Geezer recalls the cocktail lounges of his early years

[grayhair]

Some memorable places I frequented in the '60s and have fond memories.  (Is that ridiculous or what?  Who remembers places you had a beer or two 50+ years ago?) 

6 West, Miami Springs, FL --  Place is  long gone but back in the day was jam packed with stewardesses (before they were called flight attendants. Talk about eye candy...)

Pier 66, Ft. Lauderdale, FL --  Revolving bar atop the high-rise hotel.  Definitely classy back then. 

The Elbo Room, Ft. Lauderdale -- Famous place from the movie, Connie Francis, spring brake antics.  Still there.  (Google it if you don't know about its' history.)

Mac's Famous Bar, Daytona Beach, FL -- Place burned years ago but it was a nice friendly place back in the day.

Gracie's, Main St., Daytona Beach -- long, long gone.  Used to be 5 cent draft beer.  What's not to like?

The Jade Tavern, Moorestown, NJ. -- Still there with a different name now.  Of't told story, famous for refusing to serve a beer to Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1950.  Manager grabbed a gun and chased him off the premises.   

Perhaps you also recall a few notables in your life with a memory or two to share.

Sorry for the stupid post - ramblings of an old guy.

Edited May 20, 2018 by grayhair

[Lmackattack]

I was not even my fathers thought back in the 60s but some of the good places I recall from the early 2000s.

Pepermill casino I80 in Wendover NV.  They picked you up in a golf cart in the truck stop lot and brought you to the front door of the casino for a free room.

cant recal the name but it was I80 in Truckee CA. cold springs road exit. there was a old restaurant tucked back from the road that every time I stopped in there was some sort of fun going on there. the locals were friendly and always had stories to share. I think its been bulldozed recently.

Siebkens Elkhart Lake, WI famous for the Road America Racetrack but that place has so many stories from truckers to race car drivers. its tamed down some but I never had a bad time there

The Ocean Deck Daytona Beach FL.... good times ,good views bike week was fun as well

 

 

[gxbxc]

you boys down under may not know of these places but they were the in places in  Sydney  in the late 1960's ,assoc motor club (had big bar slot machines and resturant ) Used to go in earlyplay the slots until we had enough extra money to pay for supper .Whiskey ago go, kind of a dive with plenty of hookers competing,same for the Cheetah .then there was The Texas Tavern up on the cross,they were not so much hookers as hustlers .getting a kickback on you food and drink sales then there was the Mandarin club  another gambling place.Best time I had was Christmas eve at a Greek social club. good food but the english girl I was with would only eat english food  .There is a circluar hotel on King street and the other side of the street was one strip club after another ,the hustlers really worked to get you in there 

Edited May 20, 2018 by gxbxc

[Freightrain]

Ya, I can only say for places in the 80's.

The Galaxy.   First bar I frequented during college.  It was a big place.   It closed a long time ago, but building still in use.

Limelight(there were two bars, one upstairs, one down, I forget the downstairs name right now).  Again, back in college days.   Long closed, but building just got another renovation and is now a home/garden joint.

Hot Shots.   Titty bar, early 90's.   It was a really good place to be back then.  $20 lasted all night.  It's long gone, local family grocery store next door bought the property and expanded.

[Hayseed]

9 hours ago, gxbxc said:

you boys down under may not know of these places but they were the in places in  Sydney  in the late 1960's ,assoc motor club (had big bar slot machines and resturant ) Used to go in earlyplay the slots until we had enough extra money to pay for supper .Whiskey ago go, kind of a dive with plenty of hookers competing,same for the Cheetah .then there was The Texas Tavern up on the cross,they were not so much hookers as hustlers .getting a kickback on you food and drink sales then there was the Mandarin club  another gambling place.Best time I had was Christmas eve at a Greek social club. good food but the english girl I was with would only eat english food  .There is a circluar hotel on King street and the other side of the street was one strip club after another ,the hustlers really worked to get you in there 

You forgot, the "Bourbon & Beefsteak".. Or hadn't It opened when you were on R&R...???

