The very bestest bar in the whole wide world ?
#1
Suspended
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 5,159
The very bestest bar in the whole wide world ?
Well ...I have to say the Ear Bar in NYC ( corner of Spring and Washington ) is the top of my list.Ne'er a tourist in sight and a place where a man can sink a few schooners in peace.
Then there's the Haunch of Venison in Salisbury,Wiltshire,England.700 years old,a small as someone's front room but an excellent pint of Directors.
The Roaring Donkey in Cobh,County Cork,Ireland serves a fantastic pint of Murphys.... with a great diddly music night on Wednesdays.
Bradley's Spanish Bar just off Oxford Street has London’s best vinyl juke (£1 for three spins). It’s hard to argue with a collection of 160 seven-inches that includes The White Stripes and The Who. They rotate seven singles a week.
I suppose any poll like this is subjective... but I'm always keen to try somewhere new !
#5
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Portland OR Double Emerald (QF and AA), DL PM/MM, Starwood Plat
Posts: 19,589
Sounds like a clone of Uniq in Helsinki, which has an indoor ice bar kept at -5C. The walls, bar and tables are made out of ice, they give you a parka. This never made much sense to me given that there is plenty of cold and ice available outdoors most of the year. I suppose it makes a lot more sense in SYD.
#7
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: About 45 miles NW of MCO
Programs: Acapulco - Gold, Panama - Red, Timothy Leary 8 Mile High Club
Posts: 29,219
For me, it depends on my mood and company.
If I'm travelling alone, most nights, I like a place where I can interact with the locals for an evening. I prefer a simple working class bar; cheap draft beer and a couple construction workers downing shots. It's a far cry from the folks I'm with all day at work and I like the contrast. I've made temporary friends in places like this around the US and in the UK. We'll talk sports, politics or philosophy and I'm refreshed and renewed - and usually hungover the next day. Only had a couple bad experiences - the worst was the big ugly welder in Devon, recently released from prison for manslaughter, who tried to hit me up for a job and some cash. I bought him a couple pints and dashed out the door after I figured he was unarmed and slower than me.
Travelling with a group, I'll let someone else select the bar. I like to drink more slowly than the others and watch their foolish behavior. I prefer a place with no music and a tv with closed captioning and no sound so I can follow the conversation or not if I'm bored. These places tend to be attached to decent restaurants or hotels.
With the family, a quiet spot with a little class is best. Mrs BamaVol likes to retire early, so bars are usually afternoon visits. A sidewalk table or view out the front window is nice, and I like a simple menu with bar snacks or sandwiches for when mealtime rolls around.
No specific recommendations and I almost never visit the same place twice. Last time I broke that rule, I met the manslaughtering welder, so never again.
If I'm travelling alone, most nights, I like a place where I can interact with the locals for an evening. I prefer a simple working class bar; cheap draft beer and a couple construction workers downing shots. It's a far cry from the folks I'm with all day at work and I like the contrast. I've made temporary friends in places like this around the US and in the UK. We'll talk sports, politics or philosophy and I'm refreshed and renewed - and usually hungover the next day. Only had a couple bad experiences - the worst was the big ugly welder in Devon, recently released from prison for manslaughter, who tried to hit me up for a job and some cash. I bought him a couple pints and dashed out the door after I figured he was unarmed and slower than me.
Travelling with a group, I'll let someone else select the bar. I like to drink more slowly than the others and watch their foolish behavior. I prefer a place with no music and a tv with closed captioning and no sound so I can follow the conversation or not if I'm bored. These places tend to be attached to decent restaurants or hotels.
With the family, a quiet spot with a little class is best. Mrs BamaVol likes to retire early, so bars are usually afternoon visits. A sidewalk table or view out the front window is nice, and I like a simple menu with bar snacks or sandwiches for when mealtime rolls around.
No specific recommendations and I almost never visit the same place twice. Last time I broke that rule, I met the manslaughtering welder, so never again.
#8
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: United Arab Emirates & Arizona, USA
Programs: UA MM/1P, EK Au, QR, TK, Marriott Life Ti, Hilton Dia, IC Dia, Hyatt Glob, Accor Pt, Shangri-La
Posts: 4,520
Red Square in Las Vegas (at Mandalay Bay) is definitely one of my favorites. The vodka (dozens of kinds) is very cold, the atmosphere is decadent and gourgeous, the waitresses and clientele are beautiful, and they have the best steak tar-tar I have ever had.
#10
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: DTW
Programs: NW, AA
Posts: 97
Sixty Thompson
Best is the roofdeck bar on top of Sixty Thompson in SoHo. Amazing views of the city and cool, hipster crowd. Nothing like taking a date there and watching the sun set over the city.
Only problem is that you need a pass key from the hotel staff or a room at the hotel (tres cher) to get in.
Jayson
Only problem is that you need a pass key from the hotel staff or a room at the hotel (tres cher) to get in.
Jayson
#11
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 142
I'd have to vote for Distill, in Bangkok (http://www.thedomebkk.com/web/dist_gallery_08main.html) - sixty-odd floors up a skyscraper, with stunning views, a terrace with great big sofas to lounge on, and first-rate cocktails.
#12
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: About 45 miles NW of MCO
Programs: Acapulco - Gold, Panama - Red, Timothy Leary 8 Mile High Club
Posts: 29,219
I do carry a soft place in my heart for any Viking Crown lounge on a Royal Caribbean ship. It's where I go to sit any time we leave port. The view is fantastic.
#14
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: 33.9929N 83.4207W
Programs: DL Skymiles
Posts: 644
Unquestionably. In De Wildeman in Amsterdam. 18 taps, 200 bottles. No music, smoke free. It's ALL about the beer (and they have liquor too).
www.Indewildeman.nl
www.Indewildeman.nl