The other night a few of your fearless bloggers tackled the newest themed venue in the old city Jig & Reel. All said not a bad experience. Here, in brief, are a few thoughts from those who ventured deep in to the Gaelic heart of the Bowery.
[the Pol]
A cozy feel, though the fake fireplace is a bit kitsch even for that place. Nice server, even if she did talk me into purchasing a "boo-yay" bourbon. (10 points to the person who figures out what she meant) Yes my mistake, it is a scotch bar predominately. Anyhow, I'd go back especially during the winter. A nice place to hole up and forget for a while.
[Wild Bill]
The idea is a bit cliche, but it works. Everyone who is employed wears a kilt, they don't serve any whiskey (so I was told, only Scotch or Bourbon) and the menu is expansive. If you look at the bottom of the attached picture you can get 2 oz. of Scotch for only $130! I, admittedly, know nothing about Scotch, but that seems a bit steep. If anyone from the Jig and Reel reads this post a menu that explains the differences would be nice. The front room is cozy. The middle room reserved for "jam sessions" is a bit awkward. The back room just feels empty. They have two felt dart boards but would really benefit from having a whole room so that Knoxville could have a real darts bar.
Overall I would give it a B-, with editing (particularly the darts because I love darts) they could move up to a B+.
[B]
To be honest, I wasn't so sure about the place considering the name, the logo, and the fact that they painted the whole building red, but after our visit, my cynicism has subsided.
I entered the bar that Saturday night after Doc checked my ID (very glad he's still kickin' it down there), and took a seat in the first booth with The Pol, Mrs. The Pol, and Wild Bill. The doors were open as it was a lovely evening. There was good music coming from the second room (I forget who played). The cover was $10 to sit and see the band in the second room, but we opted to just hear it for free.
Our server was very attentive throughout the evening, asking us several times if we needed anything. Maybe we didn't look drunk enough for her (I blame Mrs. The Pol for that.)
All of the servers wore "kilts," though I would just call what the females wore teeny plaid skirts. Being a woman myself, I appreciated the tameness of their attire, as it would be easy to slut that uniform up in order to compete with the other fine establishments in the vicinity.
There was lots of Scottish paraphernalia scattered across the wall, but the icing on the cake was a Braveheart poster in the women's restroom.
I figure I'll definitely go back, but only if there is vacancy in the first room, as the second and third rooms lack ambiance. I look forward to sitting in the wingback chairs in front of the faux fireplace with a loved one some cold winter evening in the future. I also am very tempted to try their menu soon. Yummers.
Boyd's Jig & Reel
101 S. Central St
Knoxville, TN 37902
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Gettin' Jig & Reel-y Wit It
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3 comments:
They do indeed serve other whiskey (and whisky). I had several Bushmill's there a couple weeks back.
The Braveheart poster made me chuckle too.
I agree that the second room lacks a certain je nais se quoi, but they've at least brought in appropriately themed music. The one time I've been, there was a nice bagpiper (though it was a bit loud for the setting), and the Irish trad music I've heard wafting from within as I've walked by sounds very authentic. I give them kudos for the music alone.
I too witnessed the bottles of Bushmills and I *think* I recall some Jamesons. If anything, I'm shocked they'd offer bourbon with it being a Scottish/Irish style place.
We have over 100 different types of Scotch "Whisky", multiple types of Irish "Whiskey" and ten to fifteen types of Bourbon. The reason for the Bourbon is that most Scotch whisky is aged at some point in used Bourbon casks. We also have American and Canadian whiskey. Thanks for the feedback. It helps us get of feel for how we are doing. Also the fireplace is real, it's just not cold enough to use it yet.
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