A night in Greenwich Village

Saturdays are my favorite. I can wake up late, go to bed late, and not worry about having to be anywhere early in the morning the next day. This is partly why last night, Saturday, we ended up being out much later than originally intended. I don't know how it became a bar hopping evening. The originally plan had been to meet up with Nate's friend Leonel at a coffee shop, maybe go grab a beer or two, and try to avoid the St. Patrick's Day craziness. Next thing I know, we've gone to three separate bars, grabbed felafel, and ended up taking the subway back at 3:30 am. At least we didn't deal with St. Patty's crowds.

Greenwich Village Bistro. This was our meeting place with Nate's friend Leonel. We got there late on account of the Q running local, and I my having some trouble making it out of the house. The place is great; looks truly like a small bistro place, with expressionist paintings adorning the walls and cozy welcoming atmosphere. Highlight of the night: a jazz band was playing. It was fun, they were doing their thing, we were having beer (I ordered a Pilsner). A very chill vibe, but we didn't stay very long because within a half hour of our getting there, the band finished out their set and called it a night. It made me really bummed that we got there so late.

Peculier Pub. Of course we came here. Where else can you find an fun vibe, lots of beer, the feel of a college bar, yet still have plenty of room to hang out? I'm sure there are lots of bars that fit the description, but somehow I end up at Peculier's more often than I intend to. And what can I say, I really like the place. It feels like I am "out" while still being the type of establishment where everyone wears jeans. The lighting is dark, though bright enough to notice the bottle cap mosaics decorating the walls. It's this type of DIY decorative style that reminds me of college bars, and feels very welcoming.

We hung out at Peculiers for a while. Nate likes to order Delirium beer here, and I think this is a big factor in his initial endorsement of the bar. Myself, I ordered a Blue Moon and kept it predictable. The Delirium stuff goes straight to my light head, and no one wants that. Least of all me the next morning.

Pieces Bar. I am not exactly sure how we ended up here. Let me rephrase that. I know that Leonel suggested the Pieces, but I'm not sure why we decided we had to leave Peculier's or why we came here specifically, so many blocks away. I know we were trying to get away from the excess of NYU students, and whatever bar we went to needed to have some type of coat/bag check, since Leonel was hauling his laptop around. He suggested Pieces, and I'm glad he did, as it was a very fun experience.

For starters, to get to Pieces we had to go on Gay Street. No kidding, it's a one block street, more of an alley really, but street signs don't lie. Gay St. it is. Once we got there, it had all the gaudy awesomeness that a proper gay bar should have. Except that this wasn't the martini fabulous type of gay bar. More of a mixed drinks, pool table, t-shirts and Christmas lights scene. It made me think of Indian meets Chinese restaurant decorations, except doubly awesome. One guy, who I assume was pretty toasted, went up to me and said, "Has anyone ever told you you look like Famke Jessen?" In all honesty, no one has EVER told me that. Probably because it isn't true, but I believed him last night because I was having a pretty good hair day. People always get fooled by good hair.

My drink was good. I like my cocktails weak, and Pieces didn't disappoint with the excess of soda. Best way to make sure not drink too much is to order watered down cocktails. Works for me every time.

Buy the time we left Pieces, it was 3:30. I don't know how it got so late without our noticing. I think my internal party clock still expects bars to close around me at 2 am, like in Texas, so I'm not supposed to decide on my own to call it a night. I'll get the hang of it at some point.