On this page I will be reviewing the many places that I have been to. I currently live in Annapolis, MD which is close to the happening "Fell's Point" in Baltimore, Georgetown and Adams Morgan in Washington, DC, and local Annapolis hangs. I also have an apartment on Long Island, in NY. I am close to NYC, The Hamptons, and Irish Town, Long Beach. I go to Las Vegas 3-4 times a year and I lived in San Diego, CA., New Haven, CT.,and I go to Minneapolis occasionally.
"The Full Moon Saloon" - Baltimore, MD
This is one of the coolest little blues clubs on the East Coast.
Located in Fells Point in Baltimore it's a friendly fun place. They have great
live music seven days a week. Occasionally national acts show up. Great
bartenders and good food and inexpensive. It's an old place with a definite funky blues atmosphere. 1710 Aliceanna St. Baltimore, MD. (410) 276-6388.
"Madam's Organ" - Washington, DC
"Madam's Organ" is in a part of DC called "Adams Morgan", it's not a nudie bar! This is a great little place to catch a local band and get some eats. I would say that this is a great place to start out if you are going to go bar hopping in the Adam's Morgan area - which has loads of cool pubs and clubs. "Madam's Organ" is a two level place, the upstairs mainly being a loft with tables that overlook the downstairs. The bands play on the main floor, right next to the door as you come in. Seating is a bit cramped, and the decor of the place is old....on purpose. Lots of antique type things hanging up, and just plain funky stuff around to look at. Get here for happy hour, and your night starts off excellent.
"Paddy McGees" - Island Park, NY
There are five large beach bars in Island Park, just O.T.B. (over the bridge) from Long Beach. Paddy's is the largest and strangest. An Irish bar full of Guido's. Not a good mix. I walked in only to hear the loud, and very annoying ummmm, music. Then I got bumped into by endless slimy guido's. Even the shooter girl told me that she was in Hell. I lasted about an hour both times I was there, and left. The surrounding bars are a bit better, especially the Mexican place next door, but all in all- don't cross the bridge. Yo!
"Red Eyes Dock Bar" - Kent Island, MD
Red Eyes is a beach bar on the Chesapeake Bay just across the Bay Bridge and Kent Narrows Bridge on Maryland's Eastern Shore. In the Summertime, Sunday is the big day at Red Eyes. They have bikini contests, chugging contests, and live music. The crowd is from all around the D.C. and Baltimore metro areas, and Annapolis / Kent Island locals. The majority of the bar is outdoors, so a rainy Sunday is a bust. The inside part is small and crowded, just a basic bar. Outside has real palm trees (that somehow make it through the Winter), and a stage for bands and contests. It's kind of like partying in the parking lot, I guess. The rest of the weekend also offers live music and cheap beer, but the bar is mainly known for its Sundays. There are some Guido-types that hang out here, just like NY! If you have a bikini contest, you have Guidos, like roaches at a fast food joint, I guess. All in all, a fun place to be, but definately a place to go to with a large group of people. Parking on Sunday's can be tight too, so get there early, or park far, far away!
"Dublin Over" - Hampton Bays, NY
My favorite Saturday Night place in the Hamptons. Its kinda a mini "C.P.I.", half outdoors, half indoors. People dance a good drunkin' dance inside, where the tunes range from 80's party favs to todays hits. A great pizza shop outside too! The two bars can get a bit crowded, but there are great specials, and the shooter girls are....................nice. Get there early and take advantage of the cheap beers!
"The Cats Eye Pub" - Fells Point, Baltimore, MD
An authentic Irish pub with live music nightly. Usually a Blues band and sometimes an Irish band, this is a great place to come in and get housed. Very different than the other Fells Point bars, The Cats Eye has a diverse crowd of all ages and types. I'm 30 and I am age wise in the middle here, where as at many other Fells Point bars I feel old. The band is cramped on a stage across from the bar, so they don't get to move around much - but every band that I have seen here has been great. The walls have Irish documents and memorabilia that dates back over a hundred years. The Cats Eye is crowded, smokey and loud on weekends, and even some weekdays, but I still think its a gem among generic bars.
"The Jetty" - Kent Narrows, Marylands Eastern Shore.
This is an odd place. Its a beach bar on the Chesapeke Bay and it looks similar to "Dockers" and "Neptune's Beach Club" on Long Island and similar to "La Hina's Beach House" in San Diego. A way different crowd though. It is a local - yokel bar, most people are from Kent Island that go there. The night that I went there I saw a cover band called "Full Tilt". They had a horn section and did covers of Van Morrison and that sort of thing. They were really good, and had the crowd going. I met some really nice people and got real hammered. I like yokel bars sometimes. This was one of those times.
"Summers" and "Neptunes" beach bars - Dune Road, The Hamptons, NY.
These bars are right next door to each other. On weekends they both get very crowded and sometimes the crowd is full of "Guidos" , which is a NY term for not so nice people. But if you go with some friends, you will have a blast. Sometimes up and coming bands like "Dogs eye View" and "Jen Trynan" play at the bars, but it's usually cover bands. Both on weekends and during the week there is an M.C. that keeps things going at both bars. They have Beer Chugging contests, they had a guy run nude into the ocean - and come back for a T shirt!! Neptunes is a bit bigger than Summers, but they are both great places to party at.