[gxbxc]

No Bourbon and beefsteak must have been after my times I was there Christmas 1969 and Oct 1970.  But I suddenly remembered a couple of teen age fight bars ,The Dialtone  Steak house (where you used a phone to call in your order I don't think they sold a steak after the first week)The two boweling allies  were also teenage fight clubs.and because it was a college town there were floating dance /booze parties  that would set up where ever  they could rent a space .At one time Danbury Ct had more bars than any other city it's size in Ct

[41chevy]

My Fathers Place in Roslyn  N.Y. lot of soon to be famous Rock Bands got their start there.

The Iron Horse in Glen Head   Biker bar when cycles had a bad image.

Cloud Nine  also in Glen Head  Big name groups played there in the late 60's early 70's , like Mountain, Country Joe and Warren Zevon.

Mimi's and Mimi's II on Boulevard Nguyen Hue in Saigon. Cheap beer and best looking Gai Diem girls. The owner had probably the only 1969 Boss 429 Mustang in Asia.

 

[VaPatentman]

Big Daddy's in South Florida and The Classics III in Metro Washington across from Andrews AFB, both were great places to meet the ladies. 😉 There were many more in the DC area. During the 70's  it seemed like there was a constant supply of young women coming from far and wide to work for the Government. The FBI had "Approved" apartment projects where the new employees would reside. We had about 2400 of approved units in our first due area during my early FD days. It made for some interesting calls.

[gxbxc]

didn't there used to be a Holiday inn by the key bridge that was a real hot spot pickup place  late 60's early 70's

[hatcity]

2 hours ago, gxbxc said:

No Bourbon and beefsteak must have been after my times I was there Christmas 1969 and Oct 1970.  But I suddenly remembered a couple of teen age fight bars ,The Dialtone  Steak house (where you used a phone to call in your order I don't think they sold a steak after the first week)The two boweling allies  were also teenage fight clubs.and because it was a college town there were floating dance /booze parties  that would set up where ever  they could rent a space .At one time Danbury Ct had more bars than any other city it's size in Ct

known as the Barbary coast

[grayhair]

3 hours ago, 41chevy said:

My Fathers Place in Roslyn  N.Y. lot of soon to be famous Rock Bands got their start there.

The Iron Horse in Glen Head   Biker bar when cycles had a bad image.

Cloud Nine  also in Glen Head  Big name groups played there in the late 60's early 70's , like Mountain, Country Joe and Warren Zevon.

Mimi's and Mimi's II on Boulevard Nguyen Hue in Saigon. Cheap beer and best looking Gai Diem girls. The owner had probably the only 1969 Boss 429 Mustang in Asia.

 

And Jeez, I forgot to mention a couple of wild places in Phillly.   (I was there in Philly until I got thrown out of Drexel University among other places.) 

The Trauma, and  of course The Old Electric Factory, saw The Grateful Dead, The Who, Otis Reading, etc., etc.  Absolutely crazy, jam packed joints in the late '60s.  

Edited May 20, 2018 by grayhair

[david wild]

L and L truck stop @ mile post 101, 1 fuel pump, don't think it worked, lots of party's though,  95er if you were into skanks.

[Lmackattack]

the dynasty or localy known as the Die Nasty..... just off the 401 just East of Toronto in the suburb of Oshawa. it was a strip club with a hotel attached to it. we stayed there a few times for the Race events at Mosport.    work all day. get back to the hotel to watch the birds dance and then go to bed. not a bad 3 days.

[Mack Technician]

Don't drop much coin at bars and generally underappreciate strip joints, but I like breweries. Maybe its atmosphere, but seems the best beer you will ever have is right at the brewery. Took a tour this month of an Old World German brewery in New Ulm, Mn. Lots of history behind some of them. This is the second oldest in the U.S.

Buncha Germans migrate to Ohio and Chicago, get fed up with industrial era America. Send a deligation north to find something that feels like home. Find New Ulm, perfect likeness, feel, landscape and climate of the old world. Guy decides there is no beer and too many Germans to suffer it. Builds a brewery up on the hill and brews up some nasty beer, doesn't have a clue how to brew. Goes out to different brewery in twin cities to work as a student and comes back to make some really good beer. Lives through the indian wars, has to evacuate at one point, locust invasion that wiped out grain supply. Survives the prohibition by making the "1919 root beer" and NA beer. Loses the use of his spring water because of poor farming practice. Decendants are still doing it........

