Another Visit To The Village

Another beautiful sunny day so how better to spend it than in a few bars. I headed down to the West Village.

413) Knickerbocker

On the corner of University Place and 9th Street is this old, classic steakhouse. The bar has an antique looking marble top, a wooden paneled front, and a brass rail. There is a wooden armrest in front of the marble top. Dark wood bar-chairs with black vinyl seats. Wooden-doored coolers with brass hinges and silver handles sit behind the bar and form the base of wooden and glass backed shelving with small wine racks on the top. Old fashioned lights hang over the bar and above a few of the shelves behind the bar as well. An old pegged plank floor and a rose colored ceiling. Large windows look out onto University Place. Largely yellow walls in the bar area with a couple of old posters mounted to the left of a white metal wine rack behind the bar.

There is a largely separate dining area with a large piano. There is live music at night but during the day it is covered with liquor bottles. Gives a whole new meaning to a piano bar.

I had a Tanqueray and Tonic.

414) Sevilla

At 62 Charles Street, on the corner of 4th Street, sits this Spanish restaurant and bar. It has a dark wooden bar with a matching front and a black foot ledge. Metal bar stools with light tan vinyl tops. A dark planked ceiling and dark orange tile floors. The light fixtures hanging from the ceiling look like ship's wheels with ship's lanterns hanging from the handles. Stained glass lights hang over the tan booths along one wall and small, brown-shaded lights hang over the booths on the other side of the room. Pictures of bull-fighters and a the head of a vanquished bull hang on one wall. There are mirror backed glass and wood shelves behind the bar. The mirror in the center is flanked by curved white plexiglass lit from behind by pink lights. Above the mirror is a narror strip of plexiglass lit from above by small red lights. Plates and ceramic tiles,some featuring Don Quixote and his pal Pancho, and doo-dads hang from the molding above the bar and various knick-knacks sit on the shelf underneath it.

I had a Tanqueray and Tonic.

415) Metropol

A fairly new place on the corner of West 4th Street and West 10th Street. I love the village where streets cross streets and you can get totally lost. A black bar with a black and white hexagon tiled foot rest. Black bar stools with black leather cushioned seats affixed with large-headed brass studs. A dark wood floor and a white painted tin ceiling. Large windows on two sides with white globe lights hanging from the ceiling. Black cushioned booths and small round tables with chairs. Overhead fans. Pea-soup green plaster walls. A small mirror backed set of glass shelves behind the bar hold the liquor and they are framed by dark wood wine racks. Shelves holding bottles line the top of the windows. Large black and white photos of former downtown notables such as Edie Sedgwick, Andy Warhol, and Nico adorn one wall and an old mirror adorns another. The bartendress, Sue, was very personable and, as this was my last stop of the day, I indulged myself with a second drink.

I had a Tanqueray and Tonic.

A fair to middling day with three bars bringing my yearly total to 415 with 585 left to go.