Tuesday, November 29, 2011

The Bar at 327 Braun Court part II


Mr. Connor Barrie and I went to the Bar at 327 Braun Court last week for its soft open. Despite the torrential downpour, it was packed, but we managed to get a table in the corner. We've filed our report below: keep it in mind, as the bar is now open Tuesday through Saturday nights.

GH: First up: $9 drinks. I liked them a lot, but $9 sort of keeps it from being my regular neighborhood bar.


BCB: The cocktails were mighty tasty, but yes, $9 is a bit pricey, especially for a place calling itself an "upscale dive."

Next point: Ambiance. Loved the salvage wood tables and crazy light fixtures. I was not so crazy about how dim it was. C'mon people, we don't look that ugly, do we? Bonus points for playing "Love Cats" by The Cure.

GH: Dim lighting is in keeping with the loungey feel — let's just forget the "upscale dive" thing, it's not apt — but yes, it was a little too dark. It was hard to admire the taxidermy! Some of the decorations were a little too self-consciously kitschy, but the design is pretty cool. There's a great big banquette in the back that looked great, and there's table service! Very classy. The music was definitely cool, it made me feel very trendy when I recognized a song.

BCB: Ok, the name is cumbersome, what do you think people will end up calling this establishment for short? Calling it "The Bar" seems confusing. Calling it "Braun Court" seems imprecise. What's your take?

GH: I ran into friends on Saturday who were going to check out "the new bar", but who knows how long that will last. "The Braun Court Bar"? Seems kind of weird too. I think it would have been better to give it an actual name, even if it's not the *perfect* one. When I was in college there was a local bar called 1020, which was on 1020 Amsterdam Avenue. Three-Two-Seven? That could work.

BCB: Three-Two-Seven has a nice ring to it. I won't name names, but one member of our party doubted the Bar at Braun Court would be open for much more than 6 months. What's your take G$?

GH: I think it'll last a while. There aren't a lot of bars in the Kerrytown area and now there's a bit of a corridor between Aut and The Bar at 327 Braun Court. It's definitely an adult feel, but not stodgy in the least. Given that so many grad students live in Kerrytown, I can see it having a long life - I'm definitely rooting for that.

BCB: I think The Bar at 327 Braun Court definitely flushes out the bar hopping options for the Kerrytown area. For a sizable number of people, it's now the closest bar.

GH: And in matters of alcohol, convenience is a powerful factor.

The Bar at 327 Braun Court (N. Fourth Ave., b/w Catherine and Kingsley). Tue-Thu, 7 PM – 2 AM; Fri, 5PM – 2 AM; Sat, 7 PM – 2 AM

Previously:
The Bar at 327 Braun Court

9 comments:

  1. I think I'm going to go with "The Braun"

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  2. So for those of us who don't want to drop $9 on a cocktail, how's the beer selection?

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  3. $5/pt rotating Michigan microbrew drafts.
    $3/bottle for Genesee Beer bottles. Note: not from Michigan.

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  4. Yes, do please tell us how the beer selection is.

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  5. There were somewhat unsubstantiated allegations of "skunkiness" from one of the beer bottles consumed by our party (Bells, I believe), but this could have just been paranoia...

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  6. @anon, Beer selection was reasonable, if not exhaustive. Good selection (~12) of microbrew bottles with a few rotating microbrew taps.

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  7. The beer selection was pretty bad. It's not a beer drinkers bar. They also use chilled glasses, which is a definite no-no for anyone even remotely seriously into beer.

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  8. This place will last a while. These dudes run deeply enough in the AA hipster circles to keep things afloat with just their friends being the customer base.
    I'm not sure I'm "cool" enough to get in the door though. That's ok, I can't afford $9 cocktails anyway. I think the film screenings do sound interesting though.

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  9. Yeah, I was wondering about the beer selection myself and figured it wouldn't be awesome. But I kind of look at this as an opportunity to try new things!

    Anonymous, I can't afford $9 cocktails either, but I am planning on checking out the AAFF event there on Thursday.

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