Dorm Tower @ Emerson College | 1-3 Boylston Place | Downtown

Were you here for any of the '80s? Might not have been Lincoln Park or Wrigleyville, but it was damn good if you ask me. I'm willing to agree with part of that sentiment, and the other one, mentioned about the eclectic youth of today.

i don't drink much. And i was gone for 12 years running a business on the Mexican Riviera.

But we sure had a solid aggregate collection of pubs, dive bars, warehouses and restaurants. Peak Bar should have been maintained through this robust period of building. We've been on lousy, long trip downward that needs to be reversed.

We shouldn't promote the route we are on AT ALL.
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My problem is that everyone always says this with a straight face. Within walking distance of Boston Common there is plenty of stuff for any budget. I wrote these down just from memory.

Dives / Low-key / Chill Bars
The Tam
Biddy Early's
Corner Pub of Chinatown
Hub Pub
The Sevens
Beacon Hill Pub
Intermission Tavern
Silvertone
Sidebar
Barracuda Tavern
Jacob Wirths
JJ Foleys

That's not even mentioning the upscale bars I can think in that same area.
 
if you want cheap bars, go to allston. that's part of boston. there aren't going to be tons of dive bars in the most expensive parts of the city. big shock.
 
Sweetwater was ok. People act like their child has died.
 
chrisbrat said:
if you want cheap bars, go to allston. that's part of boston. there aren't going to be tons of dive bars in the most expensive parts of the city. big shock.
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A quality city has something for everyone at its core, not just shops that cater to one crowd. I believe its called diversity
 
It's more like a slowly spreading cancer and Sweetwater closing is just another new darkspot in the xray.
 
Suffolk 83 said:
A quality city has something for everyone at its core, not just shops that cater to one crowd. I believe its called diversity
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when's the last time you sought out dive bars in midtown manhattan? what's there for the non-rich -- rudy's? jimmy's corner? i'm not saying it's a direct parallel, but as has already been pointed out, it's not like there are NO lower-$$$ bars in downtown boston and, in fact, ALL "quality cities" cater to the denizens of particular areas. you want truly gritty in NYC (or at least cheaper) you're going to williamsburg (faux gritty, but still cheaper than midtown), queens, or harlem. where are the cheap dive bars in barcelona -- on las ramblas? nope. downtown london's many fabled dive bars? again, no. you're heading to camden or elsewhere. downtown boston is where rich people live and rich and striving-to-be-rich folks work, on average. so... most of the eating and drinking establishments will play to that audience.
 
As I posted in the general thread, the state's overly restrictive liquor licensing rules aren't helping matters. Frankly, I'm shocked places like the Tam, hub pub and biddie early are still hanging on in the core. The local dive/neighborhood pub are in high demand but the market pressure to sell out and trade your license to a corporate restaurant group is extreme. We've got lots of venues in downtown Boston but they tend to be the same ilk due to these market pressures. The high demand for licenses in the core has also impacted outlying Boston neighborhoods as well. Contrast with NYC or Chicago where liquor licenses can be purchased or leased at very affordable rates.
 
commuter guy said:
As I posted in the general thread, the state's overly restrictive liquor licensing rules aren't helping matters. Frankly, I'm shocked places like the Tam, hub pub and biddie early are still hanging on in the core. The local dive/neighborhood pub are in high demand but the market pressure to sell out and trade your license to a corporate restaurant group is extreme. We've got lots of venues in downtown Boston but they tend to be the same ilk due to these market pressures. The high demand for licenses in the core has also impacted outlying Boston neighborhoods as well. Contrast with NYC or Chicago where liquor licenses can be purchased or leased at very affordable rates.
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all of this ^^^ is also very true
 
Commuter guy, it's so true^^^
It's just been horrible watching the demise of neighborhoody, local, low key bars all over Boston. And I fear these won't be coming back since the yuppy neighborhoods now fight tooth and nail against new liquor establishments. I'm not sure what's going on with the increased licenses that bostons hoods are supposed to get, because ive seen very few new openings.

Another beacon hill travesty, with the restaurant industry dominating politics in this case. Other cities, its very easy to find a place to get a drink, even at your local pizza place. In Boston, it's a ten dollar beer surrounded by yuppie assholes or nothing at all.
 
chrisbrat said:
when's the last time you sought out dive bars in midtown manhattan? what's there for the non-rich -- rudy's? jimmy's corner? i'm not saying it's a direct parallel, but as has already been pointed out, it's not like there are NO lower-$$$ bars in downtown boston and, in fact, ALL "quality cities" cater to the denizens of particular areas. you want truly gritty in NYC (or at least cheaper) you're going to williamsburg (faux gritty, but still cheaper than midtown), queens, or harlem. where are the cheap dive bars in barcelona -- on las ramblas? nope. downtown london's many fabled dive bars? again, no. you're heading to camden or elsewhere. downtown boston is where rich people live and rich and striving-to-be-rich folks work, on average. so... most of the eating and drinking establishments will play to that audience.
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Uh, last time I was in manhattan was the the last time I sought out dive bars there, true story. Dive bars dont necessarily mean places where poor or blue collar people go.... Go to Biddy Early's on a weeknight from 5-9 and see what the crowd is. Plenty of white collar professionals in there.
 
commuter_guy is right on, Boston's dearth of "dive bars" / "quiet bars" / whatever you want to call them is a result of licensing rules. It's really hard to sustain a neighborhood / inexpensive place to get drinks when licenses to serve alcohol are as restricted as they are here.

If I want to open an independent coffee shop in Boston, I can go ahead and do that without too much difficulty. I don't have to worry about buying one of the limited coffee licenses from an existing coffee shop, putting it out of business so that I can open my establishment. If I want to open a bar, I do need to buy out an existing bar's liquor license. No wonder we end up with a limited selection of places to drink, and the ones that do last have corporate backing and cater to those with the most to spend.
 
Suffolk 83 said:
Uh, last time I was in manhattan was the the last time I sought out dive bars there, true story. Dive bars dont necessarily mean places where poor or blue collar people go.... Go to Biddy Early's on a weeknight from 5-9 and see what the crowd is. Plenty of white collar professionals in there.
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Yeah, not really sure about the NYC comment, either.

But - I agree with commuter guy. Even in the neighborhoods most of the new places opening are the sames groups. No one is going to open a cheap/neighborhood/dive bar anywhere in the city if the liquor license costs you half a million up front. The limited main street licenses were OK, and quite a few new places opened up in say Dot, but, it doesn't solve the problem downtown. They need to reform the licensing instead of one off temporary solutions.
 
I hate this project so much and have been avoiding looking at it for so long that now that I finally came back to see, I dont even know what building it is. Is it that squat grey building in the middle?
 
^^You just won the thread (or did i already award it to you or someone in an earlier post).
 
FK4 said:
I hate this project so much and have been avoiding looking at it for so long that now that I finally came back to see, I dont even know what building it is. Is it that squat grey building in the middle?
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It's behind that, with the red-brick side on the right and the vertical dark strips on top.
 
Moved to the proper thread.
 
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