August 17, 2011
Tonight I’ve decided to go to the sister bar of the International Bar, The Coal Yard for our Swizzle Stick Tuesday night out on the town. I haven’t been back there since I did a trip on the 365 Bar Crawl and met Shannon and Clacky in there. I’d say I’m overdue for a visit. And for a drink or three as well. To the Coal Yard!
Oh shit, two steps out of the subway car and I'm hit with this.
Aaaahhhh!
Okay, here we are, 1st Avenue in the East Village, almost there.
Nothing yet, but I think that will be rectified in a minute or two.
And here we are at the Coal Yard.
Like its sister bar, The International Bar, it's one of the darkest bars in town. I think I see a familiar face there at the bar.
It's Tyler with his friend Hank holding down the right end of the bar.
And here's the lovely bartender Amanda, serving me a gin and tonic. Let's check out the swizzle stick.
It's your basic black straw.
Simple, dark and sturdy, much like the bar itself. Two more for the collection.
Lit up bottles on display behind the bar.
A shot of the circular wooden bar that frames the inside of the place.
A long wooden railing runs the length of the wall opposite the bar.
Like its sister bar, The International, the jukebox here is one of the best in town. Tunes run the gamut from The Rolling Stones, Jerry Reed, The Cars, MC5, Bob Dylan and everyone in between.
I love the vintage Blatz sign.
Coaster artwork from patrons hang below it.
Ian serves me up a Little King's beer in a can.
Amanda's busy behind the bar.
Kurt was seated next to me and it turns out he's a photographer visiting New York from Jacksonville, Florida. We had a few drinks and a nice chat about New York City. Check out his website and photos here: Kurt Rogers Photography.
And one look out the front window and I'm headed for home. See you tomorrow after dark.
The Swizzle Stick Collection So Far
Thanks to all of you who have donated, it’s grown to be a great collection. I’m going to get some sort of a case to house them in.
Coal Yard Bar
102 First Avenue (@6th St. )
212-677-4595
Further reading: Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York, EV Grieve, NY Press and Shecky’s.
You Might Also Like: Jay and The Americans, Jay and Silent Bob and Jay and Laura (The Marriage “Edu-tainers!”)
Four Other Yards
Scotland Yard
Word’s Longest Yard Sale
A Yard of Ale
The Yardbirds
Five o'clock in the mornin', I'm all ready up and gone,
Lord I am so tired, how long can this go on?
ARCHIVES
(Surprise link...click on it...I dare you!)
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Bonus Pudding Face From Jaws!
Jaws sent in his own version of the creepy Pudding Face. Aaaahhhh!
25 Comments
Reader Comments (25)
just checking ,,,,comment button on blink again,,,will re post soon
Ok its working now,,,I don't know what happened,,, moving right along now,,,Coal Yard is a great bar and they have the right idea ,,,,keep it simple, keep it real dark, and lots of wood. I love the picture of the curving bar, and the purple hues on the bottles, wish all New York bar owners would take note,, no sense charging fifteen dollars for a drink,,,,these girls really made the dive simple, and pass the savings to the customers, we just want a dark bar with a decent jukebox and some beer and whiskey,,,thats it.
@Al: Glad you made it through and I agree wholeheartedly! Molly and Shawn definitely know the secrets of a good, classic neighborhood bar. And if anyone else is having trouble leaving comments, try clearing your cache and restarting your computer.
Party Man!
Loved the curved bar, the railing, the Blatz sign; BUT the pudding faces scare me, like something from an old sci-fi flick where the people are pretending to be humans but they are really aliens from a distant galaxy that open their gigantic mouths and bite peoples heads off! I just got a chill up my spine! Whowee!
Dannymanny.
I'd like to get a backstage pass to the Sound & Vision Tour.
That ickiness aside, it's nice to see Tyler softening his foreboding image with a playful Charles Manson tee.
Swizzle me this, swizzle me that, I call home wherever I hang my hat.
Yeah, I was just gonna say that. The pudding faces scare me too. Please, please, please no more pudding faces for a while. I see enough of Bill Hader as it is. Cardboard Box Man, take me away!!!!
Anyhoo, I love this place, with its curvy bar and lit-up bottles and such. Amanda and Ian look like real nice peeps, and it's always nice to see Tyler. Please take me here next time I'm in town. TO (THE) COASTERS!
The coaster art is very cool - you should venture away from the Papaya napkins and donate your own gem.
@Danny Maness: I hear you about the pudding faces. I'd like to meet the asshole who created them and shove a tub of pudding sideways up his ass.
@csp: Stop being creepy!
@Biff: We'll make it a stop for sure! You need to meet Molly and Shawn too, two of the friendliest and best bar owners in Manhattan.
@Britta: I'll draw something and submit it the next time I'm there!
2MAD; BLATZ! Creepiness gone.
Check your e-mail, Marty...I gotcha pudding face! Mouahahahahahaaaaa.....
Another vote for loving Coal Yard. Seems to avoid getting the east village weekend party woo hoo'ers in there. I think the blaring lights from McDonalds camoflages it. Lowenbrau in bottles and a good pint of beer for five bucks.
I'll be the 500th person to say how great that curved bar is - a thing of beauty. The swizzle collection is coming along nicely!
@csp: Ten4.
@Jaws: I'll check it in about a half an hour, it's a little nuts here right now.
@Spike: I agree! The International and The Coal Yard are the two best bars on that block and beyond!
@onemorefoldedsunset: I love that bar too. And thanks for your donations to the swizzle collection and for your wonderful CBBM card!
that damn creepy pudding face is EVERYWHERE!!
pudding face CBM my dreams have been invaded...yeah i know off topic...coal yard what a great revisit...the bar (which i overstand was a design of molly's) makes up for the lack of a "true" swizzle stick...and i also overstand that there is no tv...don't know if that's still true ' cause MAD didn't say...
jaws...startin' to think you do have too much time on your hands...but always appreciated...
I don't know what reception I'm at, but for God's sake give me a gin and tonic.
~Denis Thatcher
rr
I'm surprised that no one has pointed out that Richard James created the original "Pudding Face" in the ancient 1990's.
@Meleah: I'm terrified the Pudding Face will join forces with the Cardboard Box Man. Then we're all truly fucked!
@rr: You're right about Molly designing the bar and happily, it's still barren of TV sets! A great dark bar for sure!
@csp: Holy shitballs, nightmares tonight for sure after that!
Oh Christ -- do not check out evgrieve today Marty. Cardboard Box Man Building! CBMB's & Oh My Fucking God We're Screwed!
@Spike: it's too late, I just looked...aaaahhhh!
I'm told the classic use for a swizzle stick is the process of 'muddling' a drink........
Those long plastic or woody pointy things with a two-prong fork at the end? I've seen them in a old fashioned glass in people's basement bars as a kid and wondered what they were. Some people call 'em 'olive-stabbers', (my mother did) but they are not that. You put the fork end into your drink and spin the stick part between the palms of your hands. Somewhere between shaken and stirred, a classic cocktail ritual......
@Jaws - that's teh new one fer the jalapeño hot-shit slurry puddin'..... ">........
@ Marty - to see Tyler and Hank holding up their end of the bar with a pink lady in their paw instead of a long-necked Bud woulda left me in stitches.......;PPPPPP........
@lzzrdgrrl: That would've stitched me up as well! Something we can dream about for the future, perhaps!
Nice collection of swizzle sticks Marty. I once had one from Italy--a white glass one--
I love that your collection is really mostly from people sending them and not really from finding them. Kinda took off on its own course.
@kari: It's been really nice of everyone to donate to the collection!