Florida bars
The 2008 Spirit Awards nominees were just announced, by the wonderfully named organization Tales of the Cocktail. And in three categories - Best Classic Cocktail Bar, World's Best Cocktail Bar, and Best New Cocktail Bar - not a single Miami watering hole made the list.
This is a little surprising, considering that Art Deco and cocktails share the same era. I have always loved the little hideaway bar at the Raleigh Hotel, though every time I stop in it's lacking what every good bar needs: people. They're usually out by the pool, under the stars. Which is part of Miami's problem: it's hard to have a great bar in a subtropical climate.
Still, there are a number around the state that I love. The one at the Vinoy Hotel in St. Petersburg (shown here), which sits like a mirage in the middle of the dining room. The dark, Swedish-themed bar at Chalet Suzanne. The cozy, fisherman's bar in the Cabbage Key Inn. The elegant, bunker-like bar at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, which has always struck me as the perfect place to sit out a hurricane.
I'd love to hear of your favorites, wherever they are.
Comments
Okay I DEFINITELY have a new favorite bar. It's called "Shutters", actually it's a hotel (a ridiculously expensive hotel I might add...600-2000/night on the Santa Monica beach), but they have some restaurants inside, which I have not gone to because...I'm not an heiress or tycoon. I go to the Coast(al?) bar, they have a really good Happy Hour from Monday through Friday. I am very impressed by their decor. It's very beach-y - white wood and nice marble countertops for the bar. I had the best Sauvignon Blanc last week! I'll get the name next time I go. www.shuttersonthebeach.com
I like this one English pub, called the King's Head, it's also in Santa Monica by the Promenade. www.yeoldekingshead.com
Food is ok...the only beer I like is Hefeweisen (sp?) and theirs is good. Another place (in Santa Monica, again) is Finn McCool's http://www.gerrigilliland.com/finn/aboutus.html
- I haven't eaten there but I like the casual atmosphere of a British place. You get an eclectic mix of ages, and it's slightly less snooty than a place like Shutters.
Also in Maryland, there are awesome bars as well. In Timonium there's The Still, yet another Irish pub. It's not far from corporate Hunt Valley, where Proctor and Gamble and McCormick's (spices) are, so a lot of those guys end up going there. It's a middle-aged single crowd mostly...a cover band often plays some of the worst songs of the '90's. At which point I leave. About a mile from The Still there's Padonia Station, where you'll find a younger single crowd. It's a sports bar - people get really rowdy, red-faced drunk gross guys will eyeballs toward rolling to the back of the head will hit on you, and attention seeking girls, the brunettes who streak their hair platinum blonde, will jump around and scream. I have a funny story actually about the last time I was there this past winter...but anyway, if you go with friends, it's always fun. And they have good chicken wings.
There are so many more, especially downtown (Red Maple, Washington Tavern) but so little time!
Oh ok one more - Brewer's Art! I think it's in Federal Hill. I love that place. The basement is really dark, it's sort of dungeonous. They have like a zillion different varieties of beer and really good wine! It's where Baltimore yuppies unite! And they also get an artsy mix from MICA.
Posted by: jen | May 14, 2008 7:47 PM