Taking a retired facility and making it into a bar while leaving the elements of the old establishment intact, makes tossing one back just a little bit more fun. In a previous post, we visited the Old Glory Speakeasy in Nashville, located in the boiler room of White Way Cleaners, formerly one of the largest steam cleaning facilities in Nashville. The three story boiler is still there. The dark, secretive atmosphere convinced us we were back in prohibition days.
Closer to our home is the Tin Room Bar which took over a tin shop. Ernie, the tin shop’s proprietor, is pictured on the menu. The Tin Shop sign still hangs over the bar. Some of the tools for bending tin are behind the bar. There’s craftsman quality poured into every cocktail.
A little farther up the road is the Anderson School which is one of the McMenamin brother’s repurposed establishments. The hotel and grounds sport several bars with our favorite being the Principal’s Office which seats about six people and offers specialty cocktails that would make Principal Anderson proud. Located in Bothell, Washington the hotel, bars and restaurants feature vignettes of local history throughout. You’ll leave happy and a little smarter.
In future posts, we will explore bars in an old Elk’s Temple, a bank vault, a poor farm, a brothel, a barge, a plane, a train and historic hotels.
Meanwhile, go online and see what repurposed bars are in your area. Oftentimes, there’s a fun history lesson to go along with your cocktail.
– Jet Cannon
