Bar (establishment)
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A bar is a business that sells
alcoholic beverages for immediate on-premises consumption. Some bars serve food or may be parts of restaurants. Bars that are part of
hotels may be known in some areas as
long bars. Alternatively, "bar" can refer to the specialized counter on which the drinks are served, and it is from this term that the establishment itself as a whole gets its name. The "back bar" or "gantry" is a set of shelves of glasses and bottles behind that counter. Frequently when food is served elsewhere in the establishment, it may also be ordered and consumed at the bar.
Encyclopedia
- Singles bar redirects here. For the Kikki Danielsson album, see Singles Bar.
A
bar is a business that sells
alcoholic beverages for immediate on-premises consumption. Some bars serve food or may be parts of restaurants. Bars that are part of
hotels may be known in some areas as
long bars. Alternatively, "bar" can refer to the specialized counter on which the drinks are served, and it is from this term that the establishment itself as a whole gets its name. The "back bar" or "gantry" is a set of shelves of glasses and bottles behind that counter. Frequently when food is served elsewhere in the establishment, it may also be ordered and consumed at the bar.
Kinds of bars
A topless bar is a bar, where, as an attraction, personnel are
topless. A biker bar is a bar marketed to and frequented by bikers, often sharing the "outlaw" reputation. A sports bar is where sports fans go to to watch sports games and possibly meet other sports fans. A gay bar is where gay men and lesbians go to meet other gay men and lesbians. A cop bar is a bar known for being frequented by Police officers while off duty.
United States
In the United States, legal distinctions often exist between restaurants, bars, and even
types of bars. These distinctions vary from state to state, and even among municipalities.
Beer bars may be legally restricted to only selling beer or possibly wine, cider and other low-proof beverages.
Liquor bars sell everything from beer to hard liquor.
Bars are sometimes exempt from
smoking bans that restaurants are subject to, even if those restaurants have liquor licenses. The distinction between a restaurant that serves liquor and a bar is usually made by the percentage of revenue earned from selling liquor, although increasingly, smoking bans include bars too.
In most places, bars are prohibited from selling alcoholic beverages
to go. There are some exceptions. Usually brewpubs and
wineries can serve alcohol
to go, but under the rules applied to a liquor store. In some areas, such as
New Orleans and parts of
Las Vegas, alcohol may be prepared
to go. This kind of restriction is usually dependent on open container law.
Historically, the western United States featured
saloons. These bars featured swinging doors, dirt or sawdust-covered wood floors, and spitoons. Whiskey was the most common drink. The establishment might feature a piano player, an adjunct hotel, and prostitution. Many saloons survive in the western United States, though their services and features have changed with the times. Newer establishments have been built in the saloon style to duplicate the feeling of the older establishments.
Since the late 1970s, many Irish or British themed "pubs" have opened in the U.S.
United Kingdom
In the
UK 'bar' used to mean a wine bar, but now, 'Style Bars', trendy and generally high-quality drinking establishments are more common. However the main type of establishment selling alcohol for consumption on the premises is the
public house or pub. The origin of this division is related to the times when exclusive drinking establishments which were admissible by membership only have barred entry from normal members of public, as oppose to the Public Houses which are open to all; this distinction remains true today as most bars will have some admissions policy and on weekends and other busy times even a selector / bouncer while pubs remain completely open with no admissions policy or dress code.
Bars are also areas that serve alcoholic drinks within establishments such as hotels, restaurants, and universities.
Australia
In
Australia, traditionally the 'public bar' was where only men drank, while the 'lounge bar' or 'saloon bar' was where women or men could drink . This distinction is not seen now as anti-discrimination legislation and women's rights activism has broken down the concept of a public drinking area accessible to only one sex. Where two bars still exist in the one establishment, one will be more downmarket while the other will be more upmarket. Over time, with the introduction of
pokies into hotels, many 'lounge bars' have or are being converted into gaming rooms.
Italy
In
Italy, a 'bar' is a place similar to a
Café, where people go during the morning or the afternoon, usually to take a
coffee, a
cappuccino, a
hot chocolate, some small pizzas, or a sandwich . However, any kind of alcoholic beverage are also be served. Most bars are open late into the evening, although those in the suburbs close at the sunset.
In the main cities as Milan, Rome, Turin and Genoa there are hundreds of bars that proposed a mix of bar, restaurant and disco club service.
Most Italian bars offer an "aperitivo" time everyday at the sunset, with sometimes happy hour and every time with a large offer of pastas, beef dishes, vegetables and appetizer, all that completely free.
Elsewhere
In most major cities of the world there is at least one
Irish pub. Some capitals such as
Brussels have more than twenty.
Bars range from down-and-dirty "dives" which are little more than a dark room with a counter and some bottles of liquor, to elegant places of entertainment for the elite.
Many bars set a happy hour to encourage off-peak patronage. Contrastingly, bars that fill to capacity typically implement a cover charge, often similar in price to one or two cocktails, during their peak hours. Such bars often feature entertainment, which may be a live band , a popular
D.J., or a variety show.
Bar-related trivia
Additionally, the concepts of retrobars and lounge bars also exist.
Fictional Bars
Several fictional bars have featured prominently in movies, including the following:
- Coyote Ugly
- Cocktail
- Mos Eisley Cantina
- Rick's
- Callahan's Crosstime Saloon
Several fictional bars have featured prominently in television series, including the following:
...
- Babylon on Queer as Folk
- Cheers was a long-running American [i] situation comedy [i] produced ...
- Karatos on Angel
- Moe's Tavern on The Simpsons is an Emmy [i] and Peabody [i]-winning American [i] animated [i] ...
- Phil's on Murphy Brown was an American [i] situation comedy [i] which aired on CBS [i] from November 14 [i]...
- The Queen Victoria on EastEnders is a popular BBC [i] television [i] soap opera [i], first broadcast on 19 February [i] 1985 [i] ...
- The Regal Beagle on Three's Company was a popular American [i] sitcom [i] that ran from 1977 [i] ...
- Ten Forward on
- Rovers Return on Coronation Street is Britain [i]'s longest-running television soap opera [i] and its ...
- The Drunken Clam on Family Guy is an American [i] animated comedy [i] created b ...
- P3 on Charmed is an American [i] television series [i] that ran for eight...
For more, see the List of fictional bars.
See also
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