 

 

Museum and equipment displays

 

 

German Hand-made "Sud Kessel" (brew pot)

 

 

 

Steam Drive pump

 

 

Beer Hall

 

 

 

 

Bottle Pass around to try variety then short open-tappers bar to end tour. 

 

 

 

Edited April 14, 2020 by Mack Technician

[BillyT]

Gray hair, we used to live in Lauderdale Lakes, remember pier 66! There was another tourist trap in Ft Lauderdale That I can't remember, paid 2.00  for a beer in 1970! Big money!  Got it! The Castaways! Ever been there? My favorite bar is Quaker Steak and Ale in Sharon Pa is on the Cuyahoga River in an old gas station.They have a race car hanging on the wall! The bar rail is made of driveshafts welded together I'll bet Freightrain has been there,right over the Ohio line, good wings!

[BillyT]

L mack,isn't Oshawa Neil youngs home town object of his song "helpless?"

[Lmackattack]

I just googled it and he was born in Ontario and moved to Omemee  .....Oshawa is about the center between both citys

 

[grayhair]

On 5/19/2018 at 9:18 PM, Lmackattack said:

I was not even my fathers thought back in the 60s but some of the good places I recall from the early 2000s.

Pepermill casino I80 in Wendover NV.  They picked you up in a golf cart in the truck stop lot and brought you to the front door of the casino for a free room.

cant recal the name but it was I80 in Truckee CA. cold springs road exit. there was a old restaurant tucked back from the road that every time I stopped in there was some sort of fun going on there. the locals were friendly and always had stories to share. I think its been bulldozed recently.

Siebkens Elkhart Lake, WI famous for the Road America Racetrack but that place has so many stories from truckers to race car drivers. its tamed down some but I never had a bad time there

The Ocean Deck Daytona Beach FL.... good times ,good views bike week was fun as well

 

 

Yeah, Peppermill is cool.  about 2 miles from the salt flats.  Stayed there several times during Speed week at Bonneville.

And yep Ocean Deck is still there, I think,  At least it was several years ago.  Don't know if it survived the recent several years hurricanes.

[DCR]

On 5/27/2018 at 9:56 PM, BillyT said:

Gray hair, we used to live in Lauderdale Lakes, remember pier 66! There was another tourist trap in Ft Lauderdale That I can't remember, paid 2.00  for a beer in 1970! Big money!  Got it! The Castaways! Ever been there? My favorite bar is Quaker Steak and Ale in Sharon Pa is on the Cuyahoga River in an old gas station.They have a race car hanging on the wall! The bar rail is made of driveshafts welded together I'll bet Freightrain has been there,right over the Ohio line, good wings!

The name is Quaker Steak and Lube in Sharon, PA and it is on the Shenango River. It is located in a former Quaker State gas station and is a very unique bar/restaurant well known for their wings. They franchised locations in several states.  They recently went bankrupt and were bought by TA, yes the truck stop company.

[other dog]

On 5/20/2018 at 9:41 AM, gxbxc said:

No Bourbon and beefsteak must have been after my times I was there Christmas 1969 and Oct 1970.  But I suddenly remembered a couple of teen age fight bars ,The Dialtone  Steak house (where you used a phone to call in your order I don't think they sold a steak after the first week)The two boweling allies  were also teenage fight clubs.and because it was a college town there were floating dance /booze parties  that would set up where ever  they could rent a space .At one time Danbury Ct had more bars than any other city it's size in Ct

The fighting reminded me of a place near here on rt. 501, a few miles south of Lynchburg, just called "The 501 Club". It was just a redneck beer-joint place, been closed for years, but there's some kind of business still there. I was only there one time, in the early 80's, but the running joke about the place was that they asked you at the door if you had a knife or a gun, and if you didn't they would loan you one.