Brickskeller Saloon - evolved

A legend

This is a first: a saloon with it's own Wikipedia entry: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brickskeller.

Excerpts:

The Brickskeller (officially The Brickskeller Dining House and Down Home Saloon) was a tavern in Washington, D.C., located near Dupont Circle across from Rock Creek Park and on the edge of Georgetown, in the Marifex Hotel (now the Brickskeller Inn) building. The Brickskeller was one of the city's most popular night spots in the 1960s and 70s after son Maurice and June Coja took over the restaurant-hotel operation while his dad pursued other interests.

Business boomed in those days as Maurice and June had obviously discovered and created a formula that fit the bill for success and future growth. As pointed out in a current Facebook site: "I used To Hang At The Bricks", the history of this original down home saloon remains a storied legend attested by decades of young people who frequented DC and Georgetown bars when they were students, government workers and beer connoisseurs from 1957 until 2010 when it closed.

The beer menu was always a prominent calling card for patrons but it wasn't until the late 1960s when one of the Coja's sharp management crew, Joe Corey, a talented musician and the in-house booking agent for upstairs music acts, started making runs in a rented refrigerated truck to Golden, Colorado, to buy truckloads of a little known beer (on the east coast) called Coors.

During the Alexander's years at the helm they received a Guinness World Record for the largest selection of beers commercially available, Dave was the first bar owner and fifth American to be knighted into the Confederation of Belgian Brewers in their over 600-year history. He received the Best Beer Bar in the Country award from the Adams Beverage Media group and the first landmark lifetime achievement award they ever presented from Washingtonian magazine. In addition, the Washington Post and other city papers declared The Brickskeller the best "beer bar" and best beer selections in the District of Columbia.

The Brickskeller is gone, but their beer list remains: http://www.lovethebeer.com/beer-list.html

The Inn was supposed to have been sold to a hotelier for renovation in 2010, but google maps shows a blue awning with the words "Coming Soon" from 2018, and no indication anything came. What has remained is the cellar bar, now known as the Beir Baron: http://www.thebierbaron.com/. I wouldn't count this as closed but maybe evolved. 

From what I've read, this place truly was one of the 100 greatest bars in the US. Frustrating that a beer bar is featured in a cocktail book, but I guess it's foolish to be picky 40 years after the fact. Since this one has ice cream and my grandmother leaned heavily on the dessert cocktails, I give you the

Outstanding Alexander

• 3 oz. vanilla ice cream
• 3 oz. chocolate ice cream
• 2 oz. whipping cream
• 1 1/2 oz. cognac
• 1/2 oz. Mexican coffee liqueur
• 1/2 oz. orange brandy
• nutmeg

Place ice cream and cream with 1/2 cup of ice in a blender and blend until creamy. Add liquors, blend until smooth. Pour into two glasses and garnish with nutmeg. Serves 2! 

The Brewery, Las Vegas - closed

Iconic Vegas

Ok, I've got a real beef with the Las Vegas entry for this book. The place was called The Brewery, and it's location was about 3 blocks from the Strip. Three blocks! And it's nowhere near Fremont street! I don't know what the layout of Vegas was in the 70s, but this appears to miss the mark even then. Google maps reveals it is now a parking lot near a Fairfield Inn and a tapas restaurant. I'm finding with amazing frequency that these things happen.

HOWEVER!

How do you do an entry from Vegas on a place with as generic a name as The Brewery? An internet search of bars and nightclubs in Vegas in the 70s reveals a vast array of interesting places one could have featured instead. It has been known as the Entertainment Capital of the World since the 1930s after all.

I found one reference to the Brewery on a message board: "... I remember the disco at the Brewery." That's all I have found.

Jeez, even Paul Anka had The Shark Club in the 70s...

Being extremely judgmental, I decided to see if there was an author or editor for the book. "Recipes compiled and selected by Playboy Club International." Methinks they either didn't want to give free publicity to a competitive property, or this was one of their own. Hm.

