If you could walk into a bar and have five beers of your choice on tap, what would they be?
That's this week's Fab Five Friday.
Mmmm ... my mouth is watering at the sight of the cold, frothy cups in this photo.
Think about it: cinco cervesas (That's Spanish!).
I'll list mine in just a few days.
(AP Photo)
Good morning kids.
It's time for the five best gay- or gay-friendly bars in Baltimore.
This was a tough list for me, because my list of MS reader suggestions was rather ... limited.
But, being the brave leader that I am, I have decided to go ahead with the list. Here it is ...
Yesterday's fire at Grand Central (and a timely suggestion by MS commenter a) got me thinking.
How about a Fab Five Friday list of the best gay- and lesbian-friendly bars in Greater Baltimore?
I say Greater Baltimore because there aren't too many in Baltimore proper.
I'm going to be relying pretty heavily on your suggestions. So hit me with them.
(Photo of the Hippo from Sun archives)
Stink, stank, stunk.
Are you ready for the smelliest Baltimore bars?
Here's a link with the back story, if you're new to the topic.
And now, it's time for the list ...
In light of our rousing discussion about body odor and ciggy smoke, I'd like to make this week's FFF a list of the five stinkiest Baltimore bars and clubs.
You may tee hee, but I'm at least halfway serious here folks.
It's time we noted the bars and clubs that need to clean up their act so we can take the clothespins off our schnozes.
So give me your suggestions for stinky stinky Baltimore bars.
Hurry -- we don't have much time!
(Photo by Chicago Tribune)
And now, it's time for Fab Five Friday: Destination Dundalk.
Oh, yes indeed.
Using a mix of your recommendations and my own personal prowess, I have compiled the five best bars in Dundalk.
Let me preface this list by saying that no FFF is the end-all be-all of anything. So don't take this too seriously, folks.
But I'm always down for a good debate.
So here goes ...
Now that I've gotten a taste of Dundalk courtesy of JMGiordano, I'd like to make this week's Fab Five Friday the five best bars in Dundalk.
We went to five alone Saturday night. Of the five, two or three were hits, and the other couple were misses.
But I want to hear from you guys.
What are the best places to go drinking in Dundalk?
(Photo by Lloyd Fox/Sun Photographer)
In hindsight, I probably should have broken down this week's Fab Five Friday: Best Bars of the 'Burbs' into three or four FFFs by county.
But here at Midnight Sun, we've never played by the rules.
So, using your ideas, I compiled the five best suburban bars in Greater Baltimore.
Ready?
Here goes ...
I rarely review bars in the 'burbs.
So many bars have been renovated and reopened in Baltimore proper, it's hard enough for me to just cover the city -- let alone the suburbs.
I want to try and make amends this week.
What are the best all-around non-chain bars in the suburbs?
Since I don't know that many, I'm going to need plenty of input.
Fill me in.
(Photo of An Poitin Stil from Sun archives)
Picking the perfect last call song can be tricky.
Some bars play atrocious closing songs just to get people out.
Others aim for a slow, recognizable tune to ease people down.
Here's my list of the five best last call songs:
1. "Closing Time" by Semisonic (pictured)
The best closing song ever! It's about ... closing time! At a bar!
Just kidding.
Here's the real list ...
There's no denying it -- we struck a nerve with last week's fake band name FFF.
So this week, I'm going to stick with a musical theme and ask you:
What's the best last call song?
If you're a bar owner, what do you play?
If you're a bar-goer, what would you like to hear at the end of the night?
(AP file photo of a London pub taken close to closing time)
At first, I thought I'd list my favorite fake band names.
But you guys had so many awesome suggestions, I couldn't compete.
So I'm not even going to bother with my own.
I'm just going to rank yours.
No. 1 gets a prize.
Some of them were sick.
Some of them were hilarious.
Some of them were hilariously sick.
Here they are, your five best fake band suggestions, in order ...
Oh man, I've got a good FFF this week.
If you had a band, what would you call it?
I'm looking for the five best fake band names.
I'll rank yours and give you mine at the end of the week.
Go!
More than any other cocktail, the mojito is the quintessential summer drink, methinks.
When made well, the icy mix of sugar, lime, mint, rum and soda water tickles my fancy.
And Baltimore has a few bars and clubs that make really good mojitos.
Here they are ...
Last week's warm weather FFF got me thinking about mojitos.
I wrote about mojitos once before on MS, but I've never ranked them.
They're minty. They're sweet. They're cold. They're a treat.
It's time for FFF: Mojitos.
Who do you think has Baltimore's best mojito?
(Photograph of a mojito from Little Havana from Sun archives)
With warmer weather finally here, we can take advantage of all the bars with ouside seating.
Here are my five favorite places for outdoor swilling.
1. Woody's Rum Bar and Island Grill, 821 S. Broadway
It can be tricky to find this third-story deck the first time, but once you do, you won't want to leave. It has the best view of the Fells Point waterfront and $2 Coronas from 5 p.m. 'till close Thursdays.
2. Little Havana, 1325 Key Highway
With or without the steel ship, and as Greg S said, the fenced in back patio has a "prison-by-the-harbor feel." But the mojitos are some of the city's best, and there is no better summer drink than an ice cold, minty mojito.
