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We have a trivia question in order to register to prevent bots. If you have any issues with answering, contact us at cass@bartowel.com for help.
Introducing Light Mode! If you would like a Bar Towel social experience that isn't the traditional blue, you can now select Light Mode. Go to the User Control Panel and then Board Preferences, and select "Day Drinking" (Light Mode) from the My Board Style drop-down menu. You can always switch back to "Night Drinking" (Dark Mode). Enjoy!
Clark's Ale House in Syracuse is closing this weekend
- hops are your friend
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- Location: Ottawa
Clark's Ale House in Syracuse is closing this weekend
I got an email today that says Clark's Ale House is closing. The last day is this Saturday (Sept 25). By coincidence we are heading down this weekend, so we will get a couple more visits to this great beer bar.
Here's the message:
CLARKS WILL BE CLOSING - SATURDAY SEPT 25 LAST DAY OF BUSINESS
We are sad to announce that after 18 wonderful years Clark's Ale House will be closing. Our last day of business will be Saturday September 25 ! (Yes this week !) We apologize for the short notice but circumstances related to the expansion of the Landmark Theatre were beyond our control.
Words cannot describe how grateful we are for the 18 years of your patronage ! Great People respond to Great Ideas - You, the customers, have made Clarks the very special and unique place it has been. We will miss you all !
Please visit us this week and enjoy a sandwich and pint or two.... we have some special kegs that we have been cellering ... including a 2007 Sierra Nevada Bigfoot and 2007 Sierra Nevada Celebration .... SO COME ON DOWN AND HELP US FINISH OUR BEER ! ! ! ! !
Here's the message:
CLARKS WILL BE CLOSING - SATURDAY SEPT 25 LAST DAY OF BUSINESS
We are sad to announce that after 18 wonderful years Clark's Ale House will be closing. Our last day of business will be Saturday September 25 ! (Yes this week !) We apologize for the short notice but circumstances related to the expansion of the Landmark Theatre were beyond our control.
Words cannot describe how grateful we are for the 18 years of your patronage ! Great People respond to Great Ideas - You, the customers, have made Clarks the very special and unique place it has been. We will miss you all !
Please visit us this week and enjoy a sandwich and pint or two.... we have some special kegs that we have been cellering ... including a 2007 Sierra Nevada Bigfoot and 2007 Sierra Nevada Celebration .... SO COME ON DOWN AND HELP US FINISH OUR BEER ! ! ! ! !
- SteelbackGuy
- Beer Superstar
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- Seasoned Drinker
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If this is true, it will end one of the premier pubs in North America, and one that was cherished by Michael Jackson.
I will GREATLY miss their sandwich and relaxed atmosphere. If this closing was in Ottawa I would be devestated. One less stop in Syracuse, one big blow for beer in Upper State NY.
The Tusk will inherit the earth.
I will GREATLY miss their sandwich and relaxed atmosphere. If this closing was in Ottawa I would be devestated. One less stop in Syracuse, one big blow for beer in Upper State NY.
The Tusk will inherit the earth.
Ian Guénard
http://www.bieresetplaisirs.com/index.php
http://www.bieresetplaisirs.com/index.php
- northyorksammy
- Seasoned Drinker
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this is most unfortunate, as it was a great bar that I enjoyed so much
The other places are bustling busy, the music is loud, and I guess that's where the money is. I hope these places at least have a quiet time where mature people can enjoy their beer, their thoughts, some good conversation instead of fighting over the music
The other places are bustling busy, the music is loud, and I guess that's where the money is. I hope these places at least have a quiet time where mature people can enjoy their beer, their thoughts, some good conversation instead of fighting over the music
-
- Seasoned Drinker
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Sorry to hear this. Fortunately I was there a couple of months ago, and the experience was as good as ever. It sounds like development in the area has caused this, and while not mentioned in the story, perhaps it means it will open before long in another location. The beer I had there was made by Matt's Brewing, called Prior, a dark lager which was one of the beers recognized for high quality prior to the craft revolution. Matt's bought the recipe from the brewery which had made it in Pennsylvania and usually sells it under the name Saranac Black Forest, but occasionally uses the Prior name (for some of the draft I think). The full original name was Prior Double Dark. In an old industrial town like Syracuse, it was appropriate somehow to taste a beer that was a bridge to the craft era. Clark's will be missed but one hopes it will arise again.
And by the by, I can't agree more with Sam regarding music. It seems almost unavoidable today, just recently in Louisville tasting craft beer I was disturbed by the inane pounding from the sound system. Music seems a part of most of our bars and pubs in Toronto today too. I wouldn't mind it so much if the volume was kept low, as background, but too often it is so loud. I dislike it in the extreme and cannot understand why bar owners feel they have to play this game. Whatever happened to listening simply to other people, ambient traffic when outside and other natural sounds?
Gary
And by the by, I can't agree more with Sam regarding music. It seems almost unavoidable today, just recently in Louisville tasting craft beer I was disturbed by the inane pounding from the sound system. Music seems a part of most of our bars and pubs in Toronto today too. I wouldn't mind it so much if the volume was kept low, as background, but too often it is so loud. I dislike it in the extreme and cannot understand why bar owners feel they have to play this game. Whatever happened to listening simply to other people, ambient traffic when outside and other natural sounds?