"The Boardy Barn"
- Hampton Bays, NY
This IS the Hamptons! A Sunday institution where people pile in after a day at the beach. The Boardy Barn is also open on Saturday, but Sunday is the day to go. Open from 4PM to 8PM only, this is a unique place of extreme drunkeness! Mostly an outdoors bar (The inside gets too hot to deal with) the barn has cheap beer and a fun atmosphere. A DJ spins party rock, some dance, but mostly everything from "Wooley Bulley" to Van Halen. After 8PM everyone stumbles out and heads to either "The Seaport" bar or "The Beach Bar" both in Hampton Bays. If you go to the Hamptons, this is the place that you have to go to.
"The 9:30 Club" - Washington, DC
The 9:30 books national acts, and is a great place to see them. Accoustics are good and the bars are accessable. The worst thing about the 9:30 is the area that it is in. Lots of bums and derilects wandering around breaking into cars and that sort of thing. Parking is bad. You have to park on the side streets, which is Beruit! Also, if you didn't buy your tickets in advance, they make you buy your tickets at a window in front of the building. I made this mistake once. Beggers and Bums harassed me big time, it was pretty scary. Most of Washington DC is a vile toilet, so this is a problem at most of DC's clubs. The key is to take a cab from Union Station, and make sure you have tickets before you get there!
"The Saloon" - Long Beach, NY
Ahh, Memorial day weekend in Long Beach. We started at "The Inn" which is always good, than staggered across Beech Street to The Saloon. Not as Guido as "Minnesotas" but not as layed back as "The Inn" The Saloon was still a lot of fun. It was more crowded than usual and probably the Guido factor was because of the holiday. I had a great time. They played a mix of pop music, like the bars in the Hamptons do. The Saloon is kinda the meet market type, but it's also a lot of fun especially if you go with a bunch of people.
"The Village Pub" - Port Jefferson, NY
A cool little bar with great live music. The crowd is kinda the long haired 80's throwbacks, but usually friendly. I have seen local acts like Wonderama, The Zoo, Kid Gloves, Ballbreaker, Theatre of Pain, L.A. Woman etc. Also some national acts like Leslie West, Rick Derringer, Foghat, Star 69, The Scafflaws, etc. This is a place where you can either see washed ups or up and coming acts. Both Star 69 and The Scafflaws were local bands here only a few years ago. The Waitresses are friendly, but be careful, the really push the shots! It's real easy to get hammered if your taken in!
"Tara Inn" - Port Jefferson, NY
Tara Inn is the best place for cheap eats in Port Jeff. Located on Main Street (Next to The Village Pub) you can get a Lobster dinner with soup and salad for seven bucks! Bergers are a buck, Club Sanwiches are four bucks, etc. The bar is a hard core Irish Bar, lots of green, a pool table, juke box that blares either classic rock or an Irish song, and friendly bar tenders. They do get very crowded, especially on weekends. Get there early to get a table, or get there late. Food is served until 3AM, which is great after a night at the Village Pub. The booze is cheap too. During Happy Hour they have pull cards at the bar. Either you pay full price, half price or a dime for all drinks when you order them. I have gotten many pitchers of beer for a dime! Tara Inn is one of my favorite bars around.
"Webster Hall" - Manhattan, NYC
Located in the Village by N.Y.U., Webster Hall is one of the freakiest and coolest clubs I have ever been to. Thursday is my favorite nite to go. The bar is four levels. The basement is a rap type bar, the first floor is a gay and transvestite level, third floor is alternative rock, complete with nude cage dancers and a huge dance floor and stage, and the fourth floor is a balcany overlooking the alternative level and a sports bar with another stage in it. At midnight on Thursdays a gymnist spins herself around on the rings that hang 30 feet in the air over the third floor, no net and she does amazing stunts for about 20 minutes! The gay part is not my thing, but its fun to watch the weird looking people down there! In the lobby they sell memorabilia, t-shirts and things like that. By your tickets to get in from a scalper. They are all about a block away in all directions. Scalper price is around five to seven bucks. Door price is 15 to 20 bucks. There are other bars that are similar in most cities (like "Decades" in Washington, DC) but Webster Hall is clearly in a class all it's own.
"The Triple Crown" - Manhattan, NYC.
Located right by Penn Station (Madison Square Garden), the Triple Crown is a great place to go for pub food and casual beer guzzling. I used to work at The global Shopping Network (GSN), a QVC type station around the corner from the Triple Crown on 7th Ave and 24th street. I went here after work almost every other nite for a year! The staff are all from Ireland and very nice. The bartender on most nights is a guy named Kemmy, a great guy that will go at great lengths to make you feel right at home. The Triple Crown is next door to "Mustang Sally's", which is another good bar, but not as good. The "Ginger House" Chinese restaraunt is also next door and is the best Chinese food in the Garden area. Tell Kemmy your name and he'll remember it for life, really!
"Toad's Place" - New Haven, CT.
Located on the Green in New Haven, Toads was my favorite bar while at college in CT. Live music most night of the week, both national acts and local. I saw big name acts like Soundgarden, Stevie Ray Vaughn, AC/DC (under a fake name), The Melvins, and I saw some has beens like Dokken, Blue Oyster Cult, etc. Toads is a small place. It has a pool table room in the back, a small memorabilia room that sells t-shirts and bumper stickers of both "Toad's Place" and "99 Rock - WPLR" the rock station that practically lives at Toad's. The band plays on the long wall of a rectangular room, so there's always a good view. They do have some all ages shows, usually with the metal bands - and they don't serve any alcohol on these nights. Avoid those shows! I got stuck at a "Lynch mob" concert sober, and I wasn't a happy person. Toad's Place is a legendary in the area, a must go to club.
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