From classic cocktails to “celebrity mixologists,” from the retro whisky craze to craft beer, it seems everything related to bars has been hot in recent years - except the bars and drinkers themselves.
Finally, the world’s watering holes and their loving patrons are getting the attention they deserve, the subject of not one, but two new books, both released just in time for the holiday season. Either (or both) might make the perfect gift for the imbiber, traveler, film buff or literary fan on your list - and both have great titles.
Come Here Often? (53 Writers Raise A Glass To Their Favorite Bar) is a collection of original essays, edited by Sean Manning, who has previously done anthologies on writers’ favorite books and critics’ favorite music, so this is clearly right in his wheelhouse. The book, from its introduction and forward to cover, is a respectful ode to the bar as social convention and gathering place. As Manning, referencing social media and online shopping, writes, “Seriously, what the hell do you need to leave your house for anymore? The bar is one of the last bastions of human interaction. ‘Public houses’ they were once called: it’s a moniker that seems more and more deserving to be revived.”
The book is divided by type of bar into nine thematic sections such as, “Dives, Upscale Joints, Far Flung, and The Music.” I was very happy to see that one of the live music bar essays was by Duff McKagan, a member of the greatest rock and roll band in history, with the possible exception of Led Zeppelin, Guns n Roses. Duff’s pick was also - much to my chagrin - one of the few bars in the book I had actually been to, and I consider myself pretty well traveled in this particular respect. Far Flung takes us to corners of the world like Antarctica, Croatia and Kiribati, while a huge range of domestic destinations are represented, from the expected (Nashville, New Orleans, Austin, NY, LA) to the offbeat (Iowa City, Akron and Corydon, Indiana). Between the bars, locales, themes and the writers themselves, there is something here for pretty much everyone (Paperback, Black Balloon Publishing, $16).
Of All the Gin Joints (Stumbling through Hollywood History) is sensational stories of drinking and excess by Hollywood celebrities, and as much focused on the individuals and incidents as the colorful venues where they occurred: places like Musso & Frank’s, Don The Beachcomber, and Café Trocadero. This book is not as focused on the bars themselves, but rather as described in its press release, is a “spirited look at America’s most iconic silver-screen legends and the decadent, alcohol-soaked world of Hollywood fame and fortune.” However, it does have a specific emphasis on many renowned Hollywood watering holes such as Ciro’s, the Hotel Bel-Air, Rainbow Bar & Grill and Trader Vic’s. The book is broken up into eras, from silent film to New Hollywood, spanning almost a century, 1895-1979. Each of these is further divided into one to four page vignettes of individual stars (like John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, Ava Gardner, Cary Grant and Jackie Gleason), histories of the aforementioned venues, and recipes for favorite cocktails. It’s more of scrapbook approach, full of boxes and sidebars and illustrated with numerous cartoons by Edward Hemingway, while the stories are funny, sad and at times, unbelievable in the way only Hollywood could pull off (by Mark Bailey, hardcover, Algonquin, $22).
Come Here Often? is more philosophical, global and cerebral, if you can say that about a book on bars, while Of All the Gin Joints is more pop culture entertainment and history, but they work well together, and both are very entertaining reads.
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