The Subway Bar: Drinks & Decadence

Santa Cruz, California – the town where you can drink and smoke cigarettes in the majority of all dive bars, at all hours of operation: A place where twenty-somethings and older generations of alcoholics can intermingle in a variety windowless establishments. It is also the place I left to make Brooklyn my new home. While I do fancy higher-end establishments, I love dive bars and decadence. So, when I stumbled on The Subway bar, located on 527 Metropolitan Ave directly off the Lorimer stop, I felt like I found a little piece of home, with the proper mix of older gentleman mumbling to the younger crowd having just popped off the train for a quick beer and/or nip of whiskey. With three-dollar PBR, the six-dollar beer and (healthy) shot of whiskey, an evening of drinking here can be easy on the wallet. Another appealing element of this bar is the ‘working man’ chic décor: The walls are adorned with subway signs old and new, giving a bar-goer such as myself the feeling of being on a line ‘gang.’

But, regardless of décor, the arguably most important element of any dive is the bartender, and his or her ability to manage the flocks of thirsty patrons while keeping the bar a safe space to hang out—or at least that is how it‘s done on the West Coast. In this case, the bartender was spot-on: A very friendly female bartender was the conductor of this train, exuding confidence and control while being unafraid to cut a couple people off, or in one case moderating a potential altercation. With a digital jukebox that has an array of music from new bands to the usual Journey sing-a-longs, to the skee-ball court and digital bowling in the back, this bar has plenty to keep a guy occupied if he’s alone or out with a group of friends. In the day time, grab a refreshing round and pull up a stool with the older crowd and, in my experience, watch an episode of Warehouse 13; a nice nerdy surprise for me. But after dark prepare for something a little more crowded and fast-paced. Another advantage: The Subway Bar is nestled in between two delicious Mexican food joints, so if you start to feel hungry or too tipsy, you’re steps away from a tasty taco – yum! This is a true waterin’ hole that transcends, by definition, East or West coast style and I would recommend it to anyone who’s in the mood for an assured night of cheap drinks and wholesome decadence.

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