by Debbi | Jun 4, 2008 | Newsworthy
Bring the beach to you.
The LJW did an article almost exactly two years ago about light and refreshing summer drinks to help you live out your beach-bum fantasies. And what better place to investigate fruity summer drinks than The Sandbar?
Dave was quoted in the article talking about how when the warm weather hits, the drink orders change. The heavy stuff like Guinness is out (sorry Frank!) and the fruit juice drinks are in.
“I think things change a little bit  we sell a few more of the Bahama mamas, shark attacks and hurricanes,†says Johanning, who is manager of the bar at 17 E. Eighth St. “In summer, people feel like they’re on the beach.â€Â
And the fact that we have an real sand beach upstairs surely can't hurt the popularity of tropical style drinks. The article even provides an abundance of summer drink recipes, from the popular Mojito and daiquiris to some questionable ones like the Kahlua colada (Kahlua in the summer? really?) and the funny-named Cherry Gin-gria. The recipes didn't come from us; they came from www.bartender.com. We don't share our secrets.
by Debbi | May 26, 2008 | Newsworthy
A couple months ago, I told you about a new website, Yelp, where users can log in and review any place their little heart desires: restaurants, bookstores, grocery stores, doctors, whatever.
When I happened upon this website, there were two reviews for The Sandbar- one positive, the other not so much. Well, my internet travels led me to Yelp again today, and I was pleasantly surprised to see two new reviews.
Again, one positive, the other not so much:
Good God, so much Jimmy Buffet…but wait, this bar does remind me of a place off of Captiva in Florida….Anyways, this was a great place to watch the Great O.J. Simpson Car Chase.
Okay, first of all, we promote The Sandbar as a place where you can find all things Jimmy Buffett…so if one doesn't really care for Jimmy, then perhaps this is not the place for you.
And secondly, wasn't the "great O.J. Simpson car chase" almost fifteen years ago? I guarantee that a lot has changed at The Sandbar since then.
On a side note, the newest glowing review of The Sandbar on Yelp was written by one "brother p.," who sounds suspiciously like a serial commenter on this blog named Brother Pants. His review is a pretty accurate depiction of life at The Sandbar, and he should know, he spends enough time there.
by Debbi | Apr 24, 2008 | Newsworthy
An incident that happened this week in Kansas City hit a little close to home.
The Kansas City Star reported that a bartender at a small tavern in KCK was shot to death by a customer after she refused to serve him a drink when he wouldn’t produce identification.
The article today explains that the shooter has been found and charged with first degree murder. The shooter was a young man who had just turned 21 the week before. I don’t know what the big deal about showing identification was to him, but there were obviously other issues going on with him if he felt the need to shoot the bartender. She was just doing her job.
Things like this frighten me, but I realize it’s not common. But you just never know what kind of reaction someone might have to something you say or do. If you’ve read any of the Door Diaries entries on this blog, then you’re familiar with the kind of nonsense our staff has to deal with on a daily basis. They’ve had to do much more than just refuse someone a drink.
The Sandbar is a pretty safe bar. The worst thing that usually happens when someone is turned away for not having an ID is a few choice words directed at the doorguy, or maybe an argument. And a few people have had to be escorted out for unruly or harassing behavior. Let’s hope it stays that way.
by Debbi | Apr 21, 2008 | Newsworthy
The Sandbar now stocks a brand new vodka made right here in Lawrence.
The LJW did a story yesterday about Honor Premium American Vodka and it’s producers, who are well known to The Sandbar folks. In fact, this vodka is directly responsible for long-time bartender Matt leaving The Sandbar. The job he left us for was the job vacated by Josh at Glazer.
But, we don’t hold it against him.
Stop by one of these days and try out Honor.
by Debbi | Mar 22, 2008 | Newsworthy
I regularly monitor the internets for all things Sandbar. A lot of things find their way into my Google alerts that are not of interest (namely, something written about a generic bar of sand in a body of water), but occasionally I get something good.
A website called Yelp bills itself as "Real People. Real Reviews.(tm)" The idea behind the site is that its users will create accounts and start writing reviews about places like bars, restaurants, stores, etc. The business’ contact information is provided along with an average rating from the users who have reviewed the place.
The Sandbar was added to this site in January, and I was surprised to see that the first review was written by someone we actually know. Brad (not this Brad, but another Brad from my college days, although the two Brads do know each other)says:
"Whenever I’m back in the River City, I have to head into this place. It opened when I was in school in the early ’90’s. It was a hole in the wall then, and it’s still pretty much a hole in the wall now, but where else in Lawrence can you get a bit of Key West? Put a dollar on the wall, play some Jimmy Buffet, drink to your heart’s content, and enjoy a completely laid back crowd without a whole lot of students that you would expect in a college town."
A fine, favorable, accurate review, no?
It was followed by this review in February, by someone I don’t know:
"Lots of people love the Sandbar. I am not one of them.
Maybe it’s because I’m older than most of the people that love this bar. Maybe it’s because I’m not too keen on the whole "let’s dance on the bar to Jimmy Buffet!" thing. Maybe it’s because I like to hear my friends talk when we’re hanging out. Maybe I’m just plain boring. I don’t know.
It was loud, it was packed, and it wasn’t my thing. Points for the jukebox playing ridiculously nostalgic music, but that’s about it. If you need me, I’ll be a couple doors down at Henry’s, hanging out with my old fogey friends on the smoking porch."
I guess we can’t expect everyone to love us. This reviewer’s profile doesn’t say how old she is, but judging from her picture, she’s not ancient. And the average age of Sandbar customers is significantly higher than a lot of places in town.
At least we got points for the jukebox.
by Debbi | Mar 18, 2008 | Newsworthy, St. Patrick's Day
The things we endure for the public good. Brother Pants said it best.
The five minute long rumble of thunder that woke many of us up yesterday morning might have been a sign of the St. Patrick’s Day to come. The rain started early, came down steady, and didn’t end until long after the Sandbarn was a distant memory.
We’re still drying out our cameras- and ourselves- and trying to ward off colds and pneumonia, but pictures and video of the big day will be available soon.
The Sandbarn won an Honorable Mention from the parade judges. A complete list of winners in all categories is here. (One of our cowgirls got a quote in the article, too!)
And the LJW printed not one, but two great photos of our traveling dance party.
