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The 5 most recent
Hops...
Check out Hops' Blog below!
Welcome! Hops MacBarley
here, your guide and narrator on a tour of MORE
THAN 300 BARS -- without ever
leaving the tiny island of Key West (a.k.a. Bone
Island). No
ratings, no rankings, no menus. Take a second to
check the About
page
to get the lowdown. Or, if you're ready, click on a
Tour, then pick a pic to click, and start touring the
diverse and entertaining Bars of Key West, Florida!
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5/21/21 - Hop #349
Caught the Happy Hour at Wahlburgers, on the
Harborwalk where White Tarpon used to be. The bar is
big, with the best bar seats I've seen in a while. You
get 2 tenders for 3 bucks, and a tall cold Blue Moon (or Bud
Light, yeah, right) will also cost you $3. Tenders
were goooood. Almost doubled down. HH is
4:00-6:00 every damn day.
4/24/21 - Hop #348
This bar is only available for
special events: concerts! Conchtown Records put
on a four-show at the Coffee Butler Amphitheater
to benefit legendary guitarist Bill Blue. The beer
selection was weak, but the music was strong, and it was
just plain great to be out at a gathering of people again!
4/16/21 - Hop #347
Caught the end of Happy Hour at Shooterz,
K-Dub's preeminent pool hall. MY Short Rib Sliders
were yumm and my Crazy Lady was only fo' bux!
4/10/21 - Hop #346
If you like shady backyard bars,
hidden-away watering holes, and/or Hawaiian food, Poke In The Rear is
for you. The latest permutation of the fenced-in space
behind Aqua, this was a dang cool hang on a hot
afternoon. Probably be even better on a mellow
evening, and even better better if you like raw fish!
4/4/21 - Hop #345
McKee's
Tiki Bar, at KW's newest hotel -- The Capitana -- was
a fine chill on an Easter Sunday afternoon. Big pool,
nice beach, great bar stools, a bunch o' black bikinis, and
some cutthroat lawn chess. And the public is very
welcome!
3/31/21 - Hop #344
I think Sunday afternoons will be
for hotel bars for a while, especially hotel pool
bars. This one -- Shipwreckers
at Barbary Beach House -- will be tough to beat. Love
the layout, the big roof, the big pool, the comfy chairs,
and the reasonable price. Not sure if public is
allowed, I did a Stealth Hop just in case.
3/30/21 - Hop #343
You have to walk through another bar
to leave Jam Pony (#342), and I didn't quite make it through
Mojoes
Sports Bar & Bistro without stopping to watch some
of the longest game in NCAA Hockey Tournament history.
3/29/21 - Hop #342
This one was a surprise! Jam Pony Karaoke
Club was full and giving off good vibes in what has
been the black hole of Key West bars -- the "back room" of
618 Duval. A pair of former USN pilots stole the
show.
3/28/21 - Hop #341
The Southernmost
FreshCo has taken over what used to be Michael's (Hop
#120) on 532 Margaret Street. Same good look, new
array of seafood, same classy bar. It's a branch-out
from the successful FreshCo in Miami. Happy Hour is
4-7, so we workin' folk can still make the tail end.
Not keen on the metal bar seats, but eager to try the Famous
Crab Cakes.
3/22/21 -- Hop #340
KW welcomes Stinkin'
Crawfish Seafood Restaurant into 217 Duval, breathing
life back into that mid-block void that the pandemic
created. A big success in southern California, they
bring a funky name, good food, and good attitude.
Local friendly (20% discount, don't be shy about asking for
it), weekday Happy Hours, and see if you qualify for the
Free Dessert, it was awesome! Live music in the front
yard. Still some unfinished spots inside, but so what,
the beer is cold. =)
3/16/21 -- Hop #339
The newest bar in Key West -- opened
just 2 weeks ago -- is Marylin's Restaurant &
Pub, which steps into classic building at the corner
of Grinnell and James. A few bars have come and gone
here since Finnegan's Wake (#5), but MRP grasps a concept
that escaped the others: Take Care of Your Locals!
