Bonus Bar 1 - Grumpy's Montreal

I had a lot of time to kill before my bus was to leave at 11pm so what better way to kill time than at a bar. Something about a bar named Grumpy's that attracted me. On this Sunday after noon it was quite dead. I was the only one in the bar for most of the time I was there. Which was fine with me I had some good conversations with the bartender named Gern from everything from Health Care to music to Montreal's shadier history. The bar itself is a little divey which I like but the toilet was a little shaky I thought it might topple over. The bar prides it self in serving mostly local beers. I went with the McAuslan Cream Ale which was a very nice smooth ale good for afternoon drinking. The McAuslan brewery brews the Moosehead and Carlsberg for the Quebec area but don't hold the brewing of Moosehead against them the Cream Ale is damn tasty. I will be putting this place in my rotation of places I must visit when ever I am in town.

Bonus Photos!

Bar 3 The James Gate

On a beautiful March Saturday afternoon thought it would be a good day to check out the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain. I can't not go to Jamaica Plain without stopping at my old stomping grounds the James Gate. I used to live up the street from this bar and went here more than one should. All the bartenders that worked there when I lived in the neighborhood have all moved on but the place is still the same especially the fries. The best french fries in the city. The one negative I can say about the place is it can get pretty yuppy on Friday evenings but the weekend afternoons are great. This is also my favorite place to be during a snow storm. They have a real nice fire place that then actually encourage the patrons to keep it going. Beer & you let me play with fire? WIN! The beer this afternoon was the Harpoon Celtic ale. Which is an Irish Red ale similar to Smithwicks but not quite as good. I don't make it back to JP as much as I used to but always a treat stopping at the James Gate.

BONUS PHOTOS!

Bar 2 of 52 - Mr. Dooleys

Bar two brings me to the Financial District in Downtown Boston to Mr. Dooleys. This bar has a nice old tyme feel to it. The bartenders were super nice. I always like to note if a bar does not have a TV and this bar did not. They did have a Juke Box but it wasn't on this night but I am sure it wasn't a good one as the people in the financial district usually don't have good taste in music. The bar itself was relaxing as I read my book not as stuffy as you would think with the fancy looking dinning room. The beer of the evening was Fisherman's Brew which is a American amber lager. Nice mellow flavor not hoppy at all. The bartender was nice enough to let me try it before he poured it for me actually he insisted I tried it.

Bonus Photos!

Bar 1 of 52 - Beacon Hill Pub

So after a 2 month break I am back doing the bar tour! My first bar I was trying to mirror my start to last years Sullivan's Tap going to their sister bar the Beacon Hill Pub which is where I went but I wanted to have the same beer the Brubaker but sadly Brubaker is no more. Sniff Sniff very sad about this. PBR is the replacement but really it isn't Wilkes-Barre's finest. Back to the bar the Beacon Hill Pub is a fine dive bar in a fancy neighborhood. Nice big bar with plenty of games to play and writing on the wall is encouraged. If you need to make a quick escape the MGH T stop is right across the street. This is one of my favorite bars in the city and I stop by every so often since I have been working in Beacon Hill the past year. If ever in the area stop by and mourn the lose of my good friend Brubaker.

Bonus photos!

Introduction

This is my year bar tour 1 bar every week in Boston and the surrounding area. I did this last year having a different beer at every bar I will try and do that again but I will give dive bars a pass to repeat cheap beers. When I am out of Boston I will do bonus bars. New for this year I will take more than one photo of the bars.

Here is the link to my 2009 Bar tour.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/janelf/sets/72157612252620547/