The Bar Journal

Cocktail Lounge 

This week we start our tour with a touch of elegance talking about the cocktail lounge bar. If you fancy a drink in a pleasant but formal atmosphere, the cocktail lounge is an upscale bar typically located within a hotel, club, restaurant or airport. 

The most relevant characteristic of this venue is the creative combination between a fine cocktail selection, an exquisite dining service and graceful art: here charming pieces of decor are harmonised with stylish lounge bar seatings and tables. The common retro design and the richly textured chairs and couches offer a comfortable environment where to socialise, organise meetings and even work. In fact, the feeling of being in a quiet space similar to a lecture room or a library, is enhanced by the tranquil lounge music which ranges from instrumental tones to modern electronica with chill-out and downtempo rhythms. 

When you want to experience the cultural vibes of the Bloomsbury area in central London, a visit to The Coral Room is highly recommended: start with a bubbly afternoon tea and carry on with the interesting flavours of new seasonal cocktails: experience the comfort of your own living room and the classy feeling of a fashionable theatrical stage!

Hotel Bar 

Following a higher level of elegance and luxury among well-known bar categories, we consider the hotel bars: usually located within rich historical establishments, hotel bars range from simple and modest versions, to more exclusive (and costly) ones. Although their principal aim was to offer extra service to the hotel accommodation for visitors and travellers, several bars end up representing really famous names in the drink industry of a city. 

Respectful hotel bars place particular attention on the high standards of service, creative cocktails, luxurious decoration and architecture of the venue, which can often display spectacular views from the heights of a rooftop.

Sometimes knowing the origins of a specific hotel bar, might well intensify the sensation of magnificence when visiting the place. Consider for example The Connaught in central Mayfair, London: during the I World Was the existing hotel was named after the seventh child of Queen Victoria, the Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn. Visited by the highest personalities of England also in the most recent years (in 1992 both Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles attended exceptional occasions), the historical complex embodies a museal value. Today clients experience no less than a royal welcome when arriving at The Connaught Bar: enjoy an aristocratic treat with master mixologists stirring flavours of the past and present to arise your finest senses. Sip the finest cocktails in one of the most elegant English environments in town but don’t forget the danger for your expenses!   

Fern Bar

Moving towards a less known bar category, we highlight a very peculiar drinking establishment: fern bars. Popular in the American scenario of the ‘70s and ’80s, these venues were also defined as ‘yuppie’ or ‘preppy’ (in reference to ‘preparatory schools’) for the young age of the clients addressed. Fern bars originated in the Upper East side of New York from the idea of Alan Stillman to revolutionise the ‘guys beer-drinking’ industry: in 1965 he renovated a local saloon with Tiffany-style lamps, wooden tables and floors, brass rails and ferns to create a comfortable cocktail party atmosphere for the numerous ladies of the neighborhood. In fact, at that time several young women working as airline hostesses, fashion models and secretaries, were looking for a public place to hang out on weekend nights: they finally found their ‘homey’ venue at TGI Friday (Thank God it’s Friday!), which later developed into the casual restaurant franchise. 

The popular fern bar was a meeting space for single ladies in their 20s and 30s who quickly attracted also the local male population: the concept was replicated by other bars, spreading a new trend across the entire country. Signature fern drinks are wine spritzers, Lemon Drop Martinis, frozen daiquiris, Harvey Wallbangers, piña coladas and any other cocktail with a strong fruity or sweet component. 

Thanks to the greenery (and sometimes rosé) decor of the ambience, today fern bars have been revitalised in certain urban areas by a modern hipster style. Among the most common venues spread in California, have a look at the airy, plant-filled space of Fern Bar in San Francisco: here the fine biodiverse cuisine adds to the selection of cocktails containing fresh garden products. As a subcultural drinking establishment, you might well appreciate the natural feeling amplified by a live music evening in one of the most environmentally-friendly bars of the world! 

From the Public House to the Irish Pub

Talking about bars, how to forget the history of Irish Pubs? Incorporating the wine drinking trend left by ancient Roman taverns and the Celtic Ale brews (Bruigu) within the dwellings of private families, Irish Public Houses became the most popular form of accommodation for travelers in the 17th and 18th century. Affectionate to the local communities were tradesmen, politicians, poets and revolutionaries, intrigued by sports and political debates of the barmen-storytellers. Competing with other establishments like ‘Shabeens’ and ‘Spirit Grocers’ selling wine, beer and spirits illegally, Public Houses respected often strict legal regulations (for example, they had to be built at crossroads, provide a warm cauldron and lightning outside all the time). 

On the other side, these venues provided also an escape from the binding costumes of the time: anyone who didn’t want to be seen drinking in public (policemen, priests, lovers, and women too) enjoyed more expensive drinks in a small closed room called snug, which was attached to the end of the bar counter. 

Abbreviated to ‘Pubs’ by the mid of the 19th century, Irish Public Houses have been always owned by an independent owner (the Publican) whereas British pubs have been usually property of breweries and corporates: in both cases, their official opening to women only in recent decades, modernised their style with classier lounges and much cleaner spaces.

Today, gig into the real Irish folk music and storytelling at one of Dublin’s oldest pubs, the Brazen Head. Centrally located since 1198, the Public House was a primary scenario for several historical events. Sipping a pint of Guinness or an Irish Coffee in the same rooms visited by famous literature men, like Brendan Behan and James Joyce, you will savor the feeling of conviviality and hospitality proper of an Irish Public House!

SALUTE!