What would your ideal basement bar look like?
If you took the time (and had the money) to build a basement bar, what would yours look like?
This photo is of a basement bar in Timonium, and has a hunting lodge feel to it, with all the wood and whatnot. I'm not sure how I feel about it, actually. Might be a little too ... earthy ... for me.
My basement bar would have a bar made of solid gold, with bacon-paneled walls and a bar topped with genuine buffalo leather. Instead of bar stools, I'd have giant, custom-made leather armchairs. I'd have champagne on tap, and everyone would drink out of pewter beer horns.
Thoughts?
I dug through our photo archives and found some other basement bars in and around Baltimore. Check 'em out ...
This particular basement bar is too clean and streamlined for my tastes. I wonder how comfortable those chairs are, too.
Meh.
Now this is more like it.
Check out the photo caption:
For several years Chris Bannister has been lusting for an original "Ren Clark severed head" mug for his basement Tiki bar and collection. Ren Clark was a magician who operated a famous, now-defunct, tiki bar in Texas.
The wooden heads were part of the decor and now go for several hundred dollars apiece on EBay. Bannister, however, found a California sculptor who made reproductions for $30. The Ren Clark head will be the perfect addition to his basement bar, recently remodeled in tiki style.
YES! YES! YES!
Now, what would your basement bar look like?
(Top photo by Sun photographer Kenneth K. Lam. Middle photo by Sun photographer Algernia Perna. Bottom photo by Sun photographer Christopher T. Assaf)
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
Yes, definitely a tiki bar. We have the makings of one off to the side of our dining room, but it sure would be nice to have a whole basement to devote to it. Put a little waterfall/fountain down there, lots of thatch and bamboo, live plants.... Maybe someday, but not in this economy!
Posted by: Ryan Graham | January 30, 2009 1:09 PM
the top pic looks like the upstairs at JD's!
Posted by: Anonymous | January 30, 2009 3:00 PM
Sam--Once you get married you will prefer the bottom picture. You'll be worried about property values and what the neighbor children tell their parents after playing with your kids.
You will also replace beer with $20 bottle of Syrah and brag about how you got those god awful bar stools cheaper on Overstock.com than what they cost at the store in the strip mall. Oh, and you'll be sure to point out the extra back support they have.
When do you turn 30 again?????
Posted by: steve | January 30, 2009 4:15 PM
five years, steve. i've still got some time until then.
Posted by: Sam Sessa | January 30, 2009 4:21 PM
Thanks for the compliment. There are a few quailty home tiki bars around, look usd up @ the Fraternal Order of Moai. mahalo.
Posted by: Chris Bannister | February 1, 2009 8:43 PM