tables. Had a mix of your fun uncle's basement bar, awesome backyard party, and typical dive bar mixture.

 

[jasonrann]

The Bungalow in Clifton Heights, PA (suburb of Philly) was pretty interesting with the Philly mob guys too.

 

[lonestar50]

Star Bar and Grill in Fairfax. My uncle used to own it and I guess haunts it now.

 

[gojojo]

NOLA bars...I had a wild story about that place with frat dudes and blow, maybe I'll tell ya sometime.

I did love Lafitte's. The perfect combination of fungai, post panic show excitement, Johnny Gordon on Keys, and a tasty hurriane at 3:00 a.m can really make a memorable night that I can't remember. 🤣

 

[artradley]

I don't think I've been to any famous bars. Billy Bob's in Fort Worth, I suppose?

Several were memorable, but the stories are too long to post, and not all that interesting to anyone other than myself and my friends.

 

[chubby bunny]

One Eyed Jakes Iowa City.

I worked there for years. The stories are what legends are made of.

 

[Finance85]

Gold Club (Atlanta) late 80's early 90's.

 

[jasonrann]

NOLA bars...I had a wild story about that place with frat dudes and blow, maybe I'll tell ya sometime.

I did love Lafitte's. The perfect combination of fungai, post panic show excitement, Johnny Gordon on Keys, and a tasty hurriane at 3:00 a.m can really make a memorable night that I can't remember. 🤣

 

[Tom Paris]

One Eyed Jakes Iowa City.

This will always be my answer.

 

[the24fan]

whiskey a go go in LA
I’m a doors fan so that was kinda cool

 

[bhawk24bob]

A few memorable ones:

Dan's Cafe - Really divey bar somewhere in DC, the most memorable part was the way they prepared their mixed drinks. If you ordered a whiskey and coke, you'd get a little plastic squeeze bottle - like ones ordinarily filled with ketchup or mustard - filled with whiskey, a cup of ice, and a can of coke. Really effective for the right minded. It was sort of like the dive bar version of Ceres at the Chicago Board of Trade.

Double Down - Another dive somewhere off the strip in Vegas. Couple of pool tables. They sold a discounted shot of a combination of a bunch of liquor that they called "ass juice". They also sold a puke insurance t-shirt, the idea being if you puke in the bar, but you're wearing the shirt you didn't have to face the consequences (clean it up, get kicked out? I can't remember).

Happy Village (RIP 2019/2020) - Was a wonderful neighborhood dive in Chicago. Occupied what used to be a residential building, had a wonderful patio/beer garden, great regulars, the side room had two free to play ping pong tables. Had a mix of your fun uncle's basement bar, awesome backyard party, and typical dive bar mixture.

I used to drink at Dan's ca. 2004ish and at Ceres around 2015, you don't get too many memories of those places when you drink there. There used to be another bar a couple blocks south of Ceres that would only hire former strippers and hookers, i think it was called Tutto's.

All I remember from Happy Village the one time I was there was that the bathroom was a hardwood floor that had soaked up decades of piss. The only more disgusting bathroom I've ever been in (besides the old south endzone at Kinnick) was in Guadalajara

 

[JMNSHO]

Seeing Tim Dwight, in shoveralls, dancing with 2 chicks on an otherwise empty Field House dance floor in 1997 might be my most interesting memory I have from any bar I’ve ever been dragged into.

 

[Jimmy McGill]

Can't believe none of you have said The Blue Oyster

For me it was some bar in Alexandria across the river from DC where are the real politics used to take place. You couldn't throw an olive without hitting someone important.

 

[ThorneStockton]

I used to drink at Dan's ca. 2004ish and at Ceres around 2015, you don't get too many memories of those places when you drink there. There used to be another bar a couple blocks south of Ceres that would only hire former strippers and hookers, i think it was called Tutto's.

All I remember from Happy Village the one time I was there was that the bathroom was a hardwood floor that had soaked up decades of piss. The only more disgusting bathroom I've ever been in (besides the old south endzone at Kinnick) was in Guadalajara

You 100% remember the bathroom correctly, they had one of those old time urinals then went from chest height to the floor.

 

[jasonrann]

Going back to my college days, hard to beat the "ambiance" of The Stein in Cedar Falls. The perfect combination of 3-fers, awful tasting tap beer and standing in an inch of piss and god knows what else in the bathroom. Aside from those things, it was top shelf.