There's three recipes in the book, none of which contain beer. Since I've been on a blue curacao kick in my selections, I will go instead for the Brewer's Rocker.

Brewer's Rocker

• 2 oz. tequila
• 5 oz. iced tea
• lemon wedge
• lime wedge

Add tequila and iced tea to a chilled glass, add ice. Garnish with fruit. Add sugar to sweeten if desired.

The Original Bobby McGees Conglomeration - evolved

Oh, I wanted this one to still be open. Sooooo bad. From the LA Times in 1991:

From the outside, the restaurant reminded me of a Newport millionaire’s beach cottage, embellished with lush flowers and set at the edge of a six-lane road instead of the seashore.

Yet it’s the interior that boggles the mind. As if the decorator had gone berserk in a kind of fun way, every inch of space has been covered with prints and artifacts. The restaurant is huge. It has been cleverly divided into smaller rooms and alcoves that fan out from a central salad bar ensconced in a painted bathtub big enough to hold Paul Bunyan. The decor just doesn’t quit, and every room has a different theme, from antique sports to flora to nautical motifs.

Although this particular Bobby McGee’s is unique to Ventura County, the restaurant is actually one of a successful chain of 21.

And from Arizona Foothills Magazine, 2018:

Hundreds of people from across the nation, including local TV icon Pat McMahon and longtime food writer, Nikki Buchanan, gathered to celebrate the much-missed local restaurant chain, Bobby McGee’s Conglomeration. Created by legendary Valley restaurateur, Bob Sikora, the reunion party was hosted inside his latest culinary creation, Bobby-Q Great Steaks & Real BBQ (8501 N 27th Ave., 602.995.5982). And while Bobby McGee’s may be long gone, the 300 plus attendees at this sold-out event, some of whom came from as far away as Virginia, spoke about the long lasting impact of Sikora and his former employees and regulars at his innovative restaurants, nightclubs and more.

Bob Sikora is a life-long restaurant man, starting as a fry cook at a McDonald's when he was 15. His first restaurant was Bobby's Pancake Stand when he was only 20. History on bobbyqbbq.com indicates Bobby McGee's became the BBQ restaurants in 2005. This man knows food service. 

A peek at the BBQ joint's cocktail list, and I'm mourning the lack of a Malibu Wave on the menu. This was, without a doubt, my favorite of the drinks my dad made over the holidays. It was the most beautiful, soft, sea blue color. Plus, tequila. 

Malibu Wave

• 1 oz. tequila
• 1/2 os. triple sec
• 1/8 oz. blue curacao
• 3 oz. sweet and sour mix
• 1 lime slice

Pour all but the lime slice in blender with ice. Blend until smooth. Pour into 14 oz. glass and garnish with lime. 

BlueBoar Inn - closed

Yelp San Francisco has listed this one as RIP. An article in the Chicago Tribune from 1987 states:

When San Francisco`s celebrated Blue Boar Restaurant burned down a couple of years ago, its owners transferred their cuisine to the Sonoma coast and created a European-style hideaway complete with indoor Jacuzzi, outdoor heated pool and a Horse and Gun Club.

Alas, there's precious little to go on between 1979 and 1984. One blogger, talking vividly of making an ass out of himself at various establishments in SF noted his wife saying "don't forget about the Blue Boar!" An ashtray on eBay. 

I wish I had more to say about it, in a major metropolitan city such as SF, I'm sure places like this die out every day. 

Blue Boar Nun

• 1 tbsp. dry cocoa mix
• 1 oz. black coffee, chilled
• 2 oz. half and half
• 1 oz. coffee liqueur
• 1 Italian cookie

Place dry cocoa in saucepan. Add coffee and stir, add half and half. Heat but do not boil. Add liqueur, stir. Pour into 5 oz. glass and serve with cookie. 

The Blind Lemon - open!

