by Debbi | Feb 27, 2011 | Off the Wall, People
Have you seen the fantastic surfboard that holds a place of honor on top of our giant fishtank?
This surfboard was donated by Sandbar friend Peter and his girlfriend, Alex. It was their parting gift to us, as they both recently graduated from KU and moved back to Los Angeles.
Peter brought the surfboard to Lawrence from California, and Alex painted the Jayhawk on it.
Peter worked at Louise's West while he was in school at KU, and he was along for Joe's infamous Vegas bachelor trip last summer.
Thanks, Peter and Alex!
by Debbi | Feb 16, 2011 | Around the World, People
Former bartender Chris (brother to current bartender/doorguy John) and his wife Brooke had their first baby last week! Welcome to the world, Izzy.
When Chris shared their first photos on Facebook, we were excited to see him sporting his Sandbar t-shirt in the hospital. As his little sister Brittany (also a former bartender, though for a very brief period of time) said, "The Sandbar shirt has been all over the U.S. and the world…but has it ever been in a labor and delivery?"
Since we have no proof otherwise, we're going with no. As far as we know, this is the first time the Sandbar shirt was there to welcome a brand new baby into the world. We've already gifted little miss Izzy with her very first Sandbar onesie.
Congratulations, Chris and Brooke!
by Debbi | Feb 8, 2011 | Good Things, People
Hey fellow hospitality industry folks! Here's a great opportunity for you to raise money for children in our community while having fun with your friends and co-workers.
Bowl for Kids Sake is an annual fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters. This year, they've added a special event for the hospitality industry- "Bloodies and Bowling." It's a special day of bowling that will feature a bloody mary bar, breakfast burritos and lots of fun.
- Date: Sunday, May 1
- Time: 1-4 p.m.
- Where: Royal Crest Lanes
Carrie, one of our former bartenders, and I have been asked to recruit team captains from bars, restaurants and liquor stores around town. Are you interested? Here's all you have to do:
- Let us know who your team captain is.
- Sign up your team online here.
- Recruit five other team members, for a team total of six people.
- Each team member commits to raising at least $125, for a team total of $750.
- The website provides easy ways to email friends and family to solicit donations.
- Have fun!
If you're interested in putting a team together, please let us know. You can send an email to sandbar@thesandbar.com and we'll answer all your questions.
You can even get your bar, restaurant or other business involved in raising funds! Challenge another business to a competition to see who can raise the most money. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Donate all or a portion of a cover charge to your team goal.
- Put out special Bowl For Kids‘ Sake tip jars.
- Create a drink that goes with your team name/theme and donate a portion of the profit to the team goal. Encourage patrons to order that drink because “it’s for the kids.â€Â
- Sell tickets for patrons to win a t-shirt or other item.
- If you have a pool table or foosball table, hold a tournament where all proceeds go to your team goal.
- Ask your patrons for their “pennies and pocket lint.†Any change or lint in their pocket goes straight to the kids.
We're looking forward to this great event and hope you'll join us!
RSVP on Facebook.
by Debbi | Feb 5, 2011 | People, Random Questions, Sandbar Stuff, Valentines Day
Sandbar friend Alison created our fantastic pint glass design for Valentine's Day. We asked her a few questions about her Sandbar experiences through the years. You can find Alison online in a variety of places: at her personal blog, her professional design site and on Twitter.
What's your favorite jukebox song? Everytime I go to Sandbar, my friends always overload the jukebox with Disney and Grease soundtracks. So I'm going to say "You're the One That I Want" has to be a favorite, since it's inevitably played every time I'm there, but there's few things I love more than hearing "Sweet Caroline" or "Friends in Low Places" getting belted out by everyone in the bar.
Tell us about the first time you came to the Sandbar. I'm not sure I actually remember the first time I went to the Sandbar, as it was shortly after my 21st birthday (to be fair, that whole year is pretty blurry). But I do remember one of the first times we ever went we played upstairs in the sand most of the night. The cutouts are so funny, they should start making more apperances downstairs! I also remember scouring the fish tanks and giving names to our favorites, and obviously doing the car wash after dirty banana shots.
Favorite drink? I can usually only do one or two tropical drinks before hitting a sugar high, but I always have to have at least one shark attack every time I go. Also, dirty banana shots are the greatest shots known to man.
What's the longest you've waited in line? The only time I remember having to stand in line for a really long time was the first time I brought my mom and her friend. They had never 'partied' in Lawrence with me before, and I knew they would have a total blast at The Sandbar. We thankfully only had to wait about 30 minutes or so, and it was well worth it.
…which leads to my funniest memory of The Sandbar. I had promised my mother a legendary hurricane, and once again, it did not disappoint. I think the best time I ever had at The Sandbar was doing a hurricane and singing "Car Wash" with my mom standing on the benches, Bahama Mamas in hand. We laughed so hard, she had the best time.
