The owners also own the Lyndale Tap in Uptown and this is an attempt to cash in on the recent popularity of country bars. Not a lot of effort was put into decoration, but I appreciated the row of paintings of various country icons such as Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash, flipping the bird. However, I’m guessing, when it’s busy, the décor is the last thing people are looking at. Wednesday is the first day of the week the bar is open and it’s usually the slowest day of the week, according to the bartender, Anthony. It was even slower than usual last night; probably because of the sub-zero temps. I mean, who really wants to wander out in this weather? But, there were still a few young, urban professional types in pairs or groups around the bar proper. It was a little awkward, but it is actually a rather vast bar and it would have seemed a bit odd if I had sidled right up to the only two guys that were sitting there when I first arrived; therefore, I opted for a perch where I could get some good pictures and eye up whomever entered.
Luckily, Anthony is a professional bartender who understood the art of schmoozing. He had worked at Sneaky Pete’s and Barrio previously and even has “groupies”. He was the primary, full-time bartender there. So, although there was no possibility of me interacting with the other people, who were involved in their own quiet conversations, he and I got on quite well. He managed to get everyone sitting at the bar involved in various conversations, and that is what a good bartender does. Just like at the St. Petersburg, which I spoke of two blogs ago. The shared topics of discussion were how ugly Cameron Diaz is in person and whose bathrooms are more disgusting, men’s or women’s. He insisted women were grosser in the public bathroom area.
Speaking of bathrooms, one had to travel down a dark, winding hallway to get there. It felt like a funhouse hallway and I was sure some bad-guy was going to jump out and grab me at some point. I mentioned to Anthony that the owners should have fun with that and make it up like a funhouse. That would be especially great for really drunk people. The bathrooms themselves didn’t look like they’d been remodeled from when the bar was The Lodge, but there were nice new “touchless” soap dispensers, faucets and towel dispensers. In a bar bathroom, there’s nothing better than not having to touch things.
Whisky Park has great specials. Happy hour runs from 4:00 to 7:00, which is better than the typical 3-6 HH. Then there’s another late happy hour too. Thursdays, from 8:00 to 10:00, ladies drink free (I think). When I was there, it was 2 for 1, and that wasn’t just for tap or rail drinks. That included whatever you wanted, as long as they had it. They had all the usual popular beers, but no PBR (WHAT?). Is that not cool anymore? I was really in the mood for a cold PBR, and despite their numerous choices they didn’t have anything I wanted, so I ordered the usual (Jim Beam/sour).
Apparently they have a countryish type band that plays once a month, but seriously, the bar could cash in on the recent grass-roots, country, folk music insurgence that’s popped up lately. They also apparently have a mechanical bull, but alas… no Karaoke. (WHAT?)
Their menu was the usual bar-type food; wings, nachos, pizzas. Anthony knew the preparation of the food and described it well enough to make me curious enough to try something different, but when I saw that they had dry-rub wings, I had to try them. They were actually pretty good. Some people across the bar ordered the nachos. As you would expect, a plate piled high with heaven.
In closing, I would go back, if only to chat with Anthony. I’m sure one would need to go there on a Friday or Saturday night to get the feel for the REAL Whiskey Park atmosphere, but I’m not sure I really care to be around the type of people that hang out there on Friday and Saturday nights. Instead, I might just make that chair my usual Wednesday perch.
I think I’ve sort of neglected Uptown so far in my blogs, so next week, I’ll be reporting from somewhere in the UT. ‘Till then…bottoms up.
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