Ever heard of Hooper's?
Hung out at a little corner bar called Hooper's the other night.
It's right by Saute (2844 Hudson St.), but I can't find anything about it online -- which makes me like it even more ...
My buddy Fenton and I were the only ones there besides the bartender, who sat on a stool and watched The Perfect Storm on a big flat screen TV.
The TV, much like the beer prices, were way out of place. A bottle of Yuengling (none of the taps work) cost $3! But a game of pool was only 50 cents. Hmmm ...
I liked the wood paneling on the walls. Even though the smoking ban started months ago, the place still had a lingering odor of ciggys.
If the beer was cheaper I'd drop by the next time I'm in the area. But Saute is only a block over, and a draft of Clipper City McHenry was about $4 there. So I'll take a bigger selection of better beer for a buck more.
I've been The Baltimore Sun's nightlife and local entertainment reporter for a couple years, and it's surprising how much the scene has grown in that time. Most of Baltimore's bars and clubs are unpretentious places with fairly cheap drinks and plenty of character. I like dancing and think this city needs more clubs, but nothing beats having a cold, locally brewed beer with friends in a comfortably full corner bar.
Comments
Hoopers is a pretty sketchy place. I've heard it's been shut down for serving minors on a few occasions. The owners also randomly close doors for weeks at a time of their own accord. Probably only open to keep their liquor license valid, though they did just put up a new, not-so-fancy sign...
Posted by: dave | June 13, 2008 1:42 PM
Hey wasn't Hooper the Richard Dreyfuss character in the original Jaws?
Posted by: Don | June 13, 2008 2:00 PM
Dive bars should have dive prices.
Posted by: Drew from Greektown | June 13, 2008 2:18 PM
Hear hear! The prices at Hooper's were all swoll.
Posted by: Sam Sessa | June 13, 2008 2:55 PM
maybe they charged you more cuz you weren't a regular...seems their plan worked
Posted by: jm giordano | June 13, 2008 6:47 PM
I went in there a few years ago and the three guys started snickering at me. I was thinking what's the joke. (Besides the fact I couldn't believe this place qualified as a bar) I found out when I went to the bathroom. The walls were covered from floor to ceiling with centerfolds, I mean the nasty centerfolds your embarrassed to look at and feel sorry for the 'women' who posed in them. I'm not trying to get you to go back there Sam and find out. There's a reason I'm anonymous for this post. I went to Hooper's.
Posted by: Anonymous | June 13, 2008 6:52 PM
Sam,
as you tell, Hooper's selection & prices were nothing to write home about, merely decent.
Posted by: GDA | June 13, 2008 6:54 PM