Favorite memories at The Sandbar? My favorite memories of The Sandbar HAVE to be the birthday parties. My friends and I have been for the past two years, and they are legendary! We took about a gazillion pictures in the photobooth, they're still hanging up in all of our apartments. And last year we got a picture with Coach Self! It's also a lot of fun with the live bands and shutting down the whole block, it's like Sandbar just takes over all of downtown for one night a year!
Favorite drink trinket? I think my favorite drink toys are the Shark Attack sharks, I have more than my fair share of them. I really want to figure out a way to display them properly. Brenna suggested making lights out of them by stringing them on a strand of christmas lights, I think that would be so much fun!
Jukebox song you never want to hear again? Again, with all of the sing-a-long jams my friends pick EVERY TIME we're at the bar, there's more than a handful I'd be fine with never hearing again. Abba's "Dancing Queen" and "Hakuna Matata" from The Lion King are definitely at the top of the list. (Editor's note: Aren't those a couple of Brenna's favorites?!)
Where can you be found when you're not at The Sandbar? When I'm not dressing up as a mermaid for the 11th time (seriously, Erin and I have a contest going to see who can be a mermaid more times than the other. Is there a Guiness World's Record entry for that yet?), I am a Graphic Designer for the Lawrence Journal-World. In my free time I enjoy traveling as much as possible, cheering on the Jayhawks to assured victory (while biting my nails and yelling at the TV), and fighting the effects of my late nights at Sandbar with pilates, soccer, dodgeball, and kickball.
by Debbi | Jan 27, 2011 | Around the World, KU Basketball, People
About four years ago, a group of friends from North Dakota started coming in to the Sandbar during their annual pilgrimage to Lawrence. They were in town this past weekend for the KU-Texas game (sad face!), so we asked them to tell us a little bit about how their annual trip got started, and their thoughts on the Sandbar.
Here's what James had to say:
We grew interest in Lawrence when one of our classmates (Jeff Boschee) played basketball for the Jayhawks and have been continuing our venture there once a year ever since. I believe he played for Kansas from 1999 to 2003 (might be off a year) and we always liked to go out and have a good time there.
As of 4 years ago we discovered The Sandbar and it has been our favorite inLawrence ever since. The people that hang out there are super friendly and Dave is one of the nicest guys in lawrence to b.s. with. The other reason that we like to come to the Sandbar is to make sure we get a dirty banana shot.
While we are on our visit in Lawrence we take in a basketball game as well as taking in a lot of history, we seem to learn someting new about Lawrence every time that we come. Thanks for taking the time to do this, it is a great place and will always be our first stop when we arrive.
Dave took a picture of James and his group (and some random girls that Dave says he kind of encouraged to jump into the picture):
Thanks guys for making us a stop on your annual trip to Lawrence! See you next year!
by Debbi | Jan 22, 2011 | People
Even though she's worked at The Sandbar for nearly FIVE YEARS, this is the first time we've had a staff profile on Tegan. It's about time! (I think she just avoided my requests in the past.)
How long have you worked here? Since May, 2006.
What's your favorite drink to drink? Beer, Irish Car Bombs with the Men of the Sandbar, anything in a shot glass. (that sounds sort of bad) (Editor's note: no, it really doesn't. It makes you sound fun.)
Favorite drink to make? Margaritas if we aren't super busy.
Most unusual drink request you've had? Vodka gimlet, Phil and a random patron are the only two people who have ordered them. Maybe they are making a comeback after a Mad Men episode? (Betty Draper ordered one at the bar on the episode when she had her first affair.)
Favorite memory from working? When Dave got super hammered and after closing time he was being "helpful" and running back and forth with the mop, he fell, slid across the floor and slammed into the front benches. Only to follow it up by running into the locked front door on his way out and breaking the lock. Still my favorite night at the Sandbar! (Editor's note: I was there for this. And it really was hilarious. Only because it's sort of out of character for Dave- don't go thinking he does this stuff all the time.)
Best story from the bar? One night Blair hit me in the face with a bottle of vodka. Sounds worse than it was. I was putting the empty bottle away, and he was being "helpful" and was handing me a new one to put in the speed row. He hit me in the mouth with the bottle, no busted teeth. It was pretty funny. We were all freaking out because I was crying, but it ended up being fine – just a busted lip.
What do you do when you're not working at the bar? Work at my "real job," go to sporting events, spend time with friends.
Favorite jukebox song? Don't have one…
Song you never want to hear again? Pour Some Sugar on Me, Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy, anything Lion King, anything ABBA…
So, Tegan has some pretty funny stories from the bar. She's also well known for baking amazing cookies and bringing them to the bar- but not eating them.
You may have also noticed a trend in these staff profiles; namely, the jukebox songs they never want to hear again. The same songs and artists keep making an appearance…
And finally, I searched my entire catalog of Sandbar pictures (and I have a lot of pictures) for pictures of Tegan, and I couldn't find very many. This one's from last Halloween. I think she must avoid me when I have a camera in my hand.