Marylin's does 2-for-1 Happy Hour from -- catch this
-- 1:00 till 7:00 daily. SIX hours of
2-4-1-ness. Suh-weeeet! AND she'll give you a
20% Locals Discount. Live music, good food, and a
healthy dose of Locals Love. Gotta go check it out,
Scout!
3/15/21
Friday began with a Hop and finished
with another: The Retro Room logged in as
Hop #338. It is every bit as visually dazzling as it
was when it was Glitch (#310). I'm pretty sure all
that changed was the name, but that's enough to warrant a
fresh Hop. (My Tour, my rules.) Even if nothing is
happening here, the decor will keep your mind moving.
The chosen brew was Hopsecutioner IPA. Yum, but on the
pricey side. That happens when you drink good beer...
3/14/21
It was a Hop-filled weekend, with
Key West Bars #337, #338, and #339 all getting Hopped.
Friday night started off with a new name in a familiar
location.
Lost & Found on 404
Southard. The layout is the same but the comfort level
is higher. My 6:15 arrival just missed Happy Hour, but
the staff was friendly and my Neon New England Style IPA was
cold and taaaaaasty....
3/9/21
Hop #336 happened on Sunday as well,
at the Southernmost
Point Bar. It was a 1-mile walk from 335 to
here, like doing The
Duval Street Mile in reverse. Great time sitting
in the cool shade, chatting with Maria, my Venezuelan
barkeep. SPB is a daytime-only place, though, so if
you get, get there before the sun goes down!
3/8/21
Went back down the alley at 124
Duval for Hop
#335 at Paradise Restaurant. Had me a Cerveza
Aguila and it was cold and tasty. Chatted with the
friendly staff for a good while. They're a
family-owned Latin restaurant that specializes in Colombian
food. I'm told the Palomilla Steak is
outstanding. They gave me a Local's Discount (20%) and
I forgot to tip! Sorry, guys, it was
an accident. I'll make it up next time!
3/6/21
Chalk up #334: Scotty's
Front Street Stage, a new venue that features live
music on a big stage, a comfortable bar, and a friendly menu
that even includes the ever-popular Curried Goat, and
Mac-N-Cheese with Baconnnn.
The Good Thing was the band and they
lived up to their name.
3/1/21
Hop #333 is a milestone.
One-third of 1000 bars have been hopped on this little
rock. An accomplishment so phukkin ossum deserves an
appropriate Hop. I give you #333: Pho King
Awesome, on 626 Duval.
2/28/21
Hop #332 was an old name in a new
place. White
Tarpon moved from the shadows into the limelight, and
it looks like a great move! Two-and-a-half happy hours
every damn day! =)
2/27/21
And #331 happened last night
too! Old
Town Rodeo had a really good crowd,
a rockin' country band, and a face
plant off the mechanical bull.
2/27/21
Hopped #330 last night: Fogarty's!
I went out with a list of 20 new places to check out and I
ended up at one I should have hopped in the Peace,
Love and IPA Tour.
2/26/21
Follow Hops on Twitter! #HopsMacBarley
2/26/21
Check out the new KWBH Bottlecap
Logo:
2/25/21
The new hopter for Liberty
Lounge has been posted! Have a look!
Social Media links coming soon!
2/21/21
Hey,
all! Hope you like the new layout!
Liberty Lounge was the venue, the upstairs bar at 506 Southard, on top of Heroes Bar (#328). Had a locally-brewed Lazy Way IPA in a chilled glass, for $7. The staff was masked, but not many patrons. I kept mine on except for when I was taking a swig. I'm still pretty wary of the maskless mob. Pretty mellow time at the LL. I got there just as the entertainer went on break, and left shortly before he returned. Just a one-n-done this time. Hopter 329, with pix, coming soon. All hopters from now on with be HTML pages, not PDFs, and I've begun working my way backwards converting the existing ones over. That's gonna take a WHILE, though. |