# Bizarre Bar Names **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 30, 2007, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609 "2007-10-30T18:36:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/21 "2007-10-30T22:03:26Z")
[QUOTE=control-z] Durty Nelly’s Pub in Charlottesville VA. [/QUOTE] Weird! There used to be a dive bar in Palatine IL called Durty Nellies, which is still there but now as a giant sized yuppie bar. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/22 "2007-10-30T22:19:40Z")
We have a Durty Nelly’s as well. Irish bar. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/23 "2007-10-30T22:24:32Z")
[QUOTE=Lionne] When I went to Dublin, my friends and I were walking along the river Liffey. We saw a building that said “ **Inn on the Liffey** ” and walked further to see another building, obviously a bar, called “ **Out on the Liffey** ”. [/QUOTE] Was that a gay bar, then? ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/24 "2007-10-30T22:26:41Z")
[QUOTE=Siam Sam] We also have a bar called The Office, presumably so guys can tell their sweeties over the phone, “Sorry, Honey, but I’m stuck at The Office.” [/QUOTE] We’ve got one of them near here as well. We’ve also got a strip joint nearby called “The Gentleman’s Day Care Center”. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/25 "2007-10-30T22:58:04Z")
[QUOTE=Siam Sam] We also have a bar called The Office, presumably so guys can tell their sweeties over the phone, “Sorry, Honey, but I’m stuck at The Office.” [/QUOTE] There used to be a bar in LA called the Branch office. Honey, I’m gonna be late I have to stop by the branch office. ---
**Author:** ![Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Man_With_a_Cat)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/26 "2007-10-30T23:00:50Z")
[QUOTE=Cluricaun] There’s a dive bar in Aurora IL called “Alibi” that I always thought fitting. Right down the road from the trailer park too. Oh, and there used to be a place in the Ukrainian Village called “Tuman’s Alcohol Abuse Center”. That was the greatest bar ever. [/QUOTE] Tuman’s is still there. Well, as of a few months ago anyway. It’s been moderatley cleaned up, you no longer have an open drainpipe to pee into, and the giant picture of Bela Lugosi is gone from above the bathroom entrances, but the clientèle is the same. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/27 "2007-10-30T23:06:57Z")
Here in Panama there’s one the Transistmica highway called the _Tunel del Tiempo_ (Time Tunnel). I always wondered whether it was supposed to take you into the past or the future. It’s right down the road from the Dago Restaurant. That one also always gives me pause. ---
**Author:** ![straykat23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@straykat23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/straykat23)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/28 "2007-10-30T23:15:33Z")
The original Durty Nelly’s is in Limerick, Ireland, and was established in 1620. There’s a great little website that starts off with this history that contains a bit of the blarney: > [@](#): > > A thousand years ago in the misty past of Cratloe’s rolling county side… this being the honest truth so help me… there lived a robust “lady”… stately in stature: well-shaped and, by all accounts, with attributes which were genuine enough not to require any of the skillfully designed aids to the provocative beauty of the female form. > > She was known simply as Durty Nelly… a name that puzzled all who had the good fortune to be granted her welcome… but were unaware of the story of struggle and heartbreak behind the warm smile of their contented hostess. [History of Dirty Nelly’s](http://www.durtynellys.ie/history.htm) There are Durty Nelly’s all over the world, including Perth (WA), Costa Mesa (CA), Amsterdam and Mallorca. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2007, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/29 "2007-10-30T23:50:02Z")
[QUOTE=Mr Bus Guy] Tuman’s is still there. Well, as of a few months ago anyway. It’s been moderatley cleaned up, you no longer have an open drainpipe to pee into, and the giant picture of Bela Lugosi is gone from above the bathroom entrances, but the clientèle is the same. [/QUOTE] Yup, still there, gonna be in there tomorrow as a matter of fact. They were forced to take down the “Alcohol Abuse Center” sign but they now have it hanging inside on the wall. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/30 "2007-10-31T01:06:12Z")
Portland has the **Pub At The End Of The Universe and a Bar Of The Gods, not to mention a Maiden In The Mists. There’s a bar in Veritable Quandary. Also there’s the Laurelthirst Pub** , and you can’t beat **Wanker’s Corners** for great name value–it’s actually the name of the whole teeny town as well as the bar. Corvallis has the **Bomb’s Away Cafe** and the **Fox and Firkin** , which just sounds dirty to me. There’s also a **Blue Ball’s Pub** in Portland, and a **Hung Far Low** as well–perhaps run by the same family? I’m not sure what they sell at **Ye Old Dingheiser’s Pub** but it’s probably just as well. I know I’ve seen a sign for the **Glory Hole** but if you think I’m going in there you are high. **Sewickly’s Addition** is a bit of a head scratcher–what it is added to? **Amnesia Brewing** is pretty straightforward and admirably accurate; so is the **Blitz Bar.**** Bent Liquid Lounge Bistro **is a gay bar–quelle surprise! What do you figure the main entertainment at** Dancin’ Bare** is? I love my town… ---