Another one that is open!

www.theblindlemon.com

The Blind Lemon is considered a whimsical bar, named after bluesman Blind Lemon Jefferson, with live music and lots of cocktails. Video tour shows a wall of distinguished guests, famous live acts who have graced the Blind Lemon stage. It's small, intimate, and the menu is nothing but booze.

Tastes change, and the I'm sure fabulous Howard's Surprise has given way to the Moscow Mule. I'll include the Surber's Revenge, because, well, champagne...

Surber's Revenge

• 1 1/2 oz. light rum
• 1/2 lime, squeezed for juice
• 1 tsp. honey
• champagne, chilled

Pour all ingredients, except champagne, over crushed ice in cocktail shaker. Shake well. Strain into 8 oz. glass. Fill with champagne. 

Blackbeard's Galley & Grog - closed

I'm sensing a consistency in searching out themed-restaurants from the 70s. Most exist only in souvenir sales on amazon, ebay, and memories on pinterest. Blackbeard's Galley & Grog is no exception.

Surprisingly scant information to be found, some bloggers say the restaurant didn't survive the 70s. It was part of the tiki bar craze of the same era. Ashtrays, logoed glasses, matchbooks, and menus seem to be all that is left.

Except this: the recipe for Pirate Grog exists on many different foodie sites, which looks like maybe your could get for $2.75, above. Too bad Shark's Tooth wasn't included in this recipe book.

Pirate Grog

• 1 1/2 oz. light rum
• 1/2 oz.  apricot brandy
• 1/2 oz. Falernum
• 2 oz. sweet and sour mix
• 1 oz. orange juice
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• 1/2 oz. dark rum
• 1 green cocktail cherry (edit: do these even exist anymore?)
• 1 maraschino cherry
• 1 pineapple chunk

Pour all ingredients except dark rum, pineapple and cherries into a cocktail shaker. Shake well. Pour into tall glass. float dark rum on drink. Garnish with fruit.

BANANAS! - closed

BANANAS! is no longer, replaced by a joint called Casa Alvarez. An internet search reveals affection for the place still exists in menus, buttons, and ads featuring dudes in hot tubs on Pinterest.

An oral history pdf from someone by the name of Wayne Dozier remembering BANANAS!:

"Opened Bananas in 1978. It was a contemporary, rock 'n' roll restaurant with up-tempo music ... Casually creative. It was the first restaurant in Boulder to serve deep-fried cheese. It was the first to serve taco salad in a giant fried tortilla chip. Its appeal cut a wide path. They thought it would appeal to the 25-30 age group but it attracted patrons from 18 to 85. It was located in Palmer Gardens at 30th and Walnut.

Bananas was more an "impulse" restaurant where customers were geographically close. However, for a number of years, Bananas was an architectural curiosity and pulled from many areas.

How Bananas got its name. The P.R. story claims it was because the architect went bananas figuring out its design. But actually, the architect thought up the name and it brought a smile to everyone they told it to. Architect was Victor Hough of Denver, who designed several of Wayne's establishments."

I cannot find a single photo of the restaurant to find out how bananas it really was.

This article states the interview was in 1990. Reading further, it also states Dozier began closing restaurants over the course of two years. So BANANAS! shuttered between 1988 and 1992.

From GetBoulder, and Forty Years of Nibbling:

If you were to take a time machine back to the 1970s... the favorite cuisine in our rapidly growing college/high-tech town was American... The ultimate example was Bananas (now Casa Alvarez), an eatery whose oddly named menu items—like “My Old Kenturkey Home,” a hot sandwich—were matched only by the thoroughly goofy design.

A crazy place like this deserves to be memorialized with a crazy drink.

Lola Granola

• 1 1/2 oz. amaretto liqueur
• 3 oz. orange juice
• 1 oz. half and half
• 1/2 banana
• 1/2 tsp. wheat germ

Place all bu the wheat germ in blender with 4oz. of ice. Blend until smooth. Pour into wineglass and garnish with wheat germ.