Gary
Gary Gillman
That's what the article linked below says.It sounds like development in the area has caused this, and while not mentioned in the story, perhaps it means it will open before long in another location.
Perhaps it'll re-open at a different location.A note to customers from owner Ray Clark apologizes for the abrupt closing, and says it’s due to the need for the Landmark Theatre, which houses the bar at 122 W. Jefferson St., to begin work on its planned expansion project.
Clark’s had nearly two years remaining on its lease, and Ray Clark had previously said he would continue to operate at that location through the end of the lease while seeking new quarters for his bar. The Landmark Theatre bought out the remainder of Clark's lease.
http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/ ... meric.html
- northyorksammy
- Seasoned Drinker
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- Joined: Thu Nov 04, 2004 11:17 am
- Location: Eglinton and Yonge
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I had a server once tell me, when asked to turn it down, that they like the music to work to. I suggested they serve themselves and I left. Do people go to bars or restaurants to talk to each other anymore or is it just to be blasted or watch a stupid game on TV? Why don't they just stay home if they have no social skills to exercise?G.M. Gillman wrote: And by the by, I can't agree more with Sam regarding music. It seems almost unavoidable today, just recently in Louisville tasting craft beer I was disturbed by the inane pounding from the sound system. Music seems a part of most of our bars and pubs in Toronto today too. I wouldn't mind it so much if the volume was kept low, as background, but too often it is so loud. I dislike it in the extreme and cannot understand why bar owners feel they have to play this game. Whatever happened to listening simply to other people, ambient traffic when outside and other natural sounds?
Gary
Brands are for cattle.
Fans are cash cows.
The herd will consume until consumed.
Fans are cash cows.
The herd will consume until consumed.
I know the topic is about bars/pubs, but some of these tips should apply.Tapsucker wrote:I had a server once tell me, when asked to turn it down, that they like the music to work to. I suggested they serve themselves and I left. Do people go to bars or restaurants to talk to each other anymore or is it just to be blasted or watch a stupid game on TV? Why don't they just stay home if they have no social skills to exercise?G.M. Gillman wrote: And by the by, I can't agree more with Sam regarding music. It seems almost unavoidable today, just recently in Louisville tasting craft beer I was disturbed by the inane pounding from the sound system. Music seems a part of most of our bars and pubs in Toronto today too. I wouldn't mind it so much if the volume was kept low, as background, but too often it is so loud. I dislike it in the extreme and cannot understand why bar owners feel they have to play this game. Whatever happened to listening simply to other people, ambient traffic when outside and other natural sounds?
Gary
http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/2 ... -part-one/
http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/0 ... do-part-2/
100 Things Restaurant Staffers Should Never Do
Number 91 "The music is not for the staff — it’s for the customers"
If Clark's Ale House opens in another location I hope someone will post it in the local guides forum.
Cheers
Frank
Thanks Frank, That NYTimes list is great. I've had the pleasure of eating in some fantastic places, but I don't think I have ever had a server who got all of those right. It just goes to prove how service is a true profession that the dedicated may end up taking a lifetime to perfect.
Brands are for cattle.
Fans are cash cows.
The herd will consume until consumed.
Fans are cash cows.
The herd will consume until consumed.
I'd never want to eat at any place where the server got all of those "right". Sounds like Nazi Germany to me.Tapsucker wrote:Thanks Frank, That NYTimes list is great. I've had the pleasure of eating in some fantastic places, but I don't think I have ever had a server who got all of those right. It just goes to prove how service is a true profession that the dedicated may end up taking a lifetime to perfect.
- SteelbackGuy
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JesseMcG wrote:I'd never want to eat at any place where the server got all of those "right". Sounds like Nazi Germany to me.Tapsucker wrote:Thanks Frank, That NYTimes list is great. I've had the pleasure of eating in some fantastic places, but I don't think I have ever had a server who got all of those right. It just goes to prove how service is a true profession that the dedicated may end up taking a lifetime to perfect.
Agreed.
I'd never patronize a place that enforced all of these. Anyone that expects most of this is a pretentious foodie with an ego problem.
Some of them are common sense........maybe 15-20 of them. The rest can fuck right off. In most cases, it is the customer who is doing something wrong, not the server.
If you`re reading this, there`s a 15% chance you`ve got a significant drinking problem. Get it fixed, get recovered!
Bingo.SteelbackGuy wrote:JesseMcG wrote:I'd never want to eat at any place where the server got all of those "right". Sounds like Nazi Germany to me.Tapsucker wrote:Thanks Frank, That NYTimes list is great. I've had the pleasure of eating in some fantastic places, but I don't think I have ever had a server who got all of those right. It just goes to prove how service is a true profession that the dedicated may end up taking a lifetime to perfect.
Agreed.
I'd never patronize a place that enforced all of these. Anyone that expects most of this is a pretentious foodie with an ego problem.
Some of them are common sense........maybe 15-20 of them. The rest can fuck right off. In most cases, it is the customer who is doing something wrong, not the server.