3. Nick's Fish House, 2600 Insulator Drive
Yes, the crowd here can get a little frat-tastic on Friday and Saturday nights, but the live music is usually good and the wooden deck is pretty big. It's usually one big throwdown, and I like that.
4. MEX, Power Plant Live
MEX has the biggest wooden deck downtown, and some pretty solid drink specials too.
5. Bay Cafe, 2809 Boston St.
A taste of Ocean City right here in Baltimore! Seriously though, the Cafe is a mecca for the college and post-college crowd. And it does have one of the best outdoor drinking/carousing areas in town, as well as decent deals on rum drinks.
A couple of people asked to do a list of the best bars with outdoor seating.
Now, Epicurious L.I.Z. did a Top Ten Tuesday topic on this last year, but she focused on restaurants.
Here at Midnight Sun, we don't worry about food.
Except the epic Jumbo Slice.
And bacon vodka. Is that technically food though?
Anyhow, I'm not going to repeat any of the restaurants on L.I.Z.'s list.
Come Friday, I'm gonna give ya the five best spots to sit and sip outside.
But first, I need to hear your favorite suggestions for sunny day swilling.
Hit me!
(Photo of Little Havana from Sun archives)
What a delicious topic, eh FMEB-bers?
A free one too, I might add.
Here we are -- the five best free bar snacks in Baltimore.
Thanks for your suggestions, too.
1. Personal pizzas at Birds of a Feather, 1712 Aliceanna St.
This one wins by a long shot. On Friday evenings, owner Alicia Horn brings out homemade personal pizzas for her customers. They're fantastic.
2. Old Bay cheese balls/doodles (pictured) at Quigley's Half-Irish Pub, 633 Portland St.
Jim Quigley claims to have invented these addictive snacks, and I'm not one to doubt him. Either way, I can't get enough of them.
3. UTZ hard pretzels at Duda's Tavern, 1600 Thames St.
Crunchy and salty enough to keep you reaching for the big plastic jar on the bar all night.
4. Peanuts at the Midtown Yacht Club, 15 E. Centre St.
On my way in, I always stop by the giant barrel of peanuts and scoop up a generous handful. Then I worry about getting a drink.
5. Garlic knots at Pasticcio Kitchen, 2400 Boston St.
Here's a happy hour snack that can easily replace dinner before a night out in Canton. Mmmm ... garlic knots.
(Photo by me)
After last week's discussion, this was an easy choice.
I've decided to make this week's FFF topic the top five best free bar snacks.
The caveat is, they have to be something the bar sets out for free.
Like the free Old Bay cheese balls at Quigleys, which just might be on my list.
The hard Utz pretzels Duda's in Fells Point also might be on the list.
What else can you think of?
(Photo by KRT)
In retrospect, this Fab Five idea sounded better than it actually was.
Some of you might compare it to bacon vodka.
Either way, the list of the most un-Baltimore spots stands:
1. Pur Lounge, 2322 Boston St.
An easy choice. Nowhere else charges a $20 cover. Viva Miami!
2. Ixia, 518 N. Charles St.
This lounge is un-Baltimore in a good way, methinks. It has a nitro bar. A nitro bar. That's too forward-thinking for Charm City.
3. Stadio/Palma/Redwood Trust, Redwood and Calvert streets (pictured)
This massive club has changed hands so many times I'm not sure what to call it. Either way, it never really fit in here.
4. Xanadu, 10 S. Calvert St.
Formerly Club X Ultra Lounge, this high-end club has little character -- and Baltimore is all about character.
5. The Den, 3327 St. Paul St.
I feel like I'm in another city when I go here.
(Photo by Amy Davis/Sun Photographer)
Ever been out to a bar and immediately thought, "That doesn't belong in Baltimore"?
This week, I want to list the most un-Baltimore bars around town.
I'm not talking about chain bars that are un-Baltimore in a generic sense, but bars that stick out like a sore thumb and make you wonder how they're still in business in Charm City.
Give me some suggestions.
When it comes to free live music, we don't have it that bad in Baltimore.
There are a bunch of bars around town with consistently high-quality live music.
Ready to rank them? I sure am.
Here goes!
1. Cat's Eye Pub, 1730 Thames St.
From Carl Filipiak to Naked Blue, I have seen some sick shows in this Fells Point pub. They have live music seven days a week -- most nights it's either free or there's a small cover.
2. Bertha's, 734 S. Broadway (pictured)
Bertha's sounds really good -- especially considering how long and narrow it is.
3. Bedrock Baltimore, 401 W. Baltimore St.
Much, much better now that the stage is no long 10 feet off the ground. The high ceilings make for solid acoustics.
4. Brass Monkey Saloon, 1601 Eastern Ave.
When beginner bands need a place to play, the Monkey is there for them. Gotta give it props for helping local groups find their footing.
5. Red House Tavern, 2239 Essex St.
This bar's weekly open jams and regular live performances are worth checking out.
(Photo by Kim Hairston/Sun Photographer)
Don't think I made this clear enough with yesterday's Fab Five post.
I'm looking for bars with consi