**Author:** ![LVgeogeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b19c9b/32.png) [@LVgeogeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVgeogeek)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/31 "2007-10-31T01:08:26Z")
There is the [Slanted Clam](http://lasvegas.citysearch.com/profile/41756677/las_vegas_nv/the_slanted_clam_tavern.html) Tavern here in Las Vegas. The first time I saw the sign, I had to do a double take to see if I read it correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/32 "2007-10-31T01:09:37Z")
It’s closed now, but Birmingham AL used to have a bar (very successful for a while) called _Martha’s Beauty Shop and Chain Saw Repair_. There was a combo art-gallery/bar in Montgomery for a time called _Nirvana_. Employees answered the phone “You’ve reached Nirvana…”. (Didn’t last long- it was a for bohemians/by bohemians type place and they had neither the money nor the business savvy to last long.) A friend who was in the navy told me about a topless bar he used to go to in a navy city but I can’t remember which one- San Diego? Newport News? Anyway, it’s name was The Bearded Clam. And then there was the gay bar in Huntsville AL that was briefly known as DICK-VANS-DYKES before they had to change their name due to a cease and desist (not from Dick Van Dyke, actually, who probaby never heard of it, but from the city based on complaints about indecency due to the double meaning). ---
**Author:** ![Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/57b2e6/32.png) [@Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Random)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/33 "2007-10-31T01:19:27Z")
[QUOTE=Cluricaun] Weird! There used to be a dive bar in Palatine IL called Durty Nellies, which is still there but now as a giant sized yuppie bar. [/QUOTE] Name taken from a pub near Limerick, Ireland. (on edit: beaten to it) ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/34 "2007-10-31T01:41:06Z")
**Mother’s Mattress Factory** in Corvallis, OR. Alas, it’s long gone now. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/35 "2007-10-31T02:36:24Z")
[QUOTE=Mr Bus Guy] Tuman’s is still there. Well, as of a few months ago anyway. It’s been moderatley cleaned up, you no longer have an open drainpipe to pee into, and the giant picture of Bela Lugosi is gone from above the bathroom entrances, but the clientèle is the same. [/QUOTE] They took down the painted window that had the Alcohol Abuse Center on it and you can’t get a $2.50 Guinness anymore though. It’s been…had. ETA - Missed **Omnicent** ’s post. The window is inside now? Sad. ---
**Author:** ![Aussie\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Aussie\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aussie_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/36 "2007-10-31T02:47:44Z")
We have two seperate pubs within 10 km’s of here - One’s called the Clock and Beaver and the other is the Pig and Whistle ---
**Author:** ![Rhubarb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/59ef9b/32.png) [@Rhubarb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhubarb)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/37 "2007-10-31T04:04:05Z")
There used to be a bar in Arlington (TX) near the university called **Skippy’s Mistake - Bar and Playground**. There was a Kip’s Big Boy statue at the front door and an MG Midget on the roof. They had sand volley ball courts in the back and a washer and dryer on the back patio (50 cent wash, free dry). There was an old school bus attached to the side of the building (the “Magic Bus”) which served as the game room. ---
**Author:** ![Lucky\_13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucky_13/32/13209_2.png) [@Lucky\_13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_13)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/38 "2007-10-31T08:32:58Z")
There’s a bar/restaurant in West L.A. called Father’s Office. It’s famous for its blue cheese burger. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/39 "2007-10-31T09:00:17Z")
A bar in Belfast, in a fairly Irish Nationalist area (I was engaged in conversation at the urinals once by an ex-prisoner having a laugh about IRA men escaping from prison) has the fairly english name “The Rose and Crown”. ---
**Author:** ![kferr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@kferr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kferr)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609/40 "2007-10-31T12:55:19Z")
The [Idle Working Men’s Club](http://www.inns-and-outs.co.uk/html/idle_working_men_s_club.html) is in this year’s Good Beer Guide. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bizarre-bar-names/424609.md